Pick the categories that put you on the map

If you only get one thing right on your profile, make it the categories. They decide which searches you're even eligible for. Pick wrong and you can be flawless at everything else and still never appear.

Your primary category does the heavy lifting

Google treats the primary category as the strongest statement of what your business is, and it far outweighs the secondary ones. So it has to match the money search, not just describe you loosely. A med spa that wants 'botox' traffic should be primary category 'Medical spa', not 'Skin care clinic'. Be specific: the more precise category almost always ranks better than the broad one.

Reverse-engineer your competitors

The businesses beating you in the pack have already tested their categories. You can see the primary category on any profile (it shows under the business name on Maps, and tools can pull it). Line up the top three for your main search and you'll spot the pattern fast, that's your target.

Secondary categories, without diluting

Add secondaries for your other genuine services to widen your reach, but every extra one slightly dilutes your relevance to the primary. Add what's true, stop there. Ten random categories don't make you look bigger, they make you look unfocused to Google.