Your Google Business Profile Before the Holidays: A 30-Minute Tune-Up
It is the Wednesday before Thanksgiving. A customer finishes work, searches for your shop on Google, sees “Open until 8” and drives across town to pick up a gift.
You closed at 4 for the holiday. The lights are off, the sign on the door says so, and the customer is standing in the cold, annoyed at you and not at Google.
That scene is avoidable. With about 30 minutes and a cup of coffee, you can get your Google Business Profile ready for the holiday rush. Here is how to spend those minutes.
Quick answer
To prepare your Google Business Profile for the holidays, set special hours for every holiday and changed day, confirm your phone, website and description, add fresh photos, schedule event and offer posts, update key products and reply to recent reviews. Google's help pages cover each step, and the core work takes about 30 minutes.
Key takeaways
- Set special hours for every holiday and changed day, even if hours match normal ones.
- Keep descriptions under Google's 750-character limit and lead with what you sell.
- Upload JPG or PNG photos between 10 KB and 5 MB, ideally 720 by 720 pixels.
- Schedule event, offer and update posts for the whole season in one sitting.
- Reply to reviews quickly; 19% of consumers now expect a same-day response.
Why does your Google Business Profile matter more in the holidays?
In November and December, more people search for a place to go right now: a gift shop open late, a bakery open on Christmas Eve, a florist that delivers. Your Business Profile is often the first thing they see on Google Search and Maps, before your website and before your door.
If the profile is wrong, you lose the visit, and you may lose the customer’s trust. If it is right, it quietly does your marketing during the busiest weeks of the year. The good news is that the most important fixes take about half an hour. Here is a block-by-block plan, built on Google’s own help documentation.
| Minutes | Task |
|---|---|
| 0 to 7 | Set holiday and special hours |
| 7 to 12 | Check core business info and description |
| 12 to 18 | Add fresh, seasonal photos |
| 18 to 24 | Schedule holiday posts and offers |
| 24 to 27 | Review your products |
| 27 to 30 | Reply to recent reviews |
How do you set holiday hours on Google Business Profile?
Start here, because wrong hours cause the most direct damage. Google calls these “special hours,” and its help page on special hours lays out the steps:
- Go to your Business Profile and select Edit profile, then Hours.
- Next to Special hours, select the edit icon.
- Pick a suggested date or choose Add a date.
- Uncheck Closed to enter open and close times, or leave it checked if you are closed that day.
- Select Save.
Work through every date that is different from a normal week. This year that list likely includes Thanksgiving on Nov. 26, Black Friday on Nov. 27, Small Business Saturday on Nov. 28, Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day. Add any late-night shopping hours or early closures, too.
A few rules from Google are worth knowing:
- Google recommends confirming hours for official holidays even when they match your regular hours, so customers know they are accurate.
- Special hours for a day replace that day’s regular hours entirely.
- Special hours are meant for changes of up to six days in a row. For a closure of seven days or more, Google says to mark the business as temporarily closed instead.
- A single set of special hours cannot run longer than 24 hours. If a late event goes past midnight, Google says to split it into one entry ending at midnight and another starting at midnight the next day.
- If you have separate hours for something like pickup or delivery, use the More hours option rather than special hours.
What business information should you double-check?
Next, spend five minutes on the basics. In Google’s guide to editing your Business Profile, you edit information on Search by going to your profile and selecting Edit profile, or in the Google Maps app through the Business tab.
Check, in order:
- Phone number. Call it. Make sure it rings where someone, or something, will answer during the rush.
- Website link. Point it to a page that shows holiday hours and offers, not an outdated landing page.
- Address and map pin. Confirm the pin sits on your actual entrance.
- Description. Google says not to exceed 750 characters. Use the first line to say plainly what you sell and who you serve, then mention anything seasonal, like gift wrapping or local delivery.
- Attributes. These describe details such as Wi-Fi or outdoor seating. Add the ones that apply and help a holiday shopper decide.
Make sure the same name, address, phone number and hours appear on your website. Consistency helps both people and search engines. Our explainer on using schema markup to improve your website’s visibility shows how to label that information on your own site.
What photos should you add before the holidays?
Photos make a profile feel current. Google’s photo guidelines are simple:
- Use JPG or PNG files between 10 KB and 5 MB.
- Aim for 720 by 720 pixels. The minimum is 250 by 250.
- Keep photos in focus and well lit, without heavy filters or major alterations, showing the business as it really is.
Google notes that an exterior photo helps customers recognize your business. That matters in the dark, early evenings of December, when a shopper is driving slowly down a block trying to find you. Take one at dusk with the lights on.
Check your logo and cover photo too. Google treats the logo, the cover photo and general business photos as the main types, and a cover image that still shows summer patio furniture sends the wrong signal in December.
Then add three to five new shots: your holiday displays, best-selling gifts, gift wrapping or packaging, and staff at work if they are comfortable with it. Skip stock images. The point is to show what a visitor will see this week.
