Website or Google Business Profile: which should a business fix first?

"We need a new website, right?" Often the answer is yes, eventually. The more urgent job, though, is frequently your Google Business Profile. Here's why, and how to tell which one applies to you.

What your customers search for

A customer in Kampala, Kigali, Nairobi or Arusha looking for a dentist rarely types a business name into Google. They type "dentist near me" or "dentist Kololo". Google answers with the map pack, three local listings with reviews, photos and a call button, and puts websites below it. If you're not in that map pack, your website competes for whatever clicks are left.

The five-minute test

Search on your phone for what you sell plus your neighbourhood, such as "hair salon Kilimani", "plumber Ntinda" or "boutique hotel Stone Town". Then answer honestly:

1. Are you in the three businesses Google shows above everything else?
2. Is your profile filled in, with recent photos, opening hours, posts and replies to reviews?
3. Do you have at least 25 Google reviews averaging 4.4 or higher?

If any answer is no, fix your Google Business Profile before you spend a shilling on a new website.

When the website comes first

The website is the priority when:

• you sell to other businesses, which check you out before they get in touch
• you sell online or take bookings directly, like a Zanzibar hotel taking direct bookings, a safari operator, an online shop or a course provider
• searches in your field don't show a map pack, as with professional services for international clients
• your profile is already strong and you want to grow demand beyond it

In those cases the website does the selling, so it has to be good.

What fixing your profile involves

Doing the profile properly means:

• every field filled in, under the right primary category, which decides who you compete with
• 20 to 40 photos of the inside, outside, team, products and customers, refreshed every quarter
• a weekly post, such as an offer, some news, a new product or a customer story
• every review answered within a day, the negative ones included, calmly and professionally

Six months of this can do more for a local business than a new homepage. The eight most common Google Business Profile mistakes make a good checklist to start from.

A rule of thumb

• If you have a working profile and a tired website, redesign the website.
• If you have a good website and an empty profile, fix the profile first.
• If you have neither, do the profile this week and plan the website for next quarter.

Be wary of anyone who says you need both at once without first asking which one is working for you today.

Our pricing page lists both, Google Business Profile management for each location and websites in two sizes, so you can see what each step would cost.