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Google Business Profile Posts

Updated September 2026 · Written and maintained by the Progression Agency strategy team

Google posts are short updates published to your business listing, still widely searched for as GMB posts because of the rename from Google My Business. This page covers the post types and how each expires, why a fixed image-size number is the wrong thing to memorize, whether posts affect rankings (no credible evidence), what to write, the mistakes that recur, and what the available measurement can and cannot tell you.

The short answerPosts reach people already looking at your listing, so treat them as communication rather than reach — and there is no credible evidence they affect local rankings. On image size, do not memorize a number: the published spec has changed more than once and surfaces crop differently, so center the subject with generous margin, keep text out of the image, and check Google’s current documentation. Commit to a cadence you can sustain forever, because posts carry visible dates and a stale profile reads worse than a quiet one.

Choosing the post type

What a Google post is, and why the name keeps changing

A Google post is a short update published directly to your business listing, appearing alongside your profile in Search and Maps. People still search for GMB posts and for Google My Business posts because the product was called Google My Business until it was renamed Google Business Profile, and the older name persists in everyday use and in most published guidance.

The distinction between Google posts for business and ordinary social posts is where they appear and who sees them. A social post reaches followers; posting on Google Business Profile reaches people who have already searched for you or for what you do, at the moment they are deciding. That audience is smaller and closer to acting.

What is a Google post good for, practically — and what are Google posts able to do: announcing something time-bound, answering a question that comes up repeatedly before people call, and occupying more of your own branded result. What they are not is a distribution channel — there is no feed and no sharing mechanism, so nothing compounds the way it might elsewhere.

Post types and what each is actually for
TypeBest used forExpiry behavior
Update / What’s newGeneral news, changes, remindersRotates out after a period
OfferA dated promotion with termsEnds on the date you set
EventSomething with a start and endVisible until the event passes
ProductIndividual items with pricePersists in the product area
COVID / alert styleUrgent operational changesPriority placement while active

Image size: what to know, and why a fixed number is the wrong answer

Google post size and google business post size questions are the most common thing people search here, and the honest answer is that the published specification changes and the rendered crop differs by surface. Committing a single pixel dimension to memory is how people end up with cropped text six months later.

The durable approach is compositional rather than numeric. Use a roughly square or landscape image with the subject centered and generous margin, because the visible area is cropped differently in Search, in Maps, on desktop and on mobile. Anything essential near an edge will be cut somewhere.

For the current figures — the exact GMB post image size, minimum resolution and file limits — check Google’s own documentation rather than a blog post, including this one. The GBP post image size has been revised more than once, and third-party guides go stale silently. What does not change: text burned into the image is a bad idea, because it is the first thing a crop destroys and it is invisible to anyone using a screen reader.

Center the subject — Crops vary by surface. Safe area is smaller than the file..
Leave margin — All four sides. Edges get cut somewhere..
No text in image — Crops and scales badly. Also inaccessible..
Check the live spec — Google's docs, not blogs. Numbers change silently..
Test on mobile — Where most will see it. Desktop preview misleads..
One clear subject — Not a collage. Small render, little detail survives..

Compose for the crop, not the canvas

Center the subject and leave margin on all sides. Different surfaces crop differently, so the safe area is smaller than the image you upload.

Avoid text inside the image

It crops badly, it does not scale on small screens, and it is inaccessible. Put the words in the post body, which is searchable and readable.

Check Google’s current spec, not a blog

Google posts size guidance has been revised repeatedly. Third-party numbers go stale without any indication that they have.

Test on a phone after publishing

The rendered result is the only reliable check, and mobile is where most people will see it.

Posts expire, and that changes how you should plan them

Unlike a website page, a Google post has a limited visible life. Updates rotate out, offers end on their stated date, and events disappear once they have passed.

This makes posting a maintenance activity rather than a publishing one. A profile with three posts from last year looks less current than one with nothing, because the dates are visible and stale content reads as a business that stopped paying attention.

The planning consequence is to commit to a cadence you can sustain indefinitely rather than a burst. Something every week or two, permanently, beats twelve posts in a month followed by silence — and the sustainable cadence is usually lower than people initially promise themselves.

What to post, by business type
Business typeReliably usefulRarely worth it
Restaurant or venueMenu changes, hours, eventsGeneric inspirational content
Home servicesSeasonal reminders, service areasCompany milestones
Professional servicesAnswers to pre-call questionsIndustry news commentary
RetailStock arrivals, offers with datesAnything without a product
Medical or clinicAvailability, new services, policyAnything that could read as advice
Any businessAnswers to what people phone to askReposted social content

Where posts appear, and who actually sees them

Understanding the placement explains most of what follows about how to write them and how much to expect. Posts surface on your business profile in Search and in Maps, and their prominence varies by device and by how the profile was reached.

