Short answer: to get your business on Google in Nigeria, create and verify a free Google Business Profile, build a website on your own domain (a .com.ng costs ₦7,500 a year), submit the website to Google Search Console, and keep your name, address and phone number the same everywhere. Then ask customers for reviews and keep adding useful pages. Most businesses can do the first steps in a day.
When someone searches "bakery near me", "lawyer in Abuja" or "car repair Ikeja", Google shows a map with businesses and a list of websites. If your business is not there, those customers go to a competitor. This guide shows you, step by step, how to appear.
How customers find businesses on Google
There are two main places to appear:
| Where | What it shows | What you need |
|---|---|---|
| Google Maps and the map pack | Your business name, location, hours, reviews, photos, phone | A verified Google Business Profile |
| Search results | Pages from your website | A website Google can find and understand |
The best results come from doing both: your Business Profile links to your website, and your website confirms your business details.
Step 1: Create your Google Business Profile
- Go to Google Business Profile and sign in with a Google account you will keep (ideally one linked to your business email).
- Enter your business name exactly as customers know it.
- Choose your main category, such as "Bakery" or "Accounting firm". Pick the most specific one.
- Add your location if customers visit you, or your service area if you go to them.
- Add your phone number and website address.
- Verify the business. Google offers options such as a phone call, text, email or video depending on your business.
Complete every section
- Opening hours, including public holidays
- A short description of what you do and where
- Photos of your shop, products, team and work
- Your products or services, with prices if you can
- Attributes such as "Wheelchair accessible" or "Online appointments"
Complete profiles tend to perform better than half-filled ones.
Step 2: Build a website on your own domain
A Business Profile alone limits you. A website lets you appear for many more searches, explain your services in detail, and take enquiries or orders.
- Register a domain: a .com.ng (₦7,500 a year) tells people you are a Nigerian business; a .com (₦15,500) suits wider reach. Yearly Tubor hosting includes a free .com for the first year.
- Choose hosting: Tubor Lite (₦2,500/month) hosts up to 5 websites with free SSL and unlimited email on your domain.
- Build the site yourself with WordPress, or have our team build it with a website development package.
What every business website needs for Google
- A page for each main service, with the service and city in the heading (for example "Wedding cakes in Lagos").
- Your name, address and phone number on every page, usually in the footer, exactly as on your Business Profile.
- A contact page with a map, phone number and WhatsApp link.
- HTTPS: free SSL is included with SiloLobby hosting.
- Fast loading on mobile. See why is my website slow.
- Clear page titles and descriptions written for people, not stuffed with keywords.
Step 3: Submit your website to Google Search Console
- Open Google Search Console and add your domain.
- Verify ownership by adding a TXT record to your domain's DNS (in cPanel, use the Zone Editor). See DNS records explained.
- Submit your sitemap. On WordPress, SEO plugins create one, usually at /sitemap_index.xml or /sitemap.xml.
- Use URL Inspection to request indexing for your most important pages.
- Check back weekly to see which searches bring visitors and fix any errors Google reports.
Step 4: Keep your business details consistent
Google compares your details across the web. Use exactly the same name, address and phone number on:
- your Google Business Profile,
- your website,
- Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn and X profiles,
- business directories and marketplaces.
Small differences, such as different phone numbers or old addresses, make it harder for Google to trust your listing.
Step 5: Earn reviews
Reviews influence both your ranking in the map and whether customers choose you.
- Ask happy customers for a review straight after a good experience.
- Share your review link by WhatsApp or on receipts.
- Reply to every review, positive or negative, politely and quickly.
- Never buy reviews or post fake ones; Google removes them and can suspend your profile.
Step 6: Keep adding useful content
Websites that answer customers' questions get found more often. Ideas:
- answers to the questions customers ask you every week,
- price guides ("How much does a wedding cake cost in Lagos?"),
- project photos and case studies,
- guides for your local area.
Post updates, offers and photos on your Business Profile too.
Use business email, not Gmail
Customers and Google both take a business more seriously when its email matches its website, such as hello@yourbusiness.com.ng. Tubor hosting includes unlimited email accounts, or you can choose a business email plan from ₦700/month. See business email vs Gmail.
Common mistakes that stop you showing up
- Using a free website address instead of your own domain. Pages on someone else's platform are harder to rank and you do not own them.
- One-page websites that list all your services in one place. Separate pages for each service rank for more searches.
- Keyword stuffing, such as repeating "best bakery Lagos" in every sentence. Write naturally for customers.
- Blocking Google by accident. WordPress has a setting called "Discourage search engines from indexing this site" under Settings → Reading. Make sure it is off once your site is live.
- Slow pages on mobile, which people abandon before they load.
- No reviews, or ignored reviews. Unanswered complaints put customers off.
Track your results
Check your progress once a month:
- In your Business Profile, see how many people viewed your listing, called you, asked for directions or visited your website.
- In Search Console, see which searches showed your website, how often people clicked, and which pages perform best.
- Ask new customers how they found you, and note the answer.
Do more of what brings customers, and improve the pages that get views but few clicks by rewriting their titles and descriptions.
A checklist to get found on Google
| Task | Done? |
|---|---|
| Google Business Profile created and verified | |
| Category, hours, photos and description complete | |
| Domain registered | |
| Website live with HTTPS | |
| A page for each main service | |
| Name, address, phone the same everywhere | |
| Website added to Google Search Console | |
| Sitemap submitted | |
| First reviews requested and answered | |
| Business email on your domain |
When to get help
If you would rather focus on running your business, our team can build your website with a website development package. For the ongoing work, Marketgoo SEO (₦5,000/month) turns a check of your site into plain tasks ordered by what matters most, and SocialBee (₦25,000/month) keeps your social pages active by scheduling posts in advance.