A Google Business Profile is a law firm's free listing on Google Search and Maps. It shows the firm's name, address, phone number, opening hours, reviews and a link to its website, and it is what appears in the map pack when someone nearby searches for a solicitor. In Affirmed's Hampshire and Isle of Wight research, a local pack appeared on 110 of 112 town searches, so for most firms the profile is the first thing a local client sees.
This guide covers how to set up, verify, run and protect a profile for a UK solicitors' firm, from eligibility to suspensions and measurement. For hands-on help, see our Google Business Profile optimisation for solicitors.
Contents
- Before you start: eligibility, ownership and access
- Setting up and verifying the profile
- Choosing categories
- Services, description and opening hours
- SRA details and the profile
- Reviews and replies
- Posts and photos
- More than one office
- Suspensions and how to recover
- Measuring what your profile does
- Where the profile fits in local SEO
- FAQs
- Next step
Before you start: eligibility, ownership and access
A few decisions made before you create a profile save trouble later. They cover which offices qualify, who owns the profile and how others get access.
Which offices are eligible
A profile is for a real office where clients can meet the firm. Google's guidelines for representing your business say a profile should be created for the business's actual, real-world location.
Virtual offices are not eligible. The same guidelines say a co-working space can only be listed if the office has clear signage, receives customers during opening hours and is staffed by the business during those hours.
Service areas
A service area is for businesses that visit or deliver to customers rather than serving them at their address. Google's page on service-area and hybrid businesses explains the settings.
Most law firms see clients at their offices, so they show their address. A service area only makes sense for a firm that genuinely travels to clients.
Ownership and access
The firm should own its profile, using a firm account that stays with the business when people leave. Google's page on owners and managers explains that owners have full control, while managers can edit the profile, reply to reviews and manage posts but cannot add or remove users.
Keep ownership in-house. If an agency or supplier helps, give them manager access, so the firm always controls who can change the profile.
Is it free?
Yes. Google states that creating a Business Profile is free, so the only cost is the time the firm or its advisers put into it.
Setting up and verifying the profile
Accurate details at the start make verification smoother and keep the profile stable. Google's page on how to add or claim your Business Profile walks through the first steps.
The firm name
Use the firm's name exactly as it appears on its signage, website and stationery. Google's guidelines say the name should reflect the real-world name, and that including unnecessary information in the name could result in suspension.
Do not add practice areas, towns or keywords to the name. "Smith and Co Solicitors" stays as it is, rather than becoming "Smith and Co Solicitors Divorce Lawyer Southampton".
Address, phone and website
Enter the full office address as it appears on your signage and letterhead. Use a phone number that reaches that office, and make sure the same number appears on the website.
For the website link, Google's guidelines ask for a site that represents the individual location. For a firm with several offices, that usually means the office's own location page rather than the homepage.
Verification routes
Google decides which verification options a profile is offered. Its page on how to verify your business lists phone or text, email, live video call and postcard, and recommends video recording where a business is eligible.
Video verification
Google's page on verifying with a video recording sets out what the video must show. It needs to show the location, such as street signs or building numbers, the firm's name on permanent signage, and proof that you manage the business.
The video must be an unedited, complete recording with no breaks, uploaded from a mobile device through the profile. Plan the route around the office before you start, and avoid filming client files, screens or other people's faces.
Choosing categories
Categories tell Google what the firm is. They are one of the most important choices on the profile, and one of the most often overlooked.
Primary and additional categories
The primary category describes the firm's main business, and additional categories cover other main areas of work. Google's page on business categories says to choose a specific category from the list where one exists, and a general one only if the specific category is not available.
Google's guidelines also say to use as few categories as possible, to choose ones that are as specific as possible, and not to use categories as keywords. A good test from those guidelines is whether the category completes the sentence "This business is a".
What the Hampshire research found
In the Hampshire report, a profile was found for 59 firms, and 7 of 59 use a practice-specific primary category. The rest use "Law firm" (22), "Lawyer" (19), "Legal services" (9) or another or unknown category (2).
Most firms, in other words, describe themselves in general terms. A firm whose main work is family or personal injury, for example, can describe that work more precisely.
Choosing the closest category
Start with the firm's main practice area, then search the category list in your own profile dashboard for the closest match. Category names vary, so use the options Google shows you rather than lists found online, many of which are written for other countries.
Add additional categories only for other main areas of work. Revisit them when the firm's focus changes, for example after a merger or when a practice area grows or closes.
