How to Add Someone to Google My Business

Giving someone access to your Google Business Profile is a smart way to delegate tasks, but it's important to do it correctly to keep your business secure. This guide will walk you through exactly how to add users, explain the different permission levels you can assign, and cover best practices for managing your team's access.

Why You Should Add Users to Your Google Business Profile

You’ve put a lot of work into building your business, and your Google Business Profile is a primary digital storefront for new customers. Managing it effectively - responding to reviews, publishing posts, updating hours, and optimizing for local search - takes time. Handing over your personal Google account password to a team member or a marketing agency is a huge security risk. Instead, Google's user management system lets you bring collaborators on board safely.

By adding users directly to your GBP, you can:

• Delegate daily tasks safely. Let an employee or social media manager handle updates, respond to reviews, and publish Google Posts without giving them access to your personal email or other connected Google services.
• Work with agencies seamlessly. Grant an SEO or marketing agency the permissions they need to optimize your profile and track performance while you retain ultimate control.
• Improve team collaboration. If you have multiple business locations or a team of marketers, you can give everyone the appropriate level of access so work gets done without bottlenecks.
• Maintain control and security. You can add or remove users at any time. When an employee leaves or a contract with an agency ends, you can revoke their access in seconds, securing your business profile instantly.

Essentially, you’re creating specific, revocable keys for team members instead of handing over the master key to your entire digital kingdom.

Before You Add Anyone: Understanding User Roles

Before you send that invitation, it’s vital to understand the difference between the roles you can assign. Giving someone too much permission can lead to accidental (or intentional) problems, while giving too little can prevent them from doing their job. Google keeps it simple with three main roles, each with distinct capabilities.

Primary Owner

Think of the Primary Owner as the ultimate administrator. There can only be one Primary Owner for any business profile.

• What they can do: Everything. The Primary Owner has complete control over the profile. They can edit business information, manage users (add or delete Owners and Managers), and, most importantly, they are the only user who can delete the Business Profile. They also have the unique ability to transfer primary ownership to another user.
• Who this is for: The business owner or the single, primary account holder. You should never assign this role to an outside agency or a new employee.

Owner

An Owner has almost the same level of permission as the Primary Owner, with one critical difference.

• What they can do: Owners can do nearly everything the Primary Owner can do. They can edit all business information, add and remove other Owners and Managers, respond to reviews, and manage posts. They can even remove themselves as an owner. The only thing they cannot do is delete the business profile or transfer primary ownership.
• Who this is for: This role is best for trusted business partners or company executives who need full control but don't need to be the single point of final authority. Use this role sparingly, as Owners have the power to remove other users, including you (if you're not the Primary Owner).

Manager

The Manager role is your go-to for day-to-day operations and the one you will assign most often.

• What they can do: A Manager has powers limited to the daily management of the profile. They can respond to reviews, create and manage Google Posts, upload photos and videos, edit most business information (like hours or services), and view insights. They cannot add or remove users, edit core business details like the business name, or delete the profile.
• Who this is for: This is the perfect role for trusted employees, marketing team members, social media managers, or an external agency. It gives them all the tools they need to manage your presence without letting them make irreversible, high-level changes. It's the role with the least privilege necessary to get the job done effectively.

Golden Rule: Always assign the lowest level of permission a person needs to perform their role. For most collaborators, a Manager role is more than enough.

How to Add a User to Your Google Business Profile (Step-by-Step)

Google has moved most business profile management tools directly into the search results page. The process is now simpler and faster than ever. Just follow these steps.

Step 1: Find your business profile management panel

First, make sure you are logged into the Google account that is the Primary Owner or an Owner of the Business Profile you want to manage. Open Google and search for your exact business name (e.g., "Postbase Social Media") or simply search for "my business". You should see a management panel appear at the top of the search results with your business information and editing tools.

Step 2: Go to the "Business Profile settings"

In the management panel, look for a menu button represented by three vertical dots. It's usually located to the right of your business name, next to the "Edit profile" and "Read reviews" buttons. Click the three-dot menu.

From the dropdown menu that appears, select Business Profile settings.

Step 3: Access "People and access"

A new window will pop up with several options. Click on the first option, which should be People and access. This will take you to the user management area for your profile, where you can see a list of current users and their roles.

Step 4: Invite a new user

At the top of the "People and access" screen, you'll see a blue "Add" button, usually accompanied by an icon of a person with a plus sign next to it. Click this button to start the invitation process.

Step 5: Enter their email address and assign a role

A dialog box will appear asking for the new user's email address. Type in the email of the person you want to add. It’s crucial that you use the email address associated with their Google account. If they don’t have one, they will need to create one to accept the invitation.

Below the email field, you will see a section titled "Access." Here, you can select either Owner or Manager. Again, for most team members and all third-party agencies, "Manager" is the correct and safest choice. Refer back to the roles section above if you’re unsure.

Step 6: Send the Invitation

Once you’ve entered the email address and selected the appropriate role, click the blue Invite button. An email invitation will be sent to the recipient on your behalf. Until they accept, they will be listed as "Invited" in your "People and access" list.

That's it from your end! Now, it's on them to accept.

What the New User Does

The person you invited will receive an email from Google Business Profile with a clear "Accept Invitation" button. Once they click it, they’ll be asked to confirm. After they accept, they will instantly have editing and management access based on the role you assigned them. It's helpful to give them a heads-up so they know to look for the email in their inbox or spam folder.

How to Manage or Remove Existing Users

Managing your profile’s access isn't a "set it and forget it" task. As your team changes, you’ll need to adjust permissions or remove access entirely.

To do this, navigate back to the People and access section (by following steps 1-3 from above). Here, you will see a list of every person who has access to your profile.

To change a user's role:

Click on the person’s name or email address in the list. This will open up their profile details, where you can change their role from Manager to Owner, or vice versa. The change is immediate.

To remove a user:

Click on the user you want to remove. You will see an option to Remove person. Simply click this, confirm you want to revoke their access, and they will be removed instantly. This is an essential step to take when an employee who managed your GBP leaves the company or your contract with a marketing agency ends.

Best Practices for GBP User Management

• Conduct Regular Audits. Set a calendar reminder to review who has access to your profile every quarter or twice a year. If you see someone you don't recognize or an ex-employee who is still listed, remove them immediately.
• Stick to the Principle of Least Privilege. This is the golden rule. Never grant someone more access than they absolutely need. The Manager role is designed for 95% of use cases.
• Communicate with Your Team. When you invite someone, let them know why and what they'll be responsible for. Clear communication prevents confusion and ensures everyone is on the same page.
• Avoid Using Personal Email Addresses for Agencies. When working with an agency, insist that the invitation is sent to a work-provided email address (e.g., jane@agency.com instead of janedoe123@gmail.com). This ensures that if that person leaves the agency, the agency can transfer control of the account internally without compromising security.

Final Thoughts

Adding and managing users on your Google Business Profile is a simple process that gives you both flexibility and security. By understanding the user roles and performing regular check-ups, you can safely delegate tasks and empower your team or agency to help grow your business's local presence without ever having to share your personal passwords.

Once your team has access, your next focus becomes efficiently creating and posting great content - not just on Google, but across all your social platforms. Keeping up with everything from Instagram Reels and TikToks to Facebook updates and Google Posts can feel like juggling chaos. At Postbase, we built our platform to solve this exact problem. Our visual calendar, reliable cross-platform scheduling, and unified inbox help marketing teams manage their modern content workflow in one place, so you can spend less time switching between tabs and more time growing your business.