Paying too much to take cards?
Qualifying merchants who switch payment processors can get a free $10,000 growth package, including a website, Google Business Profile, landing pages, content and tracking, through our partner Fees to Growth. (Partner offer)
How do you create Google Business Profile posts for holiday offers?
Posts are short updates that appear on your profile in Search and Maps. Google’s help page on posts describes three types:
- Updates share general news, with a photo or video and an optional button that links to your website.
- Offers promote a sale or deal. They require a title and start and end dates and times, and include a “View offer” button. You can add a coupon code, a link and terms.
- Events promote something happening at your business, with a title, dates and times.
To create one, go to your Business Profile, select Posts, then Add post, choose a type and fill it in. You can schedule a post for later or set it to repeat, which means you can load the whole season in one sitting.
A simple holiday lineup might be:
- An event post for your Small Business Saturday plans on Nov. 28.
- An offer post for a gift-with-purchase or bundle that runs through a set date.
- An update in mid-December with last-day-to-order or pickup deadlines.
- An update after Christmas about returns, gift card use or January hours.
Two cautions from Google. Posts with a phone number in the description might be rejected if the number cannot be verified as connected to the business, so use the built-in call button instead. And posts older than six months are archived unless you set a date range, so plan to refresh them.
Should you add products to your Business Profile?
If you run a retail shop, products can put specific items in front of people searching for them. Google’s page on showcasing in-store products explains that eligible U.S. stores with a verified profile can show in-store products on Search, Maps and the Shopping tab, for free.
The automatic route uses Google’s Local Inventory app to sync products from a compatible point-of-sale system, with Clover, Square and Lightspeed listed as examples. Products need manufacturer UPC or EAN barcodes. You can also add items one at a time with the Product Editor, though Google notes that automatic syncing later replaces manually uploaded products.
For a five-minute holiday version, add or update your top-selling gift items with a clear photo, an accurate name and a price. Focus on the things people are most likely to search by name.
How quickly should you reply to Google reviews?
Faster than many owners think. BrightLocal’s Local Consumer Review Survey 2026 found that 89% of consumers expect business owners to respond to reviews. Nineteen percent now expect a same-day reply, up from 6% the year before, and 32% expect one by the next day. Forty-two percent said they are unlikely to use a business that never replies.
Use your last three minutes to answer every review from the past few weeks. Thank people by name, mention what they bought or enjoyed when you can, and respond calmly to complaints with a way to make it right. Avoid copy-and-paste replies; half of BrightLocal’s respondents said templated or generic responses make them less likely to choose a business.
What should you check again during the season?
Thirty minutes gets you ready, but the holidays move fast. Put three short check-ins on your calendar: the Monday before Thanksgiving, mid-December and the week after Christmas. Each time, confirm the next week’s special hours, swap in a new post and reply to new reviews.
If you want to understand how your profile fits into local search and the AI tools now answering shopping questions, our piece on SEO versus GEO for local businesses is a good next read. For the rest of your season planning, see our list of Q4 moves small businesses should make.
And picture that Wednesday before Thanksgiving again. This time, the customer checks Google, sees your holiday hours, a photo of the lit-up storefront and a post about Saturday’s gift-wrap station. They come in Wednesday afternoon, buy two gifts and promise to bring a friend on Saturday.
Get your story in Business News Life
Did a better Google listing bring more people through your door this season? Business News Life wants to hear from local shops about what actually moved the needle during the holidays.
Frequently asked questions
How far in advance should you set holiday hours on Google?
Set them as soon as your schedule is final, ideally a few weeks before each holiday. That gives customers accurate information while they are planning trips, and leaves time to fix anything that does not display correctly.
Why aren't holiday hours showing on a Google Business Profile?
Google says special hours appear only when your business hours are set to open with main hours. Also check that the date and times were saved, and that a single set of special hours does not exceed 24 hours.
Do Google Business Profile posts expire?
Google archives posts older than six months unless you set a date range. Offer and event posts are tied to the dates you choose, so refresh them as the season goes on.
Can you put a phone number in a Google Business Profile post?
It is better not to. Google says posts with a phone number in the description might be rejected if the number cannot be verified as connected to the business. Use the call button tied to your verified profile number instead.
Is it free to list products on Google Business Profile?
Yes. Google says showcasing in-store products on Search and Maps is free for eligible businesses with a verified profile. Some options require a compatible point-of-sale system and manufacturer barcodes.
Sources
- Google Business Profile Help: How to set special hours
- Google Business Profile Help: Edit your Business Profile
- Google Business Profile Help: Manage your Business Profile photos and videos
- Google Business Profile Help: Create and manage posts on your Business Profile
- Google Business Profile Help: Showcase in-store products on Google Search and Maps
- BrightLocal: Local Consumer Review Survey 2026