If you only had 20 minutes a week to spend on marketing, there is one thing I would tell every small business owner to do. Update your Google Business Profile.
Not post on social media. Not write a blog. Not redesign your website. Just log into Google Business Profile and keep it current.
Most small business owners have heard of it. Many have claimed their listing at some point. But very few treat it as an active marketing channel. It sits there collecting dust while they pour time into Instagram posts that reach 40 people or website tweaks that nobody notices.
Meanwhile, the business down the road with a well maintained profile, a handful of recent reviews and a photo uploaded last week is the one showing up when someone searches "plumber near me" or "accountant in Leeds." That is not a coincidence. Google rewards activity.
When someone searches for a local service or product, Google does something specific. Before showing the normal list of website results, it displays a map with three businesses underneath it. This is called the local pack and it appears above everything else on the page.
Getting into that local pack is the single most valuable piece of free real estate in local search. It shows your business name, your reviews, your opening hours, your phone number and a link to your website. For many customers, they never scroll past it. They pick one of those three businesses and call them.
Your Google Business Profile is what determines whether you appear there or not. It is not your website. It is not your social media following. It is your profile, your reviews and how active you are on the platform.
Nearly half of all Google searches have local intent. That means people are searching for businesses like yours, in your area, right now. If your profile is incomplete or inactive, you are invisible to them.
The most common mistake is treating Google Business Profile as a one time setup task. You claim the listing, add your phone number and address, maybe upload a logo, and never touch it again.
Google notices inactivity. A profile that has not been updated in months sends a signal that the business may not be engaged or even still trading. Meanwhile, a competitor who posts a quick update every week, responds to reviews and adds fresh photos is telling Google the opposite. They are active, relevant and worth showing to searchers.
The second mistake is ignoring reviews. Reviews are one of the strongest ranking signals for local search. Businesses with more recent, positive reviews consistently appear higher in results. Yet most small business owners never ask for them and rarely respond to the ones they receive.
The third mistake is not using posts. Google Business Profile has a built in posting feature that works like a simple social media feed. You can share updates, offers, tips or news directly on your listing. Most businesses do not know this exists. The ones that use it gain an edge because Google treats regular posting activity as a sign of relevance.
You do not need to spend hours on this. A short, focused routine once a week is enough to keep your profile active and competitive.
First five minutes: post an update. Share a quick tip related to your business, mention a recent job you completed, highlight a seasonal offer or answer a question your customers commonly ask. Keep it to two or three sentences. A photo helps but is not essential every time.
Next five minutes: add a photo. Take a picture of your work, your team, your premises or a finished project. Real photos taken on your phone perform better than stock images. Google prioritises profiles with recent, authentic imagery.
Next five minutes: check your details. Make sure your opening hours, phone number, website link and service areas are correct. If anything has changed, update it. This sounds obvious but incorrect details are one of the most common reasons businesses lose local visibility.
Final five minutes: respond to reviews. Thank anyone who left a positive review. If there is a negative one, respond calmly and professionally. Google values engagement with reviews and potential customers read your responses before deciding whether to contact you.
That is 20 minutes. If you do this once a week, you will be more active than the vast majority of your local competitors. If you are following The 90-Minute Marketing Week, this fits naturally into your Wednesday website and search block.
Most business owners feel uncomfortable asking for reviews. It feels pushy or self serving. But the reality is that happy customers are usually willing to leave a review. They just need a prompt.
The simplest approach is to ask at the point of satisfaction. When a customer thanks you for a job well done, says they are happy with the result, or sends you a positive message, that is your moment. You do not need a script. Something as simple as "Really glad you are happy. If you have a minute, a Google review would mean a lot to us" is enough.
Make it easy by sending them a direct link to your review page. You can find this in your Google Business Profile dashboard under "Ask for reviews." Copy that link and save it somewhere you can grab quickly. Send it by text, email or even WhatsApp. The fewer steps a customer has to take, the more likely they are to follow through.
Do not ask every customer every time. Focus on the ones who are clearly satisfied. One or two new reviews a month is enough to build momentum. Over a year, that adds up to a profile with 15 to 25 genuine reviews, which is more than enough to stand out in most local markets.
If you are stretched for time and trying to decide where to focus your limited marketing effort, here is how Google Business Profile compares.
Social media requires constant content creation and algorithm dependent distribution. You can post every day and still only reach a fraction of your followers. Google Business Profile reaches people who are actively searching for what you sell, right now, in your area. The intent is completely different.
A website is important for credibility and conversions, but it takes months of consistent content and SEO work before it generates meaningful organic traffic. Your Google Business Profile can start showing results within weeks if you keep it active and collect reviews.
Paid advertising works but costs money and stops the moment you stop paying. Your profile is free and the work you put into it compounds over time. Every review, every post, every photo stays there and continues working for you.
This is not to say you should ignore your website, social media or other channels. But if you are genuinely short on time and need to pick one thing to do consistently, Google Business Profile gives you the best return for the least effort. It is the foundation that everything else builds on.
For a broader look at how local search works and how to build on this foundation, our guide to local SEO for small businesses covers the full picture.
If you have not claimed your Google Business Profile yet, do it now at business.google.com. It takes about 15 minutes to set up and verify.
If you already have one, log in this week and do the 20 minute routine. Post an update. Add a photo. Check your details. Respond to a review. Then do the same thing next week.
You do not need to be a marketer to do this well. You just need to show up consistently, the same way you show up for your customers every day.
If you want a system that makes all of your marketing this straightforward, The 90-Minute Marketing Week breaks everything into simple weekly blocks. Google Business Profile is built right into it.
And if you want one practical marketing idea every Tuesday, subscribe to Blackhound Activate. No jargon. No fluff. Just useful advice for business owners who are short on time.