A good Google Business Profile description says what your business does, where you work and what sets you apart, in plain sentences, within 750 characters and with no links, prices or promotions. Put the most important facts first, write it for a customer rather than for an algorithm, and keep it consistent with your categories and services. Below you will find the rules, a step-by-step formula, sample descriptions for several local service industries and the exact steps to publish yours.
TL;DR
- Google allows up to 750 characters, but a tight 300 to 500 characters of clear writing beats 750 characters of repeated keywords.
- Open with who you are, what you do and the area you serve. Many searchers will not read past the first lines.
- Leave out URLs, prices, discounts and sales language. Google's guidelines prohibit them in the description.
- Write a distinct description for each location, and match it to your categories and services.
- Add or edit it in your profile under Edit profile, then Description. Changes usually appear in about 10 minutes.
Table of Contents
- What the description is and why it matters
- The rules: length, content and what Google prohibits
- A five-part formula for service businesses
- Sample descriptions you can adapt
- Multi-location and service-area businesses
- Should you use Google's AI-suggested description?
- How to add or edit your description
- Common mistakes to avoid
- Our perspective
- Get a profile that works as hard as you do
- FAQ
- Sources
What the description is and why it matters
The description is the short block of text on your profile that tells potential customers what you do and what makes you unique. Google's help page on managing your description frames it exactly that way: it helps people learn more about your business.
For an HVAC company, a roofer or a chiropractor, that matters because the profile is often the first thing a nearby searcher sees. Your reviews, photos and star rating get the first glance. The description is where a hesitant customer looks to decide whether you handle their problem: emergency furnace repair, a full roof replacement, a sore back.
Be realistic about what it does. The description is not a magic ranking lever. Your primary category, proximity, reviews, and the accuracy of the rest of your profile carry more weight. What the description does well is confirm relevance, set expectations and persuade the person already looking at your listing to call. If you want the full picture of how the pieces fit together, our 90 day Google Business Profile plan walks through the order of work.
The rules: length, content and what Google prohibits
Know the boundaries before you write, because a description that breaks them can be removed.
Length
A description should not exceed 750 characters, according to a Google Business Profile Community answer. That is roughly 110 to 130 words. Spaces and punctuation count toward the total.
Treat 750 as a ceiling. If you can say what you do, where, and why you are a good fit in 400 characters, stop there. Padding with a list of every suburb and every service reads like spam to a person and adds nothing for a customer.
What belongs in it
Google's guidelines for representing your business say the description field is for useful information about the services and products you offer, as well as your mission and history. They also say the content should highlight what makes your business unique, and that content with no clear association to your business is not allowed.
What to leave out
The same guidelines rule out several things in a description:
- Promotions and prices. Examples Google gives include blanket sale claims and a price in the sentence. Save offers for Google Business Profile posts.
- Links of any type. No website URLs, booking links or social links in the text. Your website has its own field.
- Low-quality or distracting text. Misspellings, gimmicky characters, odd symbols and gibberish are all out.
Google does let you post your own contact information, such as social handles, email and phone number, on your own profile. The description is still not the place to repeat a phone number you already list elsewhere, so use the dedicated fields. Also avoid ALL CAPS and exaggerated claims you cannot back up.
A five-part formula for service businesses
You do not need a creative gift. You need a repeatable structure. Write one sentence or two for each part, then trim.
- Who you are. Business type and, if true, ownership or years in business. "Family-owned plumbing company" tells a homeowner more than "quality service provider."
- Where you work. Name the city and the main areas you cover. A service-area business should reflect the same areas it set in its profile. If service areas are a weak spot, see our guide to service area business SEO.
- What you do. Name your core services in the words customers use: AC repair, water heater replacement, roof leak repair, spinal adjustments.
- Why you. One or two facts that prove the fit: licensed technicians, same-day appointments, manufacturer certifications, a specialty. Only include what is true and verifiable about your business.
