The map pack gets clicks your website never sees — three listings above every organic result, for exactly the searches that convert best: "near me", with intent to call or visit today.
Complete setup checklist
Correct primary and secondary categories, a full services list, accurate attributes (wheelchair access, parking, payment types), and precise service-area boundaries if you travel to customers rather than the other way round.
The photo strategy that outperforms
Real jobs, real faces, real premises — uploaded weekly, not once at setup. Profiles with fresh, genuine photography consistently out-rank and out-click glossier but static competitors.
Reviews: velocity, replies, and the unfair one-star
An ethical, automated "how did we do?" request after every job builds volume and recency naturally. Reply to every review — good and bad — within a day or two. For an unfair one-star, a calm, factual public reply does more for trust than the review itself does damage.
Weekly posts & Q&A seeding
Short weekly posts (offers, completed jobs, opening hours changes) keep the profile active in Google's eyes. Seeding your own FAQ into the Q&A section pre-empts the questions customers would otherwise ask a competitor instead.
The metrics to actually watch
Calls, direction requests and website taps — not just "views". These three tell you whether the profile is actually producing enquiries, not just impressions.
Common myths
Review-gating (asking only happy customers to leave reviews) breaches Google's policies and risks the whole profile. Keyword-stuffing your business name also breaches guidelines and can trigger a suspension — categories and services are where keywords belong.