How to set up and verify a Google Business Profile in Spain

Setting up a Google Business Profile in Spain is free and goes roughly in this order: you add the business at business.google.com, choose the right Spanish category, decide whether you're a storefront business or a service-area business, then verify using whatever method Google offers you. Once verification is done, the real work begins: photos, reviews, posts and the same business information everywhere. Below I walk through these steps, along with the pitfalls I see among Turkish-owned businesses in Spain.

Creating the profile

First, check whether your business already has a listing on Google Maps. For restaurants and shops, customers or Google itself have often created one. If it exists, don't create a new profile; claim the existing listing with the "I own this business" option. Having two profiles for the same business is a duplication problem that can later lead to suspension.

If there's no listing, you enter the business name at business.google.com. The most important rule here: the business name must be the real name you use on your sign, invoices and website. Keyword-stuffed names like "Kebab Estambul Barcelona Mejor Döner Halal" may seem to work in the short term, but they violate Google's guidelines and can get the profile suspended.

Choosing a category: think in Spanish

Even if you use the account interface in Turkish, your customers will see your profile in Spanish. The primary category is the field that most affects which searches Google shows you in. The primary category should describe your main business in a word; additional categories cover secondary services. For example, a döner shop will see options like "Restaurante de kebab" or "Restaurante turco," and a hair salon will see options like "Peluquería" or "Barbería." Temporarily switching the interface to Spanish to check the category list is the easiest way to understand what customers will see.

Look at your competitors too: which category do the businesses ranking above you in the same neighborhood use? It's a good hint about which category actually gets traction in searches.

Storefront business or service-area business

If customers come to you (restaurant, grocery store, hair salon, office), you show your address. If you go to the customer (renovation, cleaning, moving, electrician) and don't receive customers at your address, you hide the address and select the cities or areas you serve. A home-based service business showing its home address goes against the guidelines and isn't a good idea for privacy either.

Don't use a virtual office, a mailbox or an address you rent only on paper. Google prohibits these kinds of addresses and may want to see your physical presence during verification.

When setting up the profile, add your business phone and website too. Using a Spanish number (+34) matters so local customers don't hesitate before calling. You can set up the profile even without a website, but a simple Spanish-language site is an extra signal that supports your business's legitimacy in Google's eyes and makes it easier for customers to find your menu, prices or service details.

Verification methods

According to the latest information in Google's help center, you don't choose the verification methods; Google decides which ones you'll see based on your business type, region, opening hours and general information about you. Some businesses may be asked for more than one method. These are the methods you may come across:

• Phone or SMS: A code is sent to your business number. Automated phone systems can't receive the code, so use a number that reaches you directly.
• Email: You verify by following steps sent to an address you have access to.
• Video recording: The method Google recommends for eligible businesses. You record a single continuous, unedited video with your phone through the profile. The video shows signs of your location (sign, street, surroundings), work equipment or products, and proof that you manage the business (opening the door with a key, showing the register or a document like a license or invoice).
• Live video call: You show the location and your authority to manage the business with a Google representative. Only available during business hours and not offered to every business.
• Postcard: A 5-digit code is mailed to your address. According to Google, codes usually arrive within 14 days and expire after 30 days.

The review process can take a few business days. During that time, don't change the business name, address or category; every change can extend the review. If the sign isn't visible in the video recording or the recording cuts out, the chance of rejection goes up, so plan what you'll show before you record.

NAP consistency: name, address and phone the same everywhere

NAP (name, address, phone), meaning your business name, address and phone written the same way on every platform, is a trust signal in local search. In Spain, small differences in how addresses are written are common: "Carrer" vs. "Calle," the "C/" abbreviation, floor and door details ("2º 1ª"), the postal code. Pick one format and use exactly the same one on your website, Google profile, Instagram, TheFork and delivery platforms.

Catalonia has an extra wrinkle: street names are officially written in Catalan ("Carrer de ..."), but some customers search in Spanish. Google usually matches both searches; go with the official spelling and stay consistent. If your business name contains Turkish characters (ş, ğ, ı), use it exactly as it appears on your sign, but keep in mind that users may type the letters on an English keyboard.

Photos, posts and up-to-date information

Here's my to-do list once the profile is live:

1. Upload a logo and cover photo.
2. Add an exterior photo: it helps customers recognize you on the street.
3. Post real photos of the interior, products, team and people at work. Don't use stock images.
4. Keep your opening hours and special hours up to date (including public holidays in Spain and the August period).
5. Fill in the services or menu section in Spanish.
6. Use the posts feature to share promotions, new products or events.

If you'd like help with photo and video production, take a look at my video production in Spain page.

Asking for and replying to reviews

In Spain, customers like writing reviews but forget if you don't ask. The most natural way to ask is to send a satisfied customer your review link with a short message in Spanish: a simple line like "Gracias por venir. Si le ha gustado, nos ayudaría mucho una reseña en Google" is enough. Asking for reviews in exchange for discounts or getting fake reviews goes against Google's policies.

Reply to every review, including the negative ones, in the language of the review. Spanish reviews in Spanish, Catalan reviews in Catalan if you can, Turkish reviews in Turkish. For a negative review, write a short reply that acknowledges the problem and offers a solution, without getting defensive. New customers look at your reply more than the review itself.

Tracking your profile's performance

The performance section of the profile dashboard shows how many people saw your profile, how many called, requested directions or clicked through to your website. Checking this data once a month is the simplest way to see which changes are working. For example, you can watch how direction requests change in the weeks after uploading new photos or changing your category.

You can also see which searches customers used to find you. If you see Turkish or English searches alongside Spanish ones, that tells you which audiences are looking for you and helps you adjust the language of your menu, service descriptions or posts. If you add UTM parameters to the link to your website, you can see visitors from the profile separately in Google Analytics. Keep an eye on the Q&A section too: the questions customers ask show you what information to add to your site and profile description.

If your profile gets suspended

The suspension reasons I see among Turkish-owned businesses in Spain are usually these:

• Adding a city or keywords to the business name
• Using a virtual office or an address that isn't real
• Creating more than one profile for the same business
• Showing a home address for a service-area business
• Making a lot of information changes in a short time

If you're suspended, don't create a new profile. First fix the problem, then appeal through Google's appeal form with documents showing your business is real (a photo of your sign, an invoice, a license).

Your profile is ready. What's next

A Google Business Profile is a powerful tool on its own, but it delivers real results when combined with a website, Spanish-language content and ads. I handle profile setup, verification and ongoing management through my Google Business Profile in Spain service. I explain how to support your profile with Google ads in my post on Google Ads in Spain, and the restaurant-specific strategy in my post on digital marketing for Turkish restaurants in Spain. The overall framework for all services is on the digital marketing in Spain page.