- How to take the next step. A soft, non-promotional close such as inviting people to call to schedule. Keep it free of prices and discounts.
Put the best information first
On a profile, long text is often cut off behind a "More" link. Assume a reader sees only the opening lines. So parts 1 to 3 go first, and the "why you" detail goes after. Do not open with a slogan.
Write the way people talk
Use the words a customer would say out loud. "Furnace repair" and "heating and cooling" are what people type and say. Internal jargon is not. Mention a service once, naturally. Repeating "HVAC Dallas HVAC repair Dallas" is the quickest way to make a profile read as spam.
Match the rest of the profile
The description should agree with your primary and additional categories, your service list and your website. If your description sells commercial refrigeration but your categories say residential plumbing, you confuse customers and weaken the signals around your profile. A quick pass through your Google Business Profile categories before you write saves rewriting later.
Sample descriptions you can adapt
These are original samples to show structure. Replace every detail with facts that are true for your business, and do not copy them word for word, because identical text across many profiles helps no one. Each runs well under the 750-character limit.
HVAC company
We are a family-owned heating and cooling company serving homeowners in Columbus, Dublin and Westerville, Ohio. Our technicians repair and install air conditioners, furnaces and heat pumps, and handle seasonal tune-ups and emergency breakdowns. We focus on clear explanations and dependable arrival windows, so you know what is wrong and what your options are. Call to schedule service.
Why it works: location and service in the first sentence, then specifics, then a reason to choose you, then a plain call to action.
Plumber
Licensed plumbers serving Tampa and nearby communities for residential repairs and replacements. We fix leaking pipes, clogged drains and failing fixtures, and install water heaters, garbage disposals and whole-home repiping. Our team arrives in marked vehicles and keeps you updated from the first visit to the finished job. Reach out to book an appointment.
Only write "licensed" if you hold the license, and name the license in the right field if your state or profile allows.
Roofer
We are a local roofing contractor serving homeowners across Denton County, Texas. Our crews handle roof inspections, leak repair, storm damage repair and full roof replacement for asphalt shingle and metal roofs. We explain what we find on your roof in plain language and walk you through your options before any work begins. Call to schedule an inspection.
Chiropractor or med spa
Our chiropractic practice helps adults in Scottsdale with back pain, neck pain and posture concerns. Our care includes spinal adjustments, mobility work and personalized care plans built around your goals. We welcome new patients and explain every step of your visit. Contact the office to schedule your first appointment.
For health and wellness businesses, avoid promising results or cures. Describe the services and the experience, not outcomes you cannot guarantee.
Professional service firm
We are an accounting and tax firm in Charlotte, North Carolina, serving small businesses, contractors and self-employed professionals. Our services include bookkeeping, payroll, tax preparation and year-round tax planning. You work directly with a small team that knows your business and answers your questions. Contact us to schedule a consultation.
Multi-location and service-area businesses
If you manage several locations, do not paste the same paragraph into each one. Each profile should reflect the neighborhoods that location serves, its own team or specialties, and its own local history where relevant. Keep brand language consistent, change the local facts, and keep each description accurate to what that location truly does.
Service-area businesses have a different problem: they list areas rather than a storefront. Name the main cities you serve in natural sentences and keep them aligned with the service areas set in the profile. Do not list thirty towns. Pick the core ones where you want more calls, and let the other signals on your profile handle the rest. For more on searches with local intent, our guide to near me optimization shows how the pieces connect.
The description also belongs inside a bigger local plan. This overview of Google Business Profile optimization shows how profile details, website content and local SEO support each other for service providers.
Should you use Google's AI-suggested description?
Google lets you either write your own or click "Suggest description" to get an AI-generated draft based on information from your profile and other sources, such as your website. The help page notes that the feature is available only in select regions and languages, that you must be 18 or older, and that you must follow Google's generative AI prohibited use policy. It also says the AI writes creative text, so you should review it for accuracy.
