Google Business Profile Manager is the centralized dashboard where you control your business listing on Google Search, Maps, and Shopping. You claim your business, verify ownership (usually by postcard, phone, or email), then manage your NAP details (name, address, phone), hours, categories, service areas, photos, posts, and respond to reviews. It's free, and for local businesses in Ottawa, Toronto, or anywhere with a physical storefront or service area, it's the single highest-impact local SEO lever you can pull. The tool evolved from Google Places to Google+ Local to Google My Business, finally rebranding as Google Business Profile in 2021. Functionally it's the same product, just streamlined. You can manage one location or thousands through the web interface or the mobile app. Multi-location businesses typically use bulk upload CSV templates or the API to stay in sync with internal systems. Key features include: - Business information updates (category, attributes, hours, special hours for holidays) - Photo and video uploads (exterior, interior, team, products) - Posts (announcements, events, offers) that appear in your Knowledge Panel - Review monitoring and response - Messaging with customers (if enabled) - Basic insights (views, calls, direction requests, website clicks) - Booking buttons and appointment integrations for service businesses At Ottawa SEO, we treat GBP as infrastructure, not a one-time setup. Profiles need monthly maintenance: fresh photos, response to reviews within 48 hours, posts every 7–10 days to signal activity, and category/attribute tuning when Google rolls out new options. Suspended profiles (common trigger: address changes without re-verification) can gut your local traffic overnight, so monitor the dashboard and keep your verification postcards on file. For service-area businesses with no physical storefront, you hide your address but still rank in the local pack if your service areas and categories are precise.