Google Business Profile Posts: What to Post, How Often and What Actually Works in 2026

Last updated: November 2026 · Written by Adrian Prokopiec, 20 Minute Marketing · 11 min read

This guide is for Australian small business owners who already have a verified Google Business Profile and want to know what to do with the "Add update" button. You'll get the three post types Google offers and when to use each, a set of post ideas that suit service businesses, the content rules that get posts rejected, a 20-minute weekly routine and a simple way to tell whether any of it is working.

If your profile itself isn't finished yet (categories, services, hours, photos), fix that first with our step-by-step Google Business Profile optimisation guide. Posts work best on top of a complete profile, not instead of one.

What are Google Business Profile posts?

Posts (Google also calls them "updates") are short pieces of content you publish straight onto your Business Profile. They show in the Updates section of your profile when someone finds you on Google Search or Google Maps. Each post can carry text, a photo or video, and a button such as Book, Order online, Learn more or Call now.

According to Google's own help page on creating Business Profile posts, there are three types:

One detail worth knowing: Google says posts older than six months are archived unless a date range has been set. That's why a single post every few months leaves your Updates section looking empty, while a weekly habit always has something recent showing.

If you've read older advice that says posts "expire after seven days", that hasn't been the case for years. Whitespark's guide to Google Business Profile optimisation covers how posts fit alongside the other profile features, and is a good companion read if you manage several locations.

Do Google posts actually help you rank?

Honest answer: not much on their own, and anyone who promises a fixed percentage lift is guessing. You'll see figures quoted online, sometimes credited to publications like Search Engine Journal, claiming weekly posters get a set percentage more clicks from the map pack. We couldn't trace those numbers to a published study, so we don't repeat them. The local ranking basics are still relevance, distance and prominence, and the big levers are your primary category, your reviews and your website.

What posts do well is less flashy but still worth the effort:

• They show you're open and active. A post from last week tells a customer you're trading and taking work. A profile whose newest update is from 2023 makes people wonder.
• They add detail Google can match. A post that says "replaced a hot water system in Ringwood North" puts a service and a suburb on your profile in plain words. That can help your profile match the specific searches people make.
• They convert. Someone who is already looking at your profile gets a recent example, a reason to act and a button to tap.
• They feed AI search with fresh facts. Google's AI Overviews and AI Mode (the replacement for what was once called SGE, the Search Generative Experience) build answers from many sources. Google's guidance on AI features and your website says there are no special tricks to appear there, but it does recommend keeping your Business Profile information up to date. Regular, accurate posts are part of that.

The profile says what you do; posts show you doing it. For the bigger picture of how posts sit within local search, our complete local SEO strategy guide pulls the whole system together.

What should a small business post? Six ideas that work

Skip the "Merry Christmas" graphic and the inspirational quote. Good posts are specific, local and useful. Here are six formats that suit tradies, clinics, cafes and other service businesses. To win at small business SEO in the AI era, every post should answer the question "what did we do, for whom, and where?"

1. The proof of work post

A real photo of a finished job with one or two sentences about the problem and the fix. Name the suburb and the service. For example: "Full garden makeover in Forest Hill this week. We swapped thirsty lawn for native, drought-tolerant plants so the owners can cut back on watering through summer." If you're wondering whether the location data inside your photos matters, our article on whether geotagged job site photos help local SEO explains what Google does and doesn't read.

2. The common question post

Take one question customers ask you all the time and answer it in under 100 words. "How often should I service my split system? In Melbourne we suggest once a year, ideally in spring before the first heatwave." If you've built an AI-ready FAQ database for your business, you have a year of these posts sitting there already.

3. The service spotlight

Pick one service per month and explain who it's for, what's included and roughly how long it takes. This suits services people don't know you offer, like a plumber who also does gas fitting.

4. The genuine offer

Use the Offer post type when you really have one, with real dates and clear terms. Under the Australian Consumer Law, the terms of an offer need to be accurate and not misleading, so spell out what's included and when it ends. Don't run a "limited time" offer that never ends.

5. The event

Workshops, open days, a market stall or holiday trading hours. Events need a start and end date, so they suit anything on the calendar.

6. The team or behind-the-scenes post

A new apprentice, a new van, a new piece of equipment, a team member's qualification. People hire people, and these posts make a small business feel human. Pair them with a request for feedback and you'll also support your system for getting more Google reviews.

Google's rules: what gets a post rejected

Every post goes through a content review and shows as Live, Pending or Not approved. Most rejections come from a handful of avoidable mistakes. Google's Business Profile photos, videos and posts content policy is the official reference; here's what matters day to day.

• Phone numbers in the text. Google says it may remove posts with contact information it can't verify as belonging to the business. Leave the number out of the description and add the Call now button, which uses the verified number on your profile.
• Dodgy or broken links. Buttons should lead to a trusted page where the customer can complete the action, ideally the matching service page on your own website. Don't link to a generic homepage if you have a better page.
• Off-topic or unsuitable content. Posts need to be about your business and family-friendly. Politics, memes and borrowed viral content don't belong here.
• Restricted industries. Some categories have extra limits. Hotels, for example, can't publish Offer posts at all. If you sell regulated products, check the policy before posting promotions.
• Text-heavy images. Keep text on images to a minimum. A real photo with a short caption in the post text works better than a flyer full of words, and it avoids a phone number sneaking into the image.

