Google Business Profile Post Ideas: 12 That Get You Calls
Somebody searches “water heater repair near me,” and all four results have four-point-something stars. The tiebreaker is often the one panel nobody fills in: your posts. Here’s what to put there, why last month’s post vanished, and how to keep it going past week three.
Your posts expire — that’s not a bug
When an owner tells me “posting did nothing,” it’s usually because they posted once, in March. A standard Update post drops off the main view of your profile after about 7 days. It stays in the Updates tab, but what a searcher sees is gone. Offers and Events are the exception — those run through the end date you set. So the unit of work isn’t “write a post.” It’s one post a week, forever — easy once you stop being clever and start recycling four formats.
The three post types, and when each is right
- Update (“What’s new”) — your weekly default. Job photos, tips, seasonal reminders. Gone from view in a week.
- Offer — a real discount with a start and end date. Coupon-style treatment, stays up the whole window. A “limited time” offer running since 2024 reads as noise.
- Event — open houses, a booth at the county fair, a seasonal tune-up week. Also runs to its end date — a quiet way to pin something for a month.
Every type gets a button: Book, Order online, Buy, Learn more, Sign up, or Call now. Pick one. A post without a button is a billboard in a field.
12 Google Business Profile post ideas
Four rotating themes, three ideas each. Run them in order and a quarter is covered:
2. Job by the numbers. “42 feet of gutter, two downspouts, one unhappy squirrel. Half day, $475.”
3. A review you just got. Quote two lines, credit the first name, thank them.
5. Price transparency. “Standard drain clearing runs $89–$150 here. Anyone quoting $49 is selling you the upsell.”
6. The 60-second DIY check you’d rather they try first. Costs one small job, earns the next five.
8. Real availability. “Three slots left Thursday.” The highest-converting post most service businesses can write.
9. Holiday hours — post it and update the hours field.
11. A new service or service area. “We now cover Brandon and Riverview.”
12. Something local. The Little League team you sponsor, closing early for the parade. Signals you’re actually here.
What a good post looks like
You get 1,500 characters, but only the first line or two shows before “Read more.” Write like the first sentence is the whole post — for most readers it is. Aim for 150–300 characters, one real photo, one button.
Drain clearing, water heater swaps, leak checks — Tampa and Brandon. Flat $89 diagnostic, credited toward the repair. Book online and pick your window.
[Photo: your van in a real driveway] [Button: Book]
Skip two things: phone numbers in the body (Google’s guidance is to use the Call button) and anything you’d have to defend, like “#1 plumber in Florida.”
A rhythm you’ll actually keep
Sunday night, 15 minutes, phone in hand. Find the week’s best job photo, write three sentences, pick a button, schedule it — then write next week’s too. Two posts in 15 minutes beats one perfect post in April. Post the same copy to Facebook and Instagram; no prize for writing it three times. More angles: social media content ideas for service businesses.
Four mistakes that waste the effort
- Posting once and judging the results. One expired post is not a test.
- Stock photography. It makes you look like the seven other listings that bought the same photo.
- No button. You earned the attention and then asked for nothing.
- Using posts as a substitute for reviews. Posts are the tiebreaker; reviews get you shortlisted. Thin on those? Start with how to ask for Google reviews.
FAQ
How long do Google Business Profile posts last?
Update posts stay on the main profile view about 7 days, then move to the Updates tab. Offer and Event posts run to the end date you set — which makes a four-week Event a legitimate way to keep something visible longer.
How often should I post on my Google Business Profile?
Once a week matches the 7-day expiry, so there’s always something current on the profile. Past twice a week, returns drop off fast for a small service business.
Do Google Business Profile posts help with SEO?
Not directly — Google hasn’t confirmed posts as a ranking signal. They earn their keep on conversion: giving someone already looking at your listing a reason to tap Call or Book. For ranking work, start with the local SEO checklist.
What size should the photo be?
1200×900 px, JPG or PNG. A phone photo in decent light beats a stock image nearly every time, because it looks like a real business did real work.
Fifteen minutes a week, or zero.
Operaite’s Social AI takes what you actually did this week — the job, the town, the price — and writes the post for Google Business Profile, Facebook, and Instagram in your voice, with the call to action already in it. Edit a word or two and publish. Included in the $29/mo plan with a 21-day free trial.
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