Our view: use the suggestion as a rough starting point if you are stuck, then rewrite it. A generated draft tends to be generic and may mention services you do not offer. Check every claim, cut anything vague, and make sure the opening lines carry your location and core services.
How to add or edit your description
Per Google's instructions, the steps are:
- Go to your Business Profile.
- Click Edit profile.
- Next to Description, click Edit.
- Enter your business description.
- Click Save.
Google says changes usually show up in about 10 minutes, but in some cases can take up to 30 days. If you have not verified your listing yet, start with our video verification checklist, and if you are creating a profile from scratch, see how to set up a Google Business Profile.
Common mistakes to avoid
- Keyword stuffing. Repeating a service and a city over and over reads badly and can look manipulative. Use each term where a sentence needs it.
- Including a price or offer. "Tune-ups for $79" belongs in a post, not the description.
- Pasting a link or phone number. Google prohibits links in the description.
- Writing to fill 750 characters. Short and clear beats long and repetitive.
- Forgetting to update it. If you add a service line, expand to a new city or earn a new certification, revisit the text. Review it at least once a year.
- Describing services you do not offer. It brings the wrong calls and wastes your team's time.
- Leaving different locations with identical text. Customize each one.
A quick way to check yourself: read the description aloud. If it sounds like a person describing a business to a neighbor, it is probably right. If it sounds like a list of search terms, rewrite it. For a wider look at what else might be holding your profile back, a Google Business Profile audit ranks fixes by priority.
Our perspective
We work only with local service businesses, and the pattern we see is consistent: owners treat the description as a box to tick, write it once during setup, and never touch it again.
The description is one of the few places on your profile where you speak in your own voice. Reviews are what customers say about you. Categories are what Google understands about you. The description is what you say about yourself, and it should be as sharp as your best sales call.
We write descriptions as part of hands-on Google Business Profile management, so the text matches your categories, your services, your service areas and the way customers actually search. That consistency is what we believe moves a profile from adequate to competitive in Google Maps, and it is why we handle the work for you instead of handing you another tool to learn.
If your website is strong but your profile is quiet, start with the basics: a clear description, accurate categories, fresh content and a steady flow of reviews.
John
Get a profile that works as hard as you do
If you would rather not spend your evenings rewriting profile text, we can do it for you. Local Growth Direct handles Google Business Profile management and optimization for HVAC, home service, automotive, health and wellness, and professional service businesses, including the description, ongoing profile updates, review and reputation management, and Google Maps visibility and competitor tracking. You do not have to learn any new tools.
Want to see where your profile stands first? Request a personal local SEO audit, or see what's included in GBP management. You can also start at Local Growth Direct.
FAQ
How long can a Google Business Profile description be?
Up to 750 characters, including spaces and punctuation, according to a Google Business Profile Community answer. Many strong descriptions run 300 to 500 characters. Put your most important details at the start in case the text is cut off behind a "More" link.
What should I include in my Google business description?
Include what your business does, the area you serve, your main services and one or two facts that set you apart. Google's guidelines also mention your mission and history as acceptable content. Skip prices, promotions and links.
Can I put keywords in my description?
Yes, as long as they fit into natural sentences. Name your core services and service area the way a customer would say them. Do not list keywords or repeat them, since Google asks for useful, relevant content and the text has to read well to a person.
How often should I update my description?
Update it whenever something real changes: a new service, a new service area, a new location or a certification. Otherwise, review it about once a year. Edits usually show within about 10 minutes, though Google says it can sometimes take up to 30 days.
Does the description help me rank in Google Maps?
It supports relevance and helps convince people who see your listing to contact you, but it is not the main ranking driver. Categories, reviews, proximity and overall profile accuracy matter more. Write the description for the customer first.
Sources
- Manage your Business Profile description (Google Business Profile Help)
- Guidelines for representing your business on Google
- Description (Google Business Profile Community)
- Google Business Profile Optimization overview (Picshaw)