Google Business Profile for a flower shop: categories, delivery details and seasonal hours AI can quote

To set up a Google Business Profile for a flower shop, choose "Florist" as your primary category, describe your delivery area and cut-off time in plain words, set special hours for peak dates, and list products with starting prices. A Google Business Profile is the free listing that appears on Google Search and Google Maps when someone looks for your shop, and AI assistants typically draw on it when they name a local florist. The clearer and more specific each field is, the easier it is for both customers and AI to repeat your details correctly.

Choosing a primary category: florist, flower delivery or wedding florist

Your primary category is the single label that tells Google what your business mainly is. It carries more weight than anything else you select, so choose it carefully.

For most Irish flower shops with a counter and a shopfront, the right primary category is Florist. If you want a deeper look at why this matters, see why your business category in Google Business Profile changes what AI recommends.

Then add secondary categories that describe things you really do. Depending on your shop, these might include:

• Flower delivery service, if delivery is a regular part of your trade
• Wedding service or a similar event-related option, if weddings are a real part of your income
• Gift shop, if you sell cards, candles, vases or chocolates
• Funeral service type categories only if they honestly describe what you offer, which for most florists they will not

Resist the urge to tick every box. A shop that lists six unrelated categories looks vaguer to a search engine than one with a clear primary and two or three sensible extras.

A practical rule: if a customer would be surprised to find you offer it, leave it out.

Describing delivery areas and same-day cut-off times in plain words

Most customer questions to a florist are about delivery. Can you bring it today? Do you go to the hospital? What does it cost to get flowers to Navan?

Google Business Profile lets you set a service area, which is the list of towns, counties or postcodes you travel to. Add the places you genuinely cover. In Ireland, name towns and counties rather than vague distances, and add Eircode areas where it helps, such as D6W or T12.

Then say the rest in your business description and in a short post. Write it as you would say it at the counter:

• "We deliver across Cork city and suburbs, Monday to Saturday."
• "Order before 1pm for same-day delivery. After that, we deliver the next working day."
• "Delivery to Cork city is €8. Further out, we will confirm the charge when you order."
• "We deliver to funeral homes, churches and hospitals, but please give us the full name and time of the service."

Avoid phrases like "local delivery available" or "subject to conditions". AI assistants quote clear statements, and they tend to skip fuzzy ones. If your cut-off time changes on Saturdays, say so.

Keep this consistent with your website. If you want help wording these answers, our guide to a website FAQ for a florist covers the same questions in customers' own words.

Seasonal hours for Valentine's Day, Mother's Day and Christmas

A florist's year is built around a few very busy dates. Your listing should show that, because a wrong opening time on 14 February or Mother's Day (in Ireland, the fourth Sunday of Lent) causes wasted trips and annoyed customers.

Google Business Profile has a special hours feature. It lets you override your normal hours for a specific date without changing your regular weekly times. Use it for:

1. Valentine's Day, if you open earlier, close later or take a final order time
2. Mother's Day weekend, especially if you open on a Sunday
3. Christmas week, including 24 December, Christmas Day, St Stephen's Day and New Year's Day
4. Irish bank holidays, such as St Patrick's Day and the June, August and October weekends

Set these a few weeks ahead, not the night before. Then check them again closer to the date, because Google can show a "hours might differ" notice if it thinks a holiday is approaching and you have not confirmed. For more detail on public holidays, read Google Business Profile hours: handling Irish public holiday variations.

It also helps to post an update such as "Last Valentine's delivery orders taken until 2pm on Thursday". That gives AI a dated, quotable sentence to use.

Products, services and starting prices that AI can repeat accurately

The Products section lets you add items with a name, description, photo and price. Many florists skip it, but it is one of the best places to give AI something concrete to repeat.

You do not need to list every stem. Create a handful of entries that match what people actually ask for:

Use "from" prices honestly. If a bouquet starts at €35 and usually costs €45, say "from €35" and explain the range in the description. Do not list a price you rarely meet.

Also use the Services section for things such as wedding consultations, funeral tributes, corporate flowers and workshops. Add a one-line explanation for each.

Name your platforms if relevant. If you take orders through Interflora, Bloom & Wild or your own online shop, say so in the description. If customers can book a wedding consultation, add a booking link so the listing leads somewhere useful.

Photos that show real arrangements, bouquets and your shopfront

Photos help customers decide, and they also help Google understand what kind of business you are. Use real pictures taken in your shop, not stock images.

A good starter set:

• Your shopfront, taken from the street so people can recognise it, with the sign visible
• Inside the shop, showing buckets, the counter and your workspace
• Finished bouquets in good natural light, for different budgets
• Funeral and wedding work, with the customer's permission where people are identifiable
• Your delivery van or packaging, if it helps customers trust you

Upload them in the right categories (Exterior, Interior, Products, At work). Add new ones regularly, especially seasonal arrangements, so the listing looks current. Our photo checklist for local AI recommendations goes through this in more detail.

Check each image still looks right on a phone, because that is where most people will see it.

Using Q&A and posts for funeral, wedding and last-minute orders

The Questions & answers feature lets customers ask something publicly and lets you answer. You can also seed it yourself by posting a question you are often asked and answering it from your owner account. Keep each answer short and factual.

Good questions to cover:

• "Can I order a funeral wreath on the day?"
• "How far in advance should I book wedding flowers?"
• "Do you deliver on Sundays?"
• "Can I collect an order instead?"

Posts are short updates that appear on your profile. Use them for dated information, such as Mother's Day order deadlines, Christmas wreath availability or a note that you are fully booked for a particular wedding weekend. Posts can expire in the way customers see them, so refresh the important ones.

Never assume a customer will find the details on your website. Put the key answer where they are already looking.

To understand why some shops get named by AI assistants and others do not, read how AI assistants choose a florist in your town.

Once your profile is complete, it is worth checking what AI actually says about you. The free check from suggestedby.ai measures whether AI assistants name your shop when someone asks for a florist in your area.

A short checklist before you finish

• Primary category set to Florist, with only honest secondary categories
• Service area listed by town and county
• Delivery charge and cut-off time written in plain words
• Special hours entered for Valentine's Day, Mother's Day and Christmas
• Products and services added with "from" prices
• Recent, real photos uploaded
• Q&A and posts covering funerals, weddings and last-minute orders