Why and how to add photos and videos to a local business profile on Google My Business?

A Google My Business profile is not only the first introduction to your company, but also a great way to tell as much about it as possible. In order for your company to stand out from the competition, you should work hard on filling out your Google My Business profile, in particular, upload high-quality and bright photos to make a positive impression on users and encourage them to order your products or services.

Improve the appearance of your profile, thereby emphasizing your advantages and features, perhaps by adding photos and videos of products, services or the exterior of the building. In addition, IT company Golden Web Digital recommends uploading a company logo that will help users identify it on Google (provided that the phone number and business hours are specified, the logo will be highlighted), as well as a cover that will be displayed at the top of the profile.

Please note that any uploaded photos and videos will not be displayed on Google until your business profile is verified.

At the same time, the photos must be clear, with a minimum number of filters, good lighting, and reflect the real appearance of the building, product, or service, as well as meet a number of technical requirements:

➤ Format: JPG or PNG.

➤ Minimum size: 10 KB.

➤ Maximum size: 5 MB.

➤ Minimum resolution: 250x250 pixels.

➤ Recommended resolution: 720x720 pixels.

Regarding videos, Google sets the following standards for uploading to your Google My Business profile:

➜ Maximum duration: 30 seconds.

➜ Minimum resolution: 720p.

➜ Maximum file size: 75 MB.

Photos and videos you upload may be removed from your company profile if they:

➜ refers to prohibited content according to Google's policies.

➜ is a screenshot, a photo from a photo bank, or a GIF animation.

➜ created manually or by another person, violating copyright.

➜ filmed outside the company's location or depicting objects not related to it.

Despite such clear requirements, it is still permissible to make stylistic adjustments to the content, adhering to the following rules:

➜ The minimum number of filters applied, which does not distort reality.

➜ Unblurred photos with sufficient lighting to recognize the terrain and environment.

➜ It is forbidden to add frames, any other objects to photos, or create photo collages.

➜ It is forbidden to upload damaged videos.

➜ It is prohibited to upload photos with poor exposure or taken from unnatural angles.

It is not prohibited to overlay graphic or text elements (logos, company trademarks, etc.) if they:

➜ superimposed on a circular panorama only in the upper or only in the lower 25% of the equirectangular image.

➜ occupy no more than 10% of the photo (video) area and are placed on one side.

➜ relevant and relevant to the company.

➜ do not distract users from the main object in the photo (video).

Finally, the following requirements apply to circular panoramas that give users the best and clearest idea of ​​the location of the enterprise:

➤ The viewing angle of the circular panorama must be exactly 360º.

➤ Small gaps are allowed only between the top and bottom edges of the panorama, and there should be none in the horizontal plane.

➤ Circular panoramas must have a resolution of at least 4K (3840x2160 pixels).

➤ Multiple circular panoramas taken at the same location may be automatically linked due to minor frame stitching (processing) errors. If necessary, in order to increase the realism of the image, Google may change not only the orientation or position of the panorama, but also the structure of the connections between its parts.

➤ If you are linking circular panoramas yourself, connect adjacent viewpoints in a way that allows users to clearly identify the terrain and their location.

➤ When publishing two or more circular panoramas, it is prohibited to use labels such as proximity dots, markers, and blue visualization lines on the map to create messages, draw symbols, and images.

➤ Adding copyright information, watermarks, and other information that will indicate to users that you took the photos is possible only at the bottom or top point of the circular panorama, provided that all of the above requirements for overlaying graphic or text elements are met.