The audience is therefore people who already searched your name, or who found you in a local result for something you do. There is no feed, no follower graph and no sharing mechanism, so a post cannot travel beyond the people looking at your listing.

That constraint is worth accepting rather than fighting. It makes posts a poor awareness channel and a good one for the moment between finding you and contacting you — which is precisely where most local businesses lose inquiries to an unanswered question.

Where a post can and cannot reach
SurfacePost visibleNotes
Your profile in SearchYesThe primary placement
Your profile in MapsYesProminence differs from Search
Local pack resultsNot directlyThe listing shows; posts sit inside the profile
A follower feedNo such thingNo distribution mechanism exists
Shared by usersNoPosts cannot be reshared
Web search results generallyNoPosts are not standalone indexed pages

Do Google posts affect rankings

There is no credible evidence that publishing posts improves where a profile ranks in local results, and claims otherwise are usually inferred from the fact that active profiles tend to be well-maintained in other ways too.

What posts plausibly do affect is behavior once someone has found you: they occupy more of your branded result, they answer questions that would otherwise be a phone call, and they signal that the business is operating. Those are conversion effects rather than ranking effects, and they are worth having on their own terms.

Treating posts as a ranking tactic leads to posting for volume, which produces the stale-profile problem described above. Treating them as a communication channel to people already looking at you produces better posts and a cadence you can maintain.

A sustainable posting rhythm
Bursts followed by silence leave a visibly stale profile, which is worse than posting nothing.

Writing a post that does something

The format rewards being direct. There is limited space, the reader is mid-decision, and there is one action available.

Lead with the specific thing — the date, the price, the change, the answer. Avoid opening with the business name, which the reader can already see. Include one call to action rather than several, and make it the one that matches the post: call for a booking, directions for a visit, a link only where the destination genuinely adds something.

Google posts examples that work tend to read like a note to a customer rather than marketing copy. The ones that fail read like a press release, or like social content that was written for a different audience and reposted without thought.

Put the specific fact first

The date, the price, the change. The reader is deciding, not browsing.

One action, matched to the post

A booking post should call; a location post should give directions. Multiple actions dilute both.

Do not open with your own name

It is already on screen directly above the post.

Write it as a note, not a campaign

The register that works here is closer to a message to an existing customer than to advertising.

Common mistakes

The recurring problems are consistent enough to list, and all of them are avoidable at no cost.

Reposting social content unchanged, which reads as written for a different audience because it was. Text baked into images that crops or cannot be read on a phone. Offers with no end date, which either expire invisibly or sit there past their relevance. Posting in bursts and then stopping, leaving a visibly stale profile. Links that go to a homepage rather than to the thing the post described. And treating the channel as a ranking lever rather than a communication one.

One more worth naming: not checking the result on a phone. Most people will see the post on mobile, cropped, and the desktop preview does not show you what they will get.

Reposted social — Written for followers. Different audience entirely..
Text in the image — Crops, cannot scale. And screen readers miss it..
Offer with no end date — Lingers or vanishes. Both look careless..
Burst then silence — Dates are visible. Stale reads worse than quiet..
Link to the homepage — Not the thing described. Wastes the click..
Posting for rankings — No credible evidence. Produces volume, not value..

Products, offers and events are different tools

The three dated post types get used interchangeably and behave differently, which produces some avoidable disappointment.

An offer carries a start and end date and is the right vehicle for a discount with terms; it disappears when it ends, which is correct behavior and surprises people who expected it to linger. An event has its own dates and stops showing once passed. A product post is different in kind — it persists in the profile’s product area rather than rotating out, which makes it the closest thing to permanent content available here.

For a business with a stable catalog, products are the most durable investment of the three, because the work does not evaporate on a date. Offers and events should be treated as consumable by design.

Dated types compared
OfferEventProduct
Carries datesYesYesNo
DisappearsAt end dateAfter the eventPersists
Right forA discount with termsSomething scheduledCatalog items
Durability of the workConsumableConsumableLasting
Common mistakeNo end date setPosted after it startedNever used at all

Write the post before you choose the type

The type follows from whether the content carries a date. Choosing the type first tends to produce a post shaped to fit a format rather than to say something.

Schedule replacements, not just posts

Because updates rotate out, the useful unit of planning is the replacement rather than the post. Knowing what follows this one is what keeps the profile from going quiet.

