Category Archives: Local Maps SEO

Have you ever been asked to share access to your Google Business Profile, only to hesitate – wondering if this would expose your personal email or sensitive information?

You’re not alone. Many business owners worry that granting access to GBP might give someone control over the entire Google account, including gmail and private data.

But here’s the truth: when a legitimate agency like Local Splash requests access to your GBP, it’s for a valid reason. Agencies can keep business details accurate, leading to improved local search rankings and a greater ability to attract customers.

Yet, concerns over privacy can make business owners reluctant to share access. Let’s talk about how Google Business Profile access works, what’s visible (and what’s not), and why it’s safe to share access with qualified professionals. You can accomplish all of this without risking your personal data.

Why Business Owners Hesitate to Share GBP Access

Many business owners worry about sharing access to their GBP because of common misconceptions, including:

Fear of exposing your personal information: Some assume adding a user will give them access to their Gmail, Google Drive, or personal account details.
Loss of control: Business owners worry that once access is granted, they may lose ownership of their listing.
Security worries: Many hesitate because they think a user might make unwarranted edits or even delete the profile.

The good news? These concerns are based on misconceptions of how permissions inside Google Business Profile actually work.

What Happens When You Add a User to Google Business Profile?

Remember these three points:

Granting access to your GBP does not give access to your Gmail inbox, Google Drive, or other Google services.
Users added to a GBP can only manage the business listing – they can’t access your personal data.
Google accounts are used only for login and verification, not for sharing private content.

You’re Either the Owner or a Manager

Google offers two roles to access a Google Business Profile, Owner Access and Manager Access:

Capability	Owner	Manager
Add and remove users	✅	❌
Remove Business Profiles	✅	❌
Edit all URLs	✅	✅
Accept all Google updates	✅	✅
Opt in or out of Bookings	✅	✅
Edit location settings	✅	✅
Manage Google Ads account links	✅	✅
Edit business info (hours, address, phone)	✅	✅
Respond to reviews & Q&A	✅	✅

Key Differences:

Owners have full control, including the ability to add/remove users.
Managers can update business details but cannot remove the profile or control user access.
Users do not gain access to the business owner’s personal Google account.

Why Granting GBP Access Is Important for Your Business

Giving access to your GBP isn’t just safe – it can be necessary for effective business management.

Here’s why:

Faster updates: A trusted agency or employee can update your hours, services, and contact info immediately, ensuring accuracy.
Better engage with your customers: Responding quickly to reviews, messages, and questions builds trust and enhances customer relationships.
Local SEO: When an agency optimizes your profile, it makes your business more visible to prospective customers in the local search results.
You maintain control: You can remove users anytime, ensuring your business stays protected.

How to Safely Add and Manage Users in GBP

Step-by-Step Guide to Adding Users

Sign in to Google Business Profile.
Click the three-dot menu > Business Profile settings > People and access.
Select Add User, enter their email address, and choose Manager or Owner.
Click Invite – they’ll receive an email to accept access.

Recommended Security Practices

Only add a trusted team member or agency as Manager.
Keep ownership control within your business — avoid granting Owner access to agencies unless necessary. Unlike some providers, if Local Splash creates a profile for a business, we transfer ownership to the business.
Remove access immediately if a relationship ends.

You can learn more about the privacy settings in Google Business Profile at the Google Support link here: https://support.google.com/business/answer/3415281

GBP Privacy Questions in a Nutshell

Does adding someone to my GBP give them access to my Gmail?

No. They can only manage the business profile, not view your emails.

Can they see my Google Drive or other Google services?

No. GBP access is completely separate from all other Google tools.

Can a Manager remove me as the Owner?

No. Only Owners can manage users, and only the Primary Owner and Owner access can transfer ownership.

What if I change my mind?

You can remove a user at any time from the People and access settings.

Final Thoughts: Why Business Owners Shouldn’t Worry

Granting access to your Google Business Profile does not put your personal data at risk. It simply allows a trusted agency or employee to keep your profile updated, respond to customers, and improve your local online presence.

By understanding how GBP access works, you can confidently share management permissions, without hesitation.

Adding Local Splash as a Manager to your Google Business Profile is a smart business move that enhances your visibility and reputation. Handing over the tedious management of your online presence frees you up to focus on more pressing decisions to grow your business. Reach out to Local Splash to discuss your options.

