How to get your business on Google Maps in Pakistan
A free, step-by-step guide to listing your business on Google Maps in Pakistan: Google Business Profile setup, verification, photos, hours and reviews.
Written by [Founder name]Founder, Site33
8 min readPublished [DATE]
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Short answer
To get your business on Google Maps, create a free Google Business Profile at google.com/business. Add your exact business name, the right category, your location (or the areas you serve), phone number and opening hours, then verify it with the method Google offers you, often a short video of your premises. Once it is verified, add real photos, keep your hours up to date and ask happy customers for reviews.
Key takeaways
- A Google Business Profile is free. You never have to pay Google to appear on Maps.
- Search for your business first: it may already be listed, and you can claim it.
- Use your real signboard name. Adding extra keywords to the name breaks Google's rules.
- Verification is usually a video of your premises, a code by phone, text or email, or a postcard.
Before you start: what you need
Setting up a profile is free and you can do it from your phone. Have these ready before you begin, so you can finish in one sitting.
Have these ready
- A Google account (Gmail) that the owner controls
- Your business name, exactly as it appears on your signboard
- Your full address, or the areas you serve if customers do not come to you
- A phone number that someone answers during opening hours
- Your opening hours, including the days you are closed
- Clear photos: the front with your signboard, the inside, your team, your work or products
- Your website link, if you have one
Use a separate Gmail for the business
Create a Gmail just for the business and keep the password with the owner. You can add staff as managers of the profile later, so the listing stays yours even if someone leaves.
Step 1: Check if your business is already on Google Maps
Open Google Maps and search for your business name and area. Customers and Google can add places on their own, so your business may already have a listing that nobody manages.
- If you find it and it shows Own this business? or Claim this business, tap it and follow the steps to claim it.
- If someone else (an old employee or an agency) already manages it, you can request access during the claim process.
- If there is no listing yet, go to Step 2.
One location, one listing
Do not create a second listing for the same place. Duplicate listings confuse customers and are against Google's guidelines, so Google may remove them.
Step 2: Create your Google Business Profile
Step 1: Go to google.com/business
Sign in with the business Gmail and choose to add your business.
Step 2: Enter your business name
Type it exactly as customers see it on your signboard, receipts and social pages. Do not add words like 'best', your city or your services to the name.
Step 3: Pick your main category
Choose the most specific category that fits, such as Dental clinic, Beauty salon or Pakistani restaurant. You can add more categories later.
Step 4: Add your location or service area
If customers visit you, add your address and place the map pin exactly on your entrance. If you go to customers (for example a plumber, caterer or home tutor), choose the areas you serve and hide your address.
Step 5: Add your phone number and website
Use a number that is answered during your opening hours. If you do not have a website yet, you can add one later.
Step 6: Choose how to verify
Google shows the verification options available for your business. The next step explains them.
Addresses with landmarks
Many addresses in Pakistan are given by landmark, like 'near the main chowk'. Write your address as it appears on your documents and let the map pin show the exact spot. You can mention a well-known landmark in your business description and on your website.
Step 3: Verify your business
Verification proves to Google that you really run the business at that location. Until it is done, your profile may not show on Maps and you cannot manage everything in it.
Google decides which methods you can use. The common ones are:
- Video recording: a short, continuous video of your business, recorded on your phone.
- Phone call or text message: a code sent to your business number.
- Email: a code sent to an email address linked to your business.
- Postcard: a card with a code sent to your address.
- Live video call: in some cases, a short call with a Google support person.
Tips for video verification
- Start outside: show the street, nearby shops or a landmark, and your signboard.
- Walk in through your entrance in one continuous shot, without cutting the video.
- Show where you work: your counter, equipment, products or treatment room.
- Show that you manage the place, for example by unlocking the door, opening the cash counter or showing a business document.
- Record in daylight, hold the phone steady and upload on a good connection.
If verification fails
Read the reason Google gives, fix it (a missing signboard and a pin in the wrong place are common causes) and try again. While Google is reviewing, do not keep changing your name, address or category: big changes can start the checks again.
Step 4: Complete your profile so customers choose you
Verification is only the start. Customers compare profiles before they call, so fill in everything that applies to you:
- Opening hours and special hours for Eid, public holidays and Ramadan, so nobody arrives at a closed shutter.
- Photos of your signboard and entrance (so people can find you), the inside, your team and your work or products. Use real photos, not stock images.
- Services or products, each with a short description, and prices where you can share them.
- Business description: two or three plain sentences about what you do, who you serve and your area.
- Attributes that Google offers for your category, such as accessibility details.
- Your website, linking to a page that shows the same name, address, phone number and hours.
Keep your details the same everywhere
Use the same business name, address and phone number on your website, Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp and directories. When the details match, customers and search engines can trust them.
Step 5: Get reviews the honest way
Reviews help new customers decide. Your profile gives you a short link that opens the review box directly.
- Ask every happy customer at the right moment: just after a good visit, meal or delivery.
- Send your review link on WhatsApp, or turn it into a QR code for your counter.
- Reply to every review, good or bad, politely and briefly. Other customers read the replies too.
Never buy reviews or reward them
Google's policies do not allow fake, paid or rewarded reviews. They can be removed and your profile can be restricted. At Site33 we ask every client for an honest Google review after launch, and no discount or reward depends on it.
Keep your profile up to date
- Update your hours before Ramadan and Eid, and for any closure.
- Add new photos every few months, especially after a renovation or a new service.
- Post updates and offers from your profile when you have news.
- Check your profile every week for new reviews and reply to them.
- Watch for suggested edits: other people can suggest changes to a listing, so make sure your details stay correct.
Do you also need a website?
You can be on Google Maps without a website. But a profile has limited space, and customers often want to see your full services, prices and photos before they call. A website also gives Google and AI search tools more facts about your business.
Every Site33 plan links your website to your Google listing and shows your location on a map. From the Business plan (Rs 1,999 a month, 12-month plan) we also set up and optimise your Google Business Profile for you; on Starter it is a one-time add-on.
Common questions
Is it free to put my business on Google Maps?
Yes. A Google Business Profile is free. Google Ads are a separate, paid product. Be careful of anyone who says you must pay Google to be listed on Maps.
How long does Google Business Profile verification take?
It depends on the method. Codes by phone, text or email can arrive quickly. A video has to be reviewed by Google, which can take a few days, and a postcard depends on the post.
Can I list a business that I run from home?
Yes. If customers do not come to your home, set it up as a service-area business: hide your address and choose the areas you serve. If customers do visit you at home, you can show the address.
Why is my business not showing when I search for it?
New profiles can take time to appear. Google's local results also depend on what the person searched, how far they are from you and how well known and complete your profile is. Check that you are verified, your category is right and your profile is filled in.
Can I change my business name later?
Yes, but keep it the same as your real signboard name. Changing the name, address or category can make Google ask you to verify again.
Sources and further reading
Written by
[Founder name]
Founder, Site33
[Founder name] is the founder of Site33. Site33 designs, hosts and looks after websites for local businesses in Pakistan, and writes these guides to answer the questions owners ask us most.
About Site33