What actually matters on a restaurant's Google listing
For most restaurants the map listing is seen more often than the website, and the single most expensive error on it is wrong holiday hours.
What matters most on a restaurant's Google Business Profile?
Correct hours including holidays, recent photographs of the actual food and room, the right category, and replies to reviews. In roughly that order.
Hours are first because being wrong sends somebody to a locked door, and they write about it. A one star review that says closed when it said open is the most avoidable review a restaurant gets.
Photographs matter more here than on the website, because the listing is where people decide. Real photographs of your own plates outperform professional stock heavily.
Should I reply to bad reviews?
Yes, briefly, factually and without arguing. The reply is not for the reviewer; it is for the next person reading, who is deciding whether a bad night was handled well.
One short reply that acknowledges the specific issue and says what changed does more than a paragraph of defence. Never dispute the facts in public, even when you are right.
How often should the listing be updated?
Hours whenever they change and before every holiday. Photographs every few months. Everything else when something actually changes.
Setting a calendar reminder before each holiday period is unglamorous and prevents the most common failure in this whole list.
If this is your trade
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