How to Handle Google Business Profile for Temporarily Closed or Seasonal Businesses

It matters for any business to be correct on Google. Customers want to be able to see the right hours, location and status prior to their visit. This is especially important for businesses with limited hours, or businesses that are only open during certain times of year. 

If you’re poorly managing your Google Business Profile (GBP), customers could become confused, distrustful, and it could have negative effects on your local SEO. The good news is that Google has functionality that allows you to manage temporary closures and seasonal updates, without affecting your long-term visibility.

We are going to show you how to, maintain your Google Business Profile visibility and trustworthiness year-round, even when temporarily closed, during seasonal updates, and at Google My Business multiple locations!

Why Are Accurate GBP Updates Important?

It’s not just about having a nice clean profile, it’s about building trust with your customers and helping your SEO.

Customer Trust

When your profile says that you are “open”, when in fact you are closed, customers feel misled, and that can lead to anger and negative reviews and loss of loyalty.

It’s not just about having a nice clean profile, it’s about building trust with your customers and helping your SEO.

SEO Effect

Search engines give more weight to profiles that are active and up to date. A seasonal business listing on Google Business Profile that is out of date can hurt your local rankings.

Benefits in the Long Run

Keeping your profile active even when you’re closed for weeks or months shows both Google and your audience that you can be trusted.

In short, regular updates help you avoid fines, make your business more visible in your area, and make it easier to reopen when the season or renovation is over.

Using the “Temporarily Closed” Option

If your business closes temporarily for a renovation, emergency, or seasonal slowdown, instead of deleting the profile, you can mark it as “temporarily closed” with Google.

How to Do It

Navigate to Info > Business Status in your Google Business Profile and select “Temporarily Closed.” Your listing will stay up, and your customers will understand that you are closed for the moment.

Best practice: Leave some notes about why you are closed and when you plan to reopen, and use posts to let customers know about developments.

Things You Shouldn’t Do

Don’t delete your profile when you’re not using it. When you delete something, it gets rid of your history and reviews, which hurts your SEO when you open it again.

When conducted correctly, marking your Google Business Profile as temporarily closed keeps your profile visible without creating confusion for customers.

Seasonal Businesses

Some businesses, like ski resorts or summer cafes, are only open during certain times of the year. For these types of businesses, it is essential to have appropriately set up Google Business Profile seasonal businesses.

Use Updates That Occur Each Season

Utilize Google My Business’s seasonal updates to adjust your operating months, holiday hours, and contact information.

Stay Visible Year-Round

To remain in front of potential customers, engage on your profile by posting any time you have things to share, create photo albums, or create announcements, even when it is closed.

Improve Local SEO by Changing Your Seasonal Hours

Changing your seasonal hours shows Google when you’re open and when you’re closed which adds to your local SEO when you reopen.

Setting up your seasonal updates ahead of time helps eliminate confusion and builds trust with customers. This keeps your business at the top of people’s minds, even when the doors are closed.

Changing Hours and Information

Keeping their hours up to date is one of the most important things businesses can do when they have downtime. Customers may still come to your store if you don’t change your Google Business Profile and just close your doors. This hurts trust and can also cause bad reviews.

The good news is that it’s easy to change your information on Google. You can log into your dashboard and change the hours of your business on Google to show when it will be closed for the season, when shifts will be shorter, or when it will reopen.

By giving these changes clear start and end dates, you make sure that both Google and your customers know exactly what to expect.

Keeping this information up to date also helps local SEO for seasonal businesses because search engines see that your listing is active and well-kept.

What happened? More visibility when your busy season starts up again.

Several Locations and Suspensions

Things get more complicated for businesses with more than one location. You could have one store open all year and another that is a Google Business Profile seasonal business that closes for a few months.

In this case, Google lets you change each profile separately so that customers always see the right information for each location.

The problem is that businesses don’t always update correctly. You could get suspended if your listing has false information or isn’t updated for too long.

It’s good to know how to recover suspended Google My Business accounts, but it’s always better to stop them from happening in the first place.

If you keep each profile up to date, you won’t have to worry about getting suspended or having to file appeals.

To manage multiple locations on Google My Business, you need to be consistent and pay attention to the little things. Every listing should show its true status, which will help both customers and Google trust that your business information is correct.

Checking and Best Practices

Q: What if I can’t use a postcard to prove who I am?

Some businesses, especially those that only operate during certain times of the year, may not have staff on hand all year to get a postcard. In these situations, you can look into other ways to verify, like phone calls, emails, or videos. This is how to verify Google My Business without postcard.

Q: How can I keep my profile SEO-friendly while I’m closed?

Your listing can still help you even when it’s closed. Uploading new photos, sharing updates, or responding to reviews are all easy things you can do to stay active. These little things are great Google business SEO tips that let Google know your profile isn’t empty.

Q: What is the most important rule for handling closures?

Don’t ever get rid of your profile. If you delete a Google Business Profile that is temporarily closed or seasonal, you will lose reviews, insights, and search visibility that you worked hard for. Always update, never take away.

Q: How can I recover a suspended Google My Business account?

To recover your suspended Google My Business (now called Google Business Profile), go to the Business Profile reinstatement form and submit your details along with proof of ownership, such as your business license, address, or photos. Make sure your profile complies with Google’s guidelines before applying for reinstatement.

Q: How can I verify my Google My Business without a postcard?

If postcard verification isn’t available, you may see other options like phone, email, or video verification when setting up your profile. Choose the available method and follow the steps provided by Google to complete the process.

Dubai as a Regional Case

It’s even more important to keep your Google Business Profile up to date in places like Dubai. The economy of the city moves quickly, and it depends a lot on tourism. Many businesses only operate when there is a lot of demand.

During certain months, restaurants, resorts, and event spaces are often at their busiest, but they slow down during the off-season.

If a business doesn’t keep its listing up to date, it could lose tourists and locals to competitors who do.

If you keep your Google My Business Dubai profile up to date, potential customers will be able to see the right hours, directions, and updates. In a market this competitive, even a small mistake like having the wrong hours can hurt your reputation and sales.

For seasonal businesses in Dubai, keeping the profile up to date with hours, posts, and attributes keeps it working all year, even if the doors are closed for a few months.

To Sum It All Up

Managing a Google Business Profile for businesses that are temporarily closed or only open during certain times of the year is not just about following the rules; it’s also about gaining customers’ trust and staying visible when they search.

As you are aware, whether you are closing for renovation, seasonal closure or manage a multitude of locations, updating your Google My Business profile is the single most important thing you can do to protect your reputation and performance in local SEO.

Everything you do, such as switching from “temporarily closed” to open seasonal hours, posting updates and avoiding suspension will only strengthen your digital presence.

While your business may not be open every day, your profile should always indicate the truth.

In other words: update, do not delete.

By ensuring that your Google Business Profile seasonal business or temporary closure setting is accurate, you will earn customer trust, remain in Google’s favors, and enjoy an easier and more successful reopening.