Last week the online search world experienced an earthquake. The earth didn’t actually move, but our search results experienced a significant “shake” when Google released what has been dubbed the “Pigeon” update. For local businesses, this update has been extremely positive, displaying business listings in a huge percentage of its queries. We have discovered that small businesses, locally searched, may actually see a big gain as a result of the Pigeon update. Let me explain some of our findings. Initially, many who reviewed results after the update concluded that local Map Packs were significantly reduced in Google search results. The initial data that MOZ released suggested a grim picture with a huge reduction in Map Packs. However, upon further inspection, the queries performed lacked user location. For years Google has detected user’s physical location and used that information to deliver unique search results. Now it appears that setting location is necessary to return the most relevant local results. Continue reading →

At the Google I/O keynote a new Google Maps interface was rolled out in beta form. This new user interface is the first major overhaul of the Maps product in almost 10 years. Besides the UI overhaul, it fundamentally alters the way that users interface with Google Maps. What does that mean?

Big changes!

This new interface is absolutely visually stunning, if not a little difficult to navigate. The most important new change? You guessed it!

No more Peg Man!

The list is dead! Long live the list!

In all seriousness, probably the most important change as far as local discover and local SEO is that searches for businesses or locations are no longer displayed in a list. Instead, they are displayed in a more organic fashion on the map itself:

Not only does this have the potential to impact the discovery of local businesses, but for those of us in the local search marketing space, it will most likely break your rank tracking tools. Especially since Places was removed as an option from Google Search. Fear not! There still is a way to get to a hierarchical list of places. Simply click the “Go to list of top results” after you perform a search in the new Google Maps interface:

Once you click on this you are taken to the same list of Places results that Mike Blumenthal recently showed on his blog. There is lots of speculation on whether or not this will replace Places in Google after the previous version was eliminated, however, only time will tell. At least right now, you will have to get your rankings report and conduct deeper dives into local rankings data through the new Maps interface. It’s not perfect, but it is doable.

Integrating with Google Plus and other Google products

Before the Google I/O keynote there was lots of speculation that the new Maps UI was going to more fully integrate with Google Plus/Plus Local and that is definitely the case. It is possible to sort Maps results through both your Google Plus circles, as well as the top reviews.

To access the Maps beta I have to be signed into my Google account, so I assume that filtering through your Google Plus circles goes away if you aren’t signed in, but cannot verify. Regardless, it adds a new social layer and level of personalization to Google Maps that some will appreciate and some won’t. This new integration also further fuels speculation that Google is not so much redesigning their local search products as much as they are integrating them into Google Maps and Google Plus. Given some of the other changes to Maps, that likely seems their strategy. Speaking of which…

Another change in the new Google Maps interface is a deeper integration with other Google products like Google Ads and Offers. Specifically, Google Ads campaigns with local extensions now show up on the map with a purple pin and are clearly labeled as ads.

In addition to the new ad display, when you click on a business location that has a Google Offer, it shows the offer in the UI; if you click on it you are taken directly to that company’s offer page.

Hopefully this will provide more value for local businesses that attempt to fully integrate with the Google idon’tknowwhattheyarecallinglocal experience.

A look at the new business listings

The classic business listing also got a much needed visual and information overhaul:

The new business listing has several components, and are much more robust then they used to be. The features include:

The business name and address
Today’s hours (which when clicked on brings up an overlay of the complete business hours)
Directions (because it wouldn’t be Google Maps without directions)
The ability to save a location
The website associated with the listing (and if there isn’t one it references the Google Plus Local Page)
Phone Number
Street View
Photos associated with the business listing
A 360 degree panoramic view of the inside of the business (if the specific business has one)
A star rating and average if the business has more than 5 reviews
A menu, that as far as I can tell comes from menupages.com or viewmenu.com
Pricing displayed as dollar signs
Google categories, which if clicked produces a new search with the category as the query
A description taken from the associated Google Plus Local page, if there is one

Like I said previously, I really like the new interface, although it is harder to manage. Unfortunately, what that means is another complication for local business owners to navigate when dealing with Google’s convoluted and oft changing local ecosystem. Did anybody notice anything else? If so, I would love to hear about it.