Why Your Google Listing is Actually Your Second Shop Front
If you run a shop in Brisbane—whether it’s a boutique in Paddington, a hardware store in Geebung, or a cafe in Bulimba—you have two front doors. The first is the physical one on the street. The second is the one people see on their phones when they search for what you sell.
Most shop owners spend thousands on signage, window displays, and keeping the floor clean. But then they leave their Google Business Profile (that box that shows up on Google Maps) looking like a ghost town.
I’ve seen this time and time again with local businesses. You’re working 60 hours a week, and the last thing you want to do is muck around with a Google account. But here is the reality: if your listing is messy, wrong, or empty, you are literally handing money to your competitors.
When someone in your suburb searches for "shoes near me" or "best florist Brisbane," Google decides who wins that customer. If you do this right, you get the phone call or the foot traffic. If you do it wrong, you stay invisible. This guide is about making sure you win.
The "Quick Wins" That Put Money in the Till
You don’t need to be a tech genius to fix this. You just need to think like a customer. If you were looking for a shop like yours, what would make you choose one over the other? Usually, it’s trust and convenience.
1. Fix Your Hours (Seriously)
There is nothing that makes a customer angrier than driving to a shop in Chermside because Google said it was open, only to find the roller doors down. They won’t come back, and they’ll probably leave a one-star review before they’ve even left your car park.Action: Check your holiday hours right now. If it's a public holiday coming up in Queensland, Google will flag your hours as "potentially different." Go in and confirm them. It takes two minutes and saves you from losing a frustrated customer.
2. The Power of Real Photos
Don’t use stock photos. People can smell a fake photo from a mile away. They want to see what your shop actually looks like.I worked with a gift shop in Ascot that was struggling to get people through the door despite having great stock. We took ten minutes to walk through the store with an iPhone and snapped photos of the main aisles, the front door, and some of their best-selling items. Within a week, their "Request Directions" clicks went up by 30%.
Action: Take a photo of the front of your shop from the street. This helps people recognize your building when they are driving past looking for a park.
3. Answer the Phone Without Picking It Up
Google has a "Q&A" section. Most owners ignore it. Smart owners use it to answer the questions they get asked ten times a day. - "Is there parking out front?" - "Do you do gift vouchers?" - "Are you dog friendly?"If you answer these on your profile, you remove the "friction" that stops people from coming in. You are making it easy for them to say yes to you. This is how you beat the big online brands who can't offer that personal, local touch.
Reviews: Your Digital Word-of-Mouth
In Brisbane, word-of-mouth is everything. But these days, word-of-mouth happens on Google.
I hear this a lot: "I don't want to ask for reviews, it feels pushy." Look, I get it. You're a shop owner, not a salesman. But if you have 5 reviews and the guy down the road has 150, Google is going to send customers to him every single time. It doesn't matter if your product is better.
How to get reviews without being annoying:
1. The 'Help Me Out' Approach: When a customer tells you they love what they bought, say: "I'm so glad! If you have a second, could you leave us a quick review on Google? It really helps a small local business like us." 2. The QR Code: Put a small sign at your counter with a QR code that goes straight to your review page. 3. Reply to Everyone: When someone leaves a review, reply. Even if it's just a "Thanks for coming in, Sarah!" It shows Google—and other customers—that you are a real person who cares about service.If you focus on your existing fans, you can get more repeat customers who will do the marketing for you by leaving five-star ratings.
What’s a Waste of Your Time?
Don't get bogged down in the technical rubbish you see online. You don't need to post to your Google profile three times a day like it's Instagram. People aren't "following" your hardware store for daily updates.
What they want is accurate info. Spend your time on: - Making sure your phone number is correct. - Updating your photos once a month. - Responding to reviews.
Anything else is usually just over-complicating things.
How Long Until You See Results?
This isn't like a TV ad that stops working the second you stop paying. Once you fix your Google Business Profile, it stays fixed.
Usually, if you spend an hour cleaning up your profile today, you’ll start seeing more phone calls and direction requests within 2 to 4 weeks. Google needs a little time to see that you're active and reliable, but once it trusts you, it will start showing you to more locals.
Summary of Your To-Do List
1. Claim your listing: If you haven't already, do it today. 2. Check your NAP: Name, Address, and Phone number must be exactly the same as they are on your website. 3. Upload 5 new photos: Real ones. No filters, no stock images. 4. Ask 3 happy customers for a review: Do it before the end of the week.Running a shop is hard enough. Don't make it harder by being invisible on the one platform every single one of your customers is using.
If you’re too busy running the floor and want someone to just handle this for you—and make sure it actually brings in more shoppers—that’s what we do. At Local Marketing Group, we help Brisbane businesses get found by the right people.
Ready to get more people through your front door? Contact us at Local Marketing Group and let's get your shop on the map.