Google Business Profile checklist for a new cafe or restaurant.

Search for your business name on Google Maps. If a listing exists, claim it. If not, add it. Google will ask you to prove you run the place. The method depends on your business and can take a few days, so start here.

Use a Google account the business controls, not a personal one, so access doesn't walk out the door when someone leaves.

• Primary category. Pick the one that describes what you mostly are, such as cafe or a specific type of restaurant. It carries the most weight, so choose carefully, then add secondary categories for what else you do.
• Name. Use the name on your sign. Don't add keywords or locations to it: that can get a listing suspended.
• Hours, including holidays. Set special hours for holidays and closures. Wrong hours are the quickest way to lose a guest and earn a one-star review.
• Phone and website. Use a number that gets answered, and link to a page that loads fast on a phone.
• Menu, ordering and booking links. Add every link a guest might want, so they don't have to hunt for it.

• Real photos. The front door so people can find you, the room, the counter, your best dishes, your team. Add new ones regularly. Skip stock images.
• A clear description. Say what you serve and what makes you different, in plain words. Keep links and offers out of it.
• Attributes. Mark what's true: outdoor seating, vegetarian options, step-free access, takeaway. Guests filter on these.

• Ask every guest. Not only the ones who seemed happy. Picking who to ask is called review gating, and Google's policies are against it.
• Make it easy. Use the direct review link from your profile and put it on a QR code at the counter or table.
• Never pay for reviews. No discounts, free coffee or prize draws in exchange for a review.
• Never write your own. And don't ask friends or staff to. Fake reviews are illegal in many places and can get your listing removed.
• Reply to every review. Keep it short, warm and specific. If it's negative, don't argue: say what you'll do and offer to talk offline.
• Skip Yelp requests. Yelp tells businesses not to ask for reviews, so point guests to Google.

Your name, address and phone number should be identical on Google, Apple Maps, Bing Places, Facebook, delivery apps and your own website. That way nobody, including the assistants and search tools that read these sources, sends a guest to the wrong place or an old number.

Put your address, hours, menu, parking and common questions on one plain page of your site. Write the menu as text, not only as a PDF or a photo, so search and assistants can read it.

Ten minutes a week is enough: reply to new reviews, add a photo, update hours or specials. Every now and then, check that your name, hours and phone number are still correct, because other people can suggest edits to your listing.

Your profile shows how many people called, asked for directions or clicked through to your website. Write down this month's numbers before you change anything. In three months you'll be able to see whether the work moved them.