Services, description and opening hours
These sections fill in the detail behind the categories. They are where a client learns what the firm actually does.
Services
List the services the firm offers at that office, using plain UK terms such as conveyancing, divorce and separation, children arrangements, wills, probate and employment advice. Give each a short description that matches the practice-area page on your website.
Keep services consistent with what the firm actually offers from that office. An office that does not handle a type of work should not list it.
Description
Google's guidelines say the description should give useful information about the services offered and the business's history, and must not include links or focus on promotions and prices. Write a few plain sentences about who the firm helps, its main practice areas and where it is based.
Avoid claims the firm cannot back up on its website, and leave out superlatives. A calm, factual description reads better to a client comparing firms.
Opening hours and holiday hours
Keep regular hours accurate, including any late or weekend opening. Google's page on special hours explains how to set special hours without changing your regular hours, and suggests confirming hours for official holidays even when they match your usual ones.
Set holiday hours ahead of Christmas and bank holidays. A client who calls during a closure that the profile did not show is a client the firm may not hear from again.
SRA details and the profile
The profile and the website should tell the same story about who the firm is. For a regulated firm, the website is where the regulatory details live, and the profile should point clients there.
Keep the core details consistent
Use the same firm name, office address and phone number on the profile as on the website. Where a client checks the firm, they should find the same details in each place.
Link to the page that carries the SRA details
Link the profile to a page that carries the firm's SRA number and digital badge, such as an office or practice-area page with the details in the footer. Where the firm publishes prices for certain services, make those pages easy to reach from the page the profile links to.
Keep claims in line with the website
Anything said on the profile, in the description, services or posts, should be backed up on the website. If a point cannot be found on the site, leave it off the profile. For trust signals on the website more generally, such as solicitor bios and price pages, see our guide to SEO for solicitors.
Reviews and replies
Reviews are part of how clients choose a solicitor, and they are one of the most visible parts of a profile. The Hampshire research looked at ratings, counts, replies and how recent the reviews were.
What the research found
In the report, 36 of 58 firms with a rating score 4.5 or more, and 21 of 59 have 100 or more Google reviews. The median was 67 reviews.
Across the 20 newest reviews of 57 firms, 19 had no replies, 12 replied to under half and 26 replied to half or more. 14 of 57 had no new review in the last 90 days.
Ask at a natural point
Ask for a review when a matter closes and the client is pleased, with a short message and a direct link. Google's tips to get more reviews explain how to create a link or QR code that takes clients to your review form.
Ask every client in the same way. Google's prohibited and restricted content policy does not allow businesses to selectively solicit positive reviews, to discourage negative ones or to offer incentives in exchange for reviews.
Reply calmly and keep client details private
Reply to reviews, positive and negative, in a calm and professional tone. Google's tips recommend replying to reviews, staying polite, and never sharing a reviewer's private information.
For a law firm, that means never confirming that the reviewer is a client and never discussing their matter. Thank them, respond to the general point and, for a concern, invite them to contact the firm directly.
Flagging fake reviews
If a review breaks Google's policies, such as spam or content that is not based on a real experience, you can report it. Google's page on reporting inappropriate reviews explains how, and notes that only reviews that break its policies are eligible for removal.
Reply calmly to a review you have reported while you wait. Clients reading it will see a measured response.
Posts and photos
Posts and photos keep the profile current and show clients what the firm is like. Google's dashboard and help pages show the options available to your profile at any time.
Posts
Google's page on posts explains that businesses can share updates, offers and events on their profile on Search and Maps. For a law firm, useful posts include new guides, changes to services, office moves, new team members and holiday closures.
There is no fixed rule on how often to post. A steady rhythm that the firm can keep up, with each post linking to a relevant page on the site, works better than a burst followed by silence.
Photos
Add real photos of the office exterior, the entrance, reception and meeting rooms, and the team. Google's page on photos and videos explains how to add and manage them.
Leave out stock images. A client who is nervous about a first meeting wants to know what the building looks like and who they will meet.
More than one office
Multi-office firms need a profile for each staffed office. Google's guidelines say not to create more than one profile for each location.
One profile per staffed office
Give each staffed office its own profile at its real address, with the same firm name. Use each office's own local phone number where it has one, and link each profile to that office's location page.
Avoid duplicates and unstaffed addresses
Check for old or duplicate profiles, such as one left over from a previous office or created by a former employee. Duplicates confuse clients and are against Google's guidelines, so remove or merge them.
