How do I know whether my Google Business Profile agency is actually doing anything?

What should I check every month?

Use this evidence checklist when the agency sends its monthly update. Each item gives you something specific to inspect rather than a general statement that work was completed.

Who should own my Google Business Profile?

The business should remain the profile owner or co-owner. Google says the business decides whether a third party receives Co-Owner access, Manager access, or no access, and every end customer must retain ownership or co-ownership. Google’s setup guidance says to make the business owner the owner and the agency the manager. For an existing profile, invite the agency as a manager rather than an owner. See how to add a manager without transferring ownership for the access roles and menu path.

Google tells third parties not to share passwords with clients. Google also says an agency should remove the profile from its account when it no longer manages the profile. The Google Business Profile hub covers the profile’s other ownership and access decisions.

How can I check whether the agency’s access is safe?

Review the profile’s owners and managers, then remove former employees and anyone who no longer needs access. Google recommends limiting access to essential people because owners can edit the profile and transfer ownership. Google also recommends keeping your own access after adding a third party, using an email alias for a manager, and rejecting unknown access requests.

An agency that asks for access should identify the Google Account it uses and the role it needs. A Manager role fits daily profile work when the business is not sharing ownership. If the agency asks for ownership, ask why that role is necessary and keep the business owner or co-owner in place.

What should the agency’s change record show?

Google requires third parties to inform customers of all changes and edits to a Business Profile. Google also prohibits changing or disabling profile features without the business owner’s consent. The agency must explain what Google Business Profile is and where the profile data is used. Ask for a dated record that names the field or feature changed, the date, and how the agency notified you.

The record should make ordinary edits easy to recognize. Examples include a business description change, a category change, a service update, a holiday-hours change, or a feature being disabled. If the agency cannot say what changed, when it changed, or how you approved a sensitive change, ask for that detail before treating the monthly report as evidence.

What should a Google Business Profile report contain?

Google says management-cost and performance reports must be easy for customers to access by email or through the agency’s website. The agency can also let you sign in to the linked Google Account and inspect the performance data directly. Use the Google Business Profile performance metrics guide when you need to interpret the labels in that report.

If an agency combines data from several profile-management platforms, Google requires the Google Business Profile data to appear separately from non-Google data. An aggregate report is acceptable only when the Google Business Profile-specific data is also easy to access. One customer’s profile-specific data must not be compared with or shared with other customers. If the tool aggregates geographic location data across platforms, it must also provide the Google Business Profile location performance report and its required fields.

Ask where the Google Business Profile-specific figures are in the report. A blended visibility score, a list of completed tasks, or a screenshot of a ranking position does not identify which Google data changed. The report should let you connect the agency’s work to the profile’s own record.

What consent should I have on record?

Google says a third party may claim and manage a Business Profile only with the business owner’s express consent, as required by applicable law. Written consent or a positive action, such as checking a box on a form, can qualify. Verbal consent is not sufficient. Keep the approval record with the agency agreement and monthly change records.

Review responses need explicit approval from the customer. If a dispute arises, Google says the third party must provide written or digital proof of consent. An agency should not claim a profile before authorization, impersonate a business, or gain access without direct written authorization.

Can a ranking report prove the agency is working?

No. A ranking position is an outcome snapshot, not a work record. Google requires third parties to describe services, costs, and expected results truthfully. Google gives guarantees of top placement and claims that a profile will appear in Search or Maps at all times as examples of unrealistic claims.

Ask for the dated change record and the source-separated performance report instead. Those records show what the agency changed, what Google data it is reporting, and what you can inspect yourself. They do not turn an agency’s ranking promise into evidence.

What should happen if I end the agency relationship?

Google requires a third party to provide a quick and easy way to discontinue service. Within 7 business days after notice, the agency must give the customer the ability to disassociate the managing Google Account and regain exclusive control. The agency must also relinquish and remove permissions it holds to manage or change the account.

Before ending the relationship, confirm that the business owner or co-owner still appears on the profile. Ask for the current change record and the Google Business Profile-specific reports, then check that the agency’s permissions are removed after the handoff. If the agency cannot explain the handoff, its access arrangement is not under your control.