Keep a small library of evergreen updates

Service areas, parking, accessibility, what to bring. These can be rotated indefinitely and cover the weeks when nothing newsworthy happened.

Review what you posted a year ago

The dated ones show you what actually recurs annually, which is most of what a small business needs to say.

How to tell whether posting is worth the effort

The measurement available is limited, and it is worth being clear about what can and cannot be known.

The profile’s own insights report views and actions, which tells you whether posts are being seen and interacted with. What that does not isolate is whether the post caused the call, since someone who was going to phone anyway may read the post first and still phone.

The practical test is simpler than an attribution model: do the questions that used to arrive by phone stop arriving because the post answered them, and does the profile look current to someone checking you out. Both are observable without any analytics, and both are the actual job.

What the numbers can and cannot tell you
MeasureTells youDoes not tell you
Post viewsIt was seenWhether it mattered
Post clicks or actionsIt prompted somethingWhether they would have acted anyway
Calls from the profileTotal demand via the listingWhich post contributed
Direction requestsIntent to visitAttribution to a post
Questions no longer askedThe post did its jobAnything a dashboard reports

Reference videos

Local search fundamentals relevant to profile management.

Getting found in search

AI, AEO and what is changing

Paid media and lead generation

Websites and design

Choosing and working with an agency

Social, content and brand

By industry and by situation

Frequently asked questions

What are Google posts?
Short updates published directly to your Google Business Profile, appearing alongside your listing in Search and Maps. They are still widely called GMB posts because the product was named Google My Business before the rename to Google Business Profile.
What is the GMB post size?
Google publishes the current specification and has revised it more than once, so check their documentation rather than any blog including this one. The durable guidance is compositional: use a roughly square or landscape image with the subject centered and generous margin, because Search, Maps, desktop and mobile all crop differently.
What is the best GMB post image size to avoid cropping?
Rather than a fixed number, compose so the essential content sits well inside the frame. The visible area is smaller than the image you upload and varies by surface, so anything important near an edge will be cut somewhere. Check the result on a phone after publishing.
Should I put text in the post image?
No. Text baked into an image is the first thing a crop destroys, it does not scale on small screens, and it is invisible to screen readers. Put the words in the post body, where they are readable and searchable.
Do Google posts help my rankings?
There is no credible evidence that posting improves local ranking. What posts plausibly affect is behavior after someone finds you — occupying more of your branded result and answering questions that would otherwise be a call. Those are conversion effects, not ranking effects.
How often should I be posting on Google Business Profile?
At a cadence you can sustain indefinitely, which is usually lower than people first promise. Something every week or two forever beats twelve posts in a month then silence, because posts carry visible dates and a stale profile reads worse than a quiet one.
Do Google posts expire?
Yes, and that is the main planning difference from a website page. Updates rotate out after a period, offers end on the date you set, and events disappear once passed. Posting is maintenance rather than publishing.
What are the different types of Google post?
Update, offer, event and product are the main ones, with alert-style posts for urgent operational changes. Offers and events carry dates; products persist in the product area of the profile.
What should I post on Google Business Profile?
The things people phone to ask: hours changes, availability, service areas, seasonal reminders, dated offers. The reliably wasted posts are reposted social content and company milestones, which are written for a different audience.
Can I repost my social media content to Google?
You can, and it usually reads as what it is. Social content is written for followers browsing; a Google post is read by someone mid-decision who has already searched for you. The register and the useful content differ.
Are Google posts worth it for a small business?
For businesses where people check the listing before calling — most local services — yes, because the posts answer pre-call questions and make the profile look operating. For businesses whose customers never look at the listing, the effort is better spent elsewhere.
How do I measure whether Google posts are working?
Profile insights report views and actions, but cannot isolate whether a post caused a call. The practical tests are observable without analytics: do repetitive phone questions stop, and does the profile look current to someone checking you out.
Why did my Google post disappear?
Most likely it expired — updates rotate out and dated posts end on their date. Posts can also be removed for policy reasons, which is reported in the profile. Check the date before assuming a fault.
What is the difference between GMB posts and Google Business Profile posts?
Nothing but the name. Google My Business was renamed Google Business Profile, and both terms describe the same feature. Older guidance uses the former, which is why searches split between them.
Should offers always have an end date?
Yes. An offer without one either lingers past its relevance or expires invisibly, and a visible stale offer damages the impression of a business more than having no offer at all.
Can I schedule Google posts in advance?
Scheduling is available through the profile and through most listing-management tools. It is worth using precisely because cadence matters more than volume — scheduling is what makes a sustainable rhythm realistic.
Do posts show up for people who have not searched my business name?
Primarily they appear to people already viewing your profile, which usually means they searched your name or found you in a local result. Treat the audience as people already considering you rather than as reach.
What makes a good call to action on a post?
One that matches the post. A booking post should prompt a call; a visit post should give directions. Multiple competing actions dilute the decision, and a link to a homepage rather than the thing described wastes the click.
Are there good Google posts examples to follow?
The pattern worth copying is a note to a customer rather than a marketing message: the specific fact first, one action, no company name at the start since it is already on screen, and no text baked into the image.
How long should a Google post be?
Short enough that the important part survives truncation in the preview. Lead with the specific fact — date, price, change — because that is what a reader mid-decision needs and what remains visible if the rest is cut.

