SEO LocalThe Four GBP Post Types
What's New
The most common post type. No expiration date on the content (though it archives after 7 days from the listing panel). Best for service announcements, seasonal promotions, educational content about services, and company news. Every What's New post should include a CTA link to a relevant service page.
Offer
Designed specifically for promotional offers with a start and end date. Offer posts display with a button and a coupon code field. Best for limited-time promotions, seasonal discounts, or any time-bound service offer. Offer posts should link to a landing page or contact form.
Event
For scheduled events with a defined date and time. Less commonly applicable for service businesses, but useful for community events, open houses, or seasonal service deadlines (last week to schedule before winter, for example).
Product
Displays a product or service with a photo, name, price (optional), and description. Useful for businesses with defined service packages or products at fixed prices.
Content Strategy by Post Type
What's New posts, the weekly cadence anchor:
Post 1 (educational): A specific fact about a service, common problem, or industry update. Example: "Metal roofing has a 40-70 year lifespan compared to 20-30 years for asphalt shingle. Here is how to decide which is right for your home." Link: service page for metal roofing.
Post 2 (conversion-oriented): A service highlight, completed project, or trust-building content. Example: "We completed a full roof replacement in Plano last week, 48 squares of architectural shingle, one day of work. Here is what the process looks like from estimate to completion." Link: contact page or project page.
Offer posts, monthly or seasonal:
Tied to the business's natural service cycle. HVAC companies run tune-up specials before summer and winter. Roofing companies run storm inspection offers after hail events. Dental practices run whitening promotions in January. The offer should have a real expiration date.
Post Structure for Maximum Engagement
Optimal post length: 150-300 words
Long enough to be substantive, short enough to be read in the panel.
First sentence: state the specific fact or service claim directly
Do not start with a company name or "We are pleased to announce."
Include one internal link: point to the most relevant service page on the website.
Include one keyword naturally: the service keyword for that post's topic.
Photo: every post should have a photo.
Real photos of the business, team, or work outperform stock images.
The Post Frequency Requirement
Two posts per week is the minimum competitive cadence in medium and high-competition markets. In very low competition markets (fewer than 5 Map Pack competitors, small population), one post per week may be sufficient. In high-competition markets (major metro areas, high-demand service categories), three posts per week can provide an edge.
The 48-hour rule: posts older than 7 days archive from the listing's visible panel. A business that posts once per month has an empty posts panel for 23 of 30 days. A business posting twice per week always has recent posts visible.
GBP Posts and AI Overview Content
As of 2026, Google's AI Overviews pull from GBP content, including posts, when generating local business answers (Source: Google Search Central, 2025). A business with recent, keyword-relevant posts provides Google's AI with more content to draw from when constructing an answer to a query about that service category. This connection between GBP post content and AI Overview citations is a newer signal that elevates the importance of post quality beyond basic activity maintenance. Our AEO tracking data shows that businesses with keyword-optimized GBP posts appear in AI Overviews at higher rates than those with generic activity posts.