A Step-by-Step Framework for Optimizing Your Google Business Profile as a Landscaper

For most landscaping companies, the Google Business Profile listing — not the website — is the first thing a prospective client sees. When someone searches landscaper near me or lawn care [city name], Google surfaces the Map Pack above organic results. The three listings in that pack collectively capture the majority of clicks on those local queries.

Your website supports your GBP. Your GBP converts the searcher. That hierarchy matters when you're deciding where to spend your optimization effort.

This is especially true for landscaping because the purchase decision is heavily local and visual. Homeowners want to see your work, read what neighbors have said, and confirm you serve their zip code — all of which your GBP handles before they ever visit your website.

Industry benchmarks suggest that for local service businesses, a well-optimized GBP can generate a significant share of inbound calls and direction requests without any additional advertising spend. The exact volume varies by market competition and how thoroughly the profile is built out, but the pattern holds across most markets we've worked in.

The sections below cover every element of your GBP in the order that matters — starting with the decisions that carry the most weight and moving toward the ongoing maintenance tasks that sustain your ranking over time.

Google uses your primary category to decide which searches your listing is eligible to appear for. Choose the wrong one and you're invisible for the queries that actually bring in revenue.

For landscaping businesses, the most common primary categories are:

• Landscaper — best if your revenue comes primarily from design, installation, hardscaping, or full-service landscape projects
• Lawn Care Service — best if recurring maintenance (mowing, fertilization, aeration) is your primary revenue driver
• Landscape Designer — relevant if high-end residential design is your differentiator
• Tree Service — primary category only if tree work is a standalone majority of your business

Most landscaping companies make the mistake of choosing the broadest or most familiar category rather than the one that best matches their highest-margin service. If you do both maintenance and installation, look at where the majority of your revenue comes from and align your primary category there.

Secondary categories are where you capture breadth. Add up to nine additional categories to cover supplementary services — but only categories for services you genuinely offer. Google can flag profiles that use categories as keyword stuffing.

After any category change, allow two to three weeks before drawing conclusions. Category changes affect ranking gradually, not overnight.

Practical Check

Search your primary category in Google Maps and look at what types of businesses appear in your target market. If the top results match your business model, you're in the right category. If they look nothing like you, reconsider your selection.

Landscapers operate as service-area businesses — you go to the client rather than the client coming to you. This affects how Google treats your location signals and how you should configure your profile.

Service Area Settings

Set service areas that reflect where you actually take jobs. This typically means selecting specific cities, towns, or zip codes rather than drawing a radius. Google's guidance is to cover the area you serve within about two hours of your base, but relevance drops when you list areas you rarely or never actually work.

In our experience working with landscaping companies, over-expanded service areas tend to dilute ranking signals in the core markets that matter most. It's better to rank well in 10 towns you actually serve than to appear weakly across 40.

Business Hours

Set accurate hours, including seasonal adjustments. If you reduce hours in winter, update your profile. Inaccurate hours generate negative reviews and reduce trust signals with Google.

Services Section

Google provides a structured services section for landscapers. Fill it out completely — list each service with a description that uses the terms clients actually search. This is separate from your categories and functions more like on-page keyword content.

Business Description

You have 750 characters. Use the first 250 for the most important information, since only the first portion shows before the "more" link. Describe what you do, where you operate, and what differentiates you — in plain language. Avoid keyword stuffing. Write it the way you'd explain your business to a neighbor.

Attributes

Check your available attributes. Landscaping profiles often qualify for attributes like veteran-owned, women-owned, or service-related certifications. Relevant attributes improve relevance matching and can influence click-through rates.

Photos are the single most underused optimization lever on most landscaping GBP profiles. A profile with 5 photos and a profile with 80 photos are not equivalent — Google factors photo quantity and recency into prominence signals, and clients use photos to make purchase decisions before calling.

What to Shoot

• Before-and-after pairs — the most compelling format for landscaping work. Even a smartphone shot of a lawn transformation or new patio installation is more effective than a polished photo of an empty garden bed.
• In-progress work — shows professionalism and scale. A crew laying pavers or operating equipment signals a real, active business.
• Seasonal variety — upload photos that match the current season. A spring photo of fresh mulch or a fall shot of leaf cleanup is more relevant than summer hardscape photos when someone is searching in November.
• Team photos — humanize the business. Clients are letting you onto their property. Seeing faces reduces hesitation.

How to Optimize Photos Before Uploading

File names matter. Rename image files descriptively before uploading — for example, patio-installation-richmond-va.jpg rather than IMG_4832.jpg. If your camera or phone embeds GPS metadata in images, that geo-tagging can reinforce your local signals.

Aim for a minimum of 20-30 quality photos to start, then add 3-5 new images per month. Consistency over time carries more weight than a single bulk upload.

Videos

Short videos — even 30-second walkthroughs of completed projects — perform well in GBP profiles. They don't need production value. A steady phone walkthrough of a finished backyard is sufficient.

Google Posts are short updates that appear on your GBP listing. They expire after seven days (offer posts last longer), so consistent publishing is required to maintain the benefit. For landscapers, posts serve two purposes: they signal an active business to Google, and they give searchers timely, relevant information that increases click-through.

What to Post as a Landscaper

The most effective posts for landscaping companies align with the seasonal service cycle:

• Spring: Clean-up specials, spring planting availability, aeration and overseeding scheduling
• Summer: Irrigation services, drought-resistant planting, hardscape project timelines
• Fall: Leaf removal, fall fertilization, winterization services
• Winter: Snow removal (if applicable), planning consultations, design work for spring projects

Post Format

Keep posts between 150-300 words. Include a relevant photo — ideally from recent work. Use a clear call to action button: Call Now, Book Online, or Get Quote. Avoid posts that read like press releases. Write them the way you'd explain the service to a client on the phone.

Posting Cadence

Publishing every 7-10 days is a sustainable target for most small landscaping operations. At minimum, post twice per month. Going more than three weeks without a post is noticeable in competitive markets where other businesses post regularly.

You don't need to write long-form content. A photo of a completed project with a brief description of the work done and your service area is enough. The goal is consistent presence, not elaborate content.

Reviews affect two things simultaneously: your ranking in the Map Pack (Google uses review quantity and recency as a prominence signal) and your conversion rate (prospective clients read reviews before calling). Optimizing one improves the other.

When to Ask

The best moment to request a review is immediately after the job is complete — while the client is still on-site or within 24 hours by text or email. Landscaping jobs have a natural endpoint (the finished project) that makes the ask feel timely and earned. Don't wait a week.

How to Ask

Direct, simple language outperforms clever copy. Something like: "We'd really appreciate a Google review if you're happy with the work — here's the direct link." Send your GBP review link, not the general Google search. Reducing friction increases follow-through.

You can generate your direct review link from your GBP dashboard. Shorten it or embed it in a QR code for leave-behind cards.

Review Velocity vs. Volume

In our experience working with landscaping companies, a steady cadence of 3-5 new reviews per month outperforms a burst of 30 reviews in one week followed by months of silence. Google's systems are pattern-sensitive, and sudden spikes can trigger quality filters. Build the habit rather than the campaign.

Responding to Reviews

Respond to every review — positive or negative — within 48 hours. For positive reviews, personalize the response with a mention of the specific project type or location when possible. For negative reviews, acknowledge the concern, offer to resolve it offline, and keep the tone neutral. Your response is visible to every future searcher who reads that review.

Responses are also a keyword signal. Naturally mentioning your service and city in a review response reinforces local relevance without keyword stuffing.