Never create a profile for an address where no one from the firm works. A meeting room hired by the hour, or a postal address, is not an office in Google's terms. Our page on SEO for multi-location law firms covers office structure, profiles and location pages in more detail.
Suspensions and how to recover
A suspended profile can stop showing on Google, which can be a serious problem for a busy office. Most suspensions trace back to a guideline issue that can be fixed.
Common triggers
- Keywords in the name: practice areas or towns added to the firm name, which Google's guidelines say could result in suspension.
- An ineligible address: a virtual office, an unstaffed co-working space or a postal address.
- Duplicate profiles: more than one profile for the same office.
- A review drive that breaks the rules: incentivised or fake reviews can lead to review restrictions, such as new reviews being blocked or a warning shown on the profile. Google explains these in Business Profile restrictions for policy violations.
Plan big changes, such as a new firm name or an office move, with care. Google's page on editing your profile says edits are reviewed before they go live, and a new name or address can mean verifying again.
Fix the cause first
Before you appeal, find and fix the issue. Remove keywords from the name, correct the address, close duplicates and make sure the profile follows the guidelines in full.
Use Google's appeal process
Google's page on fixing suspended or disabled profiles explains how to appeal through its appeals tool. It also says not to create a new profile for the same business.
The page lists evidence that can support an appeal, such as official business registration and utility bills, with the business name and address matching the profile. Keep these ready, along with photos of the office signage and entrance.
Measuring what your profile does
A profile is worth measuring by what clients do with it. Google's page on performance and insights shows the main measures.
Profile performance
The performance report shows views, the search terms people used, calls from the call button, website clicks and direction requests. Review them by office each month to see which profiles bring the most contact.
Tag the website link
Add UTM parameters to the website link on each profile, so GA4 can separate profile visits from other Google traffic. Google's guide to URL builders explains how.
Enquiries, not rankings
The useful question is how many enquiries each profile brings, and for which practice areas. In the Hampshire research, a phone number was visible on the first mobile screen for 29 of 60 websites, so check that the page a profile links to makes calling easy.
Our analytics and reporting service sets up this tracking for law firms. To see where your profile and website stand today, start with a free law firm SEO audit.
Where the profile fits in local SEO
The profile is one part of local search, alongside location pages, directories and reviews. Google's page on improving local ranking describes three factors: relevance, distance and prominence.
The Hampshire report found that 115 different businesses filled 343 local pack slots, and the 6 most frequent held 21%. The map is shared widely, which leaves room for a firm that keeps its profile accurate and active.
For the wider picture, read our local SEO guide for law firms and the full Hampshire and Isle of Wight report. Our local SEO for solicitors and our GBP optimisation service cover the hands-on work.
FAQs
Is a Google Business Profile free for a law firm?
Yes. Google states that creating a Business Profile and listing a business on Google is free. The investment is the time spent setting it up accurately, keeping it current and replying to reviews.
Can a law firm with a virtual office have a profile?
No. Google's guidelines say a virtual office is not eligible for a Business Profile. A co-working space only qualifies if the firm has clear signage there, receives clients during opening hours and has its own staff on site during those hours.
Should each solicitor have their own profile?
Google allows individual practitioners, including lawyers, to have their own profile if they are public-facing and can be contacted at the verified office during stated hours. Where several practitioners work at one office, the firm keeps its own profile for that office, and a practitioner's profile carries only their name. Most firms focus on one strong profile per office.
Why was our profile suspended?
Suspensions usually follow a guideline issue, such as keywords in the firm name, an ineligible address or a duplicate profile. Find and fix the cause, then appeal through Google's appeals tool with evidence such as business registration or a utility bill showing the same name and address. Review requests that break Google's rules can lead to review restrictions instead, such as new reviews being blocked or a warning shown on the profile.
Can we reply to reviews without breaching client confidentiality?
Yes, with care. Keep replies general, never confirm that the reviewer is a client and never mention their matter. Thank them, respond to the general point and invite them to contact the firm directly if they raised a concern.
How many categories should we choose?
As few as describe the firm well. Google's guidelines ask businesses to use as few categories as possible, with a primary category for the main area of work and additional categories only for other main areas.
More answers on our law firm SEO FAQs page.
Next step
A good place to start is an audit of your profile and the pages it links to. Affirmed's free law firm SEO audit is a written report and a recorded video walkthrough, delivered in 3 to 5 business days.
There are no contract tie-ins if you decide to go further. You can also see the Hampshire and Isle of Wight report and ask for your firm's private score sheet.
