People choose a salon with their eyes. They search nearby, scroll the photos, read a few reviews, and book the place that looks the part. For a salon, the Google profile is a shopfront and a portfolio in one, and most are letting it sit half empty. We reviewed a Fourways salon to show what that costs.
We have kept the salon anonymous. The work here is lovely. The profile does not show it.
[Screenshot. The map pack for a hair salon search in Fourways, with the salon outside the top three.]
Google ranks local results on relevance, distance and trust. For a salon, photos and reviews do a lot of the heavy lifting, because clients choose on look and reputation.
1. The profile is incomplete
What we found. No services listed, no prices, no booking link, and several blank fields.
Why it matters. Clients want to know what you do, roughly what it costs, and how to book, all in a few seconds. A thin profile sends them elsewhere.
What we would fix. List the services, add a price range where it helps, add an online booking link, and fill in every field.
2. The category is too broad
What we found. Listed only as Hair salon.
Why it matters. Category drives which searches you show up in. A salon doing colour, nails, lashes and skincare under one broad label misses clients searching for each.
What we would fix. Keep the main category accurate, then add the ones that fit, such as Beauty salon, Nail salon, Hairdresser and Waxing hair removal service.
3. The photos do not sell the work
What we found. A few dim photos and nothing recent.
Why it matters. This is a visual business. Bright, current photos of real results are the biggest reason a client picks one salon over another.
What we would fix. Add strong before and after photos, shots of the space and the team, and keep adding fresh work every week.
4. There are no posts and no offers
What we found. The profile has never posted.
Why it matters. Posts put your specials, new services and quiet day offers in front of people right when they are choosing.
What we would fix. Post weekly. A new colour service, a midweek special, a fresh set of photos. Keep it regular.
5. Reviews are not being asked for
What we found. A small number of reviews and no system to grow them.
Why it matters. A high rating with lots of recent reviews pulls clients in. BrightLocal’s Local Consumer Review Survey shows shoppers raising the bar on ratings and recency every year. A thin or stale review profile pushes them to the busier looking salon next door.
What we would fix. Set up an easy way to ask every happy client for a review, and reply to each one warmly. Our review management service does both.
6. The social and website links are missing or broken
What we found. No link to social, and a website link that goes nowhere useful.
Why it matters. Salon clients often check Instagram before they book. Missing or broken links lose them at the last step.
What we would fix. Link to a live social page and to a fast page where clients can see services and book. Localised pages built for booking do this job.
7. The name, address and phone are inconsistent
What we found. Details differ between the profile, the website and the salon’s social pages.
Why it matters. Clashing details confuse Google and clients, and drag down your local ranking.
What we would fix. Make the name, address and phone identical everywhere, including your social pages.
The fixes we would make first
If this were our client, we would load the profile with strong, current photos, set up review collection, and add the services with a booking link. For a salon, that combination turns browsers into bookings quickly.
Check your own profile
You can do a quick version of this yourself. Open Google, search your business, and ask these questions.
- Are your services listed, with a booking link and prices where they help
- Is your category specific, with the right secondary categories added
- Have you added bright, current photos of your work in the last week
- Have you posted any offers or new services recently
- Are you asking happy clients for reviews and replying to each one
- Do your social and website links work and lead somewhere useful
- Do your name, address and phone match everywhere
Want us to do the full version for your business. Start with a free local audit. We will review your profile, your rankings, your listings and your reviews, then show you exactly what to fix first.