Sources and further reading

  1. Google Search Essentials — SEO starter guide
  2. Google: creating helpful, reliable, people-first content
  3. Google: intro to structured data
  4. Google: LocalBusiness structured data
  5. Google: FAQPage structured data
  6. Google: Article structured data
  7. Google: Product structured data
  8. Google: title links in search results
  9. Google: control your snippets
  10. Google: robots.txt introduction
  11. Google: sitemaps overview
  12. Google: consolidate duplicate URLs
  13. Google: redirects and Search
  14. Google: JavaScript SEO basics
  15. Google: multi-regional and multilingual sites
  16. Google Search Central Blog
  17. Google: get started with Search Console
  18. Google: how local search results are determined
  19. Google Business Profile: prohibited and restricted content
  20. Google Business Profile: address and service area guidelines
  21. Google Business Profile: review policy
  22. Google Business Profile: add or edit categories
  23. Google Ads: location targeting settings
  24. Google Ads: about negative keywords
  25. Google Ads: about Quality Score
  26. Google Ads: importing offline conversions
  27. Google Ads: about Smart Bidding
  28. Google Ads: about Performance Max
  29. Google Local Services Ads: eligibility and screening
  30. Google Ads: keyword match types
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  35. US Census: Statistics of US Businesses
  36. Bureau of Labor Statistics: New Jersey data
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  38. NJ Department of Labor: labor market information
  39. New Jersey Business Action Center
  40. US Small Business Administration: New Jersey district
  41. USA.gov: business resources
  42. web.dev: Core Web Vitals explained
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  44. web.dev: Cumulative Layout Shift
  45. web.dev: Interaction to Next Paint
  46. Google PageSpeed Insights
  47. Google Rich Results Test
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  49. W3C Markup Validation Service
  50. Schema.org: LocalBusiness type
  51. Schema.org: Service type
  52. Schema.org: FAQPage type
  53. Schema.org: HowTo type
  54. W3C: WCAG 2.2 quick reference
  55. FTC: CAN-SPAM Act compliance guide
  56. FCC: telemarketing and robocall rules (TCPA)
  57. FTC endorsement guides — reviews and testimonials
  58. FTC: rule on consumer reviews and testimonials
  59. HHS: HIPAA guidance on online tracking technologies
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  63. New Jersey Division of Consumer Affairs
  64. TikTok for Business
  65. TikTok Creative Center
  66. TikTok Ads Help Center
  67. TikTok Community Guidelines
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  69. TikTok Privacy Policy
  70. TikTok Safety Center
  71. TikTok Transparency Center
  72. TikTok Creator Portal
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  74. TikTok for Developers
  75. TikTok advertising solutions
  76. TikTok Creator Marketplace
  77. TikTok Business Center
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  80. TikTok Branded Content policy
  81. TikTok Shop for sellers
  82. Instagram for Business
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  85. About Instagram
  86. Meta Business Suite
  87. Meta Business Help Center
  88. Meta Transparency Center
  89. About Meta
  90. Meta: Instagram platform docs
  91. YouTube Creators
  92. YouTube Official Blog
  93. YouTube Shorts help
  94. How YouTube Works
  95. YouTube Studio
  96. LinkedIn Marketing Solutions
  97. LinkedIn Help
  98. Pinterest Business
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  100. Snapchat for Business
  101. X for Business
  102. Reddit communities
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  104. ASCAP
  105. BMI
  106. SESAC
  107. Global Music Rights
  108. PRS for Music (UK)
  109. PPL (UK)
  110. SOCAN (Canada)
  111. APRA AMCOS (Australia)
  112. GEMA (Germany)
  113. SACEM (France)
  114. SIAE (Italy)
  115. JASRAC (Japan)
  116. IFPI
  117. RIAA
  118. National Music Publishers Association
  119. Harry Fox Agency
  120. SoundExchange
  121. Music Reports
  122. Epidemic Sound
  123. Artlist
  124. Soundstripe
  125. PremiumBeat
  126. AudioJungle
  127. Free Music Archive
