If you have a new website, or you are starting SEO work, one of the first jobs is to add the company helping you to your Google Business Profile.
This tells Google who is allowed to update your details, reply to reviews and keep your local information accurate in Search and on Maps. It is a small step that makes a big difference to your local visibility.
Heres a quick link to help document from Google: Add Owners and Managers to Google Profile
Your Google Business Profile (GBP) is the panel that appears in Google Search and on Google Maps when someone looks for your business name, or a service you offer in your area.
It shows your address, phone number, website, opening hours, photos, reviews and updates.
If any of this is wrong or out of date, people may click away and choose a competitor instead. Keeping your profile accurate is just as important as keeping your website up to date.
When you work with an SEO or marketing company, they will often need to:
Update your opening hours.
Add or edit services.
Upload photos and posts.
Reply to reviews.
Check how many people are finding you through Google.
They cannot do this unless you give them access.
The safest way is to add them as a user on your Google Business Profile, rather than sharing your Google password. You stay in control, and they get what they need to do the work you are paying for.
Google uses three main roles:
The Primary owner is the main person in charge. There can only be one.
Owners can change important settings and add or remove other users.
Managers can handle most day to day tasks, such as posts, photos and reviews, but have slightly fewer permissions.
In many cases, your SEO or marketing company only needs to be added as an Owner or a Manager. That way they can manage your presence without touching your personal account details.
Here is the simple version of the process.
Sign in to Google using the account that owns your Business Profile.
Search for your business name on Google. You should see options like “Edit profile”, “Promote” or “Customers”.
Click on the option that lets you manage the profile, then look for “Business Profile settings” and “People and access” or “Managers”.
In the user management section, add a new person by entering their email address, choosing their role (Owner or Manager) and sending an invitation.
They will receive an email and need to accept it before they can access your profile.
For the full, up to date instructions, you can follow Google’s own guide at the link at the top of this page.
Only add people and companies you trust.
Use a business email address where possible.
Give them the lowest level of access they need to do the work you have agreed.
If you stop working with that company later on, you can remove or downgrade their access in the same “People and access” section. This keeps your business secure while still allowing professionals to help.
Local SEO is not just about your website. Your Google Business Profile is a big part of how you show up when someone searches for “service + near me”.
If your SEO company cannot access your profile, they are limited in what they can do. Once you add them properly, they can:
Align your profile with your website.
Fix old or incorrect information.
Improve the way you appear for local searches.
All of this makes it easier for real people in your area to find and choose you.
If you are investing in a new website or SEO work, taking a few minutes to add your SEO or marketing company to your Google Business Profile is well worth it. It keeps your account secure, saves you time, and gives them the access they need to help your business grow.
oogle Business Profile is the new name for what used to be called Google My Business. Before that, it was often referred to as Google Places or Google+ Local, so if you hear different terms, they are all versions of the same thing over time. In November 2021, Google announced that “Google My Business” would be rebranded as “Google Business Profile”. The main reason was to simplify how local businesses manage their presence, and to encourage owners to update their details directly in Google Search and Google Maps, instead of using a separate Google My Business dashboard.
The change was also part of a bigger push to make things easier on mobile and to put more focus on single-location businesses. Larger companies with many locations were moved towards a different toolset, while everyday local businesses were encouraged to manage everything straight from the search results. So if someone still says “Google My Business”, they are talking about the same core thing. Today, the correct name is Google Business Profile, but the goal has stayed the same: to help customers find accurate, up to date information about your business as quickly as possible.