Images display in a cropped frame, so keep the main subject in the middle of the shot. And use real photos. Stock images won't tell anyone anything about your work, and they make an otherwise genuine profile look generic. If your profile ever does run into trouble, our guide to preventing and recovering from a Google Business Profile suspension walks you through what to do.

Your 20-minute weekly Google posts routine

This is the part that actually gets done. Block 20 minutes on the same day each week, Friday afternoon works well for most tradies, and run through these steps.

1. Pick the job (2 minutes). Scroll your camera roll for the best job of the week. A clear before and after is ideal. No photo? Use the common question format instead.
2. Write the post (8 minutes). Aim for 60 to 150 words. Open with what you did, name the service and the suburb, add one useful detail the customer would care about (time taken, problem solved, tip for next time), and finish with a plain next step.
3. Let AI draft it if writing slows you down (included in the 8 minutes). Record a 30-second voice memo about the job and ask your AI tool to tidy it up. Our voice memo to content workflow shows how. A prompt that works: "I'm a [trade] in [city]. Here's what I did today: [notes]. Write a Google Business Profile update of about 100 words. Mention the suburb [suburb] and the service [service]. Plain Australian English, no hype, no phone number."
4. Choose the button (1 minute). Call now for urgent services, Book for appointment businesses, Learn more pointing to the matching service page for everything else.
5. Publish and check (2 minutes). Post from your profile in Search or Maps, then check it shows as Live. If it's Pending for more than a day, look for a phone number, odd link or text-heavy image.
6. Reuse it (5 minutes). Share the same photo and a lightly edited caption to Facebook or Instagram. Remove "link in bio" language from anything you copy back to Google.

A note on AI: a draft is a starting point, not a finished post. Check the facts and the suburb before you publish. If you'd like more help with AI tools for your profile, see our roundup of AI tools for Google Business Profile optimisation.

How to tell if your posts are working

Open your Business Profile and go to Performance (it used to be called Insights). Google's help page on Business Profile performance lists what's tracked, including:

• Searches: the actual search terms people used to find your profile. This updates monthly, so compare month to month rather than week to week.
• Calls and website clicks: how many people tapped to call or visit your site.
• Directions and messages: useful for shopfronts and businesses that take enquiries by chat.
• Offers: views and clicks on any Offer posts you've run.

What to look for after two or three months of consistent posting: new search terms that match the services and suburbs you've been posting about, and a steady or rising number of calls and website clicks. If you also tag the button links with UTM parameters (for example ?utm_source=google&utm_medium=gbp-post), you'll be able to see post traffic separately in Google Analytics.

Common mistakes that waste your posts

• Posting in bursts. Ten posts in one week, then nothing for five months. Once they're archived, you're back to an empty Updates section.
• Being vague. "Another happy customer!" says nothing. "Replaced rotted decking boards on a 1970s home in Blackburn" says everything.
• Linking everything to the homepage. Send people to the page that matches the post.
• Forgetting the rest of the profile. Posts can't make up for the wrong primary category or a handful of reviews. Our seven Google Business Profile hacks cover the bigger wins.

If you're a tradie, grab our free Google Business Profile Checklist for Tradies. Posts work best on a complete profile, and the checklist covers the 20 settings that decide whether locals find you on Google. And if you want this whole routine taught step by step, with a weekly posting planner and prompts, it's part of our Digital Marketing Essentials course. If you're still weighing up your options, here's how small business owners should choose a marketing course, or you can browse all 20 Minute Marketing courses.

Frequently asked questions

How often should I post on Google Business Profile?

Once a week is a sensible, sustainable rhythm for most small businesses. It keeps a recent post visible at all times. Posting more often is fine if you have genuinely new jobs or news to share, but consistency matters more than volume.

How long do Google Business Profile posts stay up?

Google says posts older than six months are archived unless you set a date range. Offer and Event posts run for the dates you choose. That's why a regular habit keeps your Updates section looking current.

Can I put my phone number in a Google post?

It's better not to. Google may remove posts containing contact details it can't verify. Use the Call now button instead, which connects people to the verified phone number on your profile.

Can I reuse my Facebook or Instagram posts?

Yes, with small edits. Remove "link in bio" or "share this post" wording, add the suburb and service if they're missing, and choose a Google button such as Call now or Book.

Do Google posts help with AI Overviews and AI Mode?

There's no special trick. Google says standard SEO practices apply to its AI features and recommends keeping your Business Profile information up to date. Accurate, regular posts help keep the facts about your business fresh.

Which button should I use on my posts?

For urgent or phone-first services, Call now. For appointment-based businesses, Book. For everything else, Learn more linking to the matching service page on your website.

Keep reading

• How to win local leads with photos and video on Google Maps and YouTube Shorts
• The 20-minute local SEO audit checklist
• How to rank for "near me" searches
• Google Business Profile vs a website: do you need both?