  128. Creative Commons
  129. Incompetech
  130. FTC: advertising and marketing
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  133. FTC: consumer reviews rule
  134. FTC: advertising FAQs
  135. US Copyright Office
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  138. US Copyright Office: fair use FAQ
  139. USPTO: trademarks
  140. UK Advertising Standards Authority
  141. ACCC (Australia)
  142. Competition Bureau Canada
  143. GDPR overview
  144. California Consumer Privacy Act
  145. COPPA
  146. FTC: children’s privacy
  147. W3C Web Accessibility Initiative
  148. W3C: WCAG
  149. W3C: captions
  150. W3C: making audio and video accessible
  151. ADA.gov
  152. WebAIM
  153. Epilepsy Foundation
  154. Pew Research: internet and technology
  155. DataReportal
  156. US Census Bureau
  157. US Bureau of Labor Statistics
  158. Interactive Advertising Bureau
  159. Think with Google
  160. Google Trends
  161. Nielsen insights
  162. Schema.org: VideoObject
  163. Schema.org: SocialMediaPosting
  164. Schema.org: MusicRecording
  165. Schema.org: HowTo
  166. Schema.org: FAQPage
  167. Schema.org: Organization
  168. Google: video best practices
  169. Google: video structured data
  170. CapCut
  171. Adobe Premiere Rush
  172. DaVinci Resolve
  173. Canva
  174. Descript
  175. VEED
  176. Kapwing
  177. Otter.ai
  178. Later
  179. Buffer
  180. Hootsuite
  181. Sprout Social
  182. Google Analytics
  183. Google Search Console
  184. Google Analytics developer docs
  185. GA4: events and conversions
  186. Matomo
  187. Plausible Analytics
  188. Similarweb
  189. UK Information Commissioner’s Office
  190. Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada
  191. Australian OAIC
  192. European Data Protection Board
  193. EU data protection
  194. EU Digital Services Act
  195. Ofcom
  196. FCC
  197. AIGA
  198. Nielsen Norman Group
  199. Smashing Magazine
  200. web.dev
  201. MDN: web media
  202. MDN: the video element
  203. ISO 21001 (reference)
  204. Buma/Stemra (Netherlands)
  205. STIM (Sweden)
  206. Teosto (Finland)
  207. Koda (Denmark)
  208. TONO (Norway)
  209. IMRO (Ireland)
  210. SGAE (Spain)
  211. ZAiKS (Poland)
  212. KOMCA (South Korea)
  213. MCSC (China)
  214. CISAC
  215. World Intellectual Property Organization
  216. TikTok: creating videos
  217. TikTok: exploring videos
  218. TikTok: privacy settings
  219. TikTok: growing your audience
  220. TikTok Creator Academy
  221. TikTok Effect House
  222. TikTok for small business
  223. Instagram: Reels help
  224. YouTube: Shorts best practice
  225. How YouTube recommends
  226. Pinterest Predicts
  227. Snapchat for Business
  228. Hootsuite blog
  229. Social Media Examiner
  230. Marketing Week
  231. Adweek
  232. Google Search Essentials — SEO starter guide
  233. Google: creating helpful, reliable, people-first content
  234. Google: intro to structured data
  235. Google: LocalBusiness structured data
  236. Google: FAQPage structured data
  237. Google: Article structured data
  238. Google: Product structured data
  239. Google: title links in search results
  240. Google: control your snippets
  241. Google: robots.txt introduction
  242. Google: sitemaps overview
  243. Google: consolidate duplicate URLs
  244. Google: redirects and Search
  245. Google: JavaScript SEO basics
  246. Google: multi-regional and multilingual sites
  247. Google Search Central Blog
  248. Google: get started with Search Console
  249. Google: how local search results are determined
  250. Google Business Profile: prohibited and restricted content
  251. Google Business Profile: address and service area guidelines
  252. Google Business Profile: review policy
  253. Google Business Profile: add or edit categories
  254. US Census Bureau QuickFacts: New Jersey
  255. US Census Bureau: American Community Survey
  256. US Census: Statistics of US Businesses
  257. Bureau of Labor Statistics: New Jersey data
  258. BLS: Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics
  259. NJ Department of Labor: labor market information
  260. New Jersey Business Action Center
  261. US Small Business Administration: New Jersey district
  262. USA.gov: business resources

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