The Data You're Already Ignoring
Most photographers and videographers never look at their Google Business Profile Insights. It sits there, quietly collecting information about how potential clients find you, what they search for, and whether they actually pick up the phone or send that enquiry email. Then you wonder why your bookings feel unpredictable.
The data is free. It's already yours. You just have to actually read it.
Google Business Profile Insights tells you exactly how many people viewed your profile last month, where they came from, and what they did next. For a wedding photographer in Manchester, this might reveal that 60% of your profile views come from people searching for "wedding photographer near me", but they're viewing your profile on Tuesday afternoons. For a corporate videographer, you might discover that your profile gets steady views, but nobody's clicking through to your website.
That's actionable. That changes how you work.
The Four Numbers That Matter
When you log into your Google Business Profile, you'll see metrics that feel overwhelming at first. Don't get lost in the noise. Focus on these four things.
- Profile views: How many people actually looked at your profile. This is your baseline. If you're getting 30 views a month in a city of half a million people, something needs to change.
- Search queries: The actual words people typed into Google before finding you. A headshot photographer might see "professional headshots London" comes up 15 times, but "actor headshots" appears 3 times. That tells you what market is actively looking.
- Direction requests: How many people asked for directions to your studio or location. If you're a videographer with a studio, this number matters. If you're mostly mobile or client-based, it matters less.
- Phone calls: People who called you directly from your profile. Track this separately from email enquiries. Some clients prefer the phone. If you're getting zero calls, consider whether your phone number is easy to find or if your availability information is clear.
Ignore vanity metrics like total impressions or the vague "actions" category. Those don't tell you anything you can actually use.
What Your Search Queries Are Really Saying
The search query section is where most photographers and videographers find something genuinely useful.
Let's say you're a lifestyle photographer offering both family portraits and newborn sessions. Google will show you every search term that led someone to your profile. You might discover that "newborn photographer" appears 8 times a month, while "family photos" shows up twice. That's not a coincidence. That's your market telling you what they want from you.
Now you have a choice. You can double down on newborn work, which clearly has demand. You can update your homepage to lead with newborn photography. You can adjust your pricing structure to match what's popular. Or you can decide newborn work isn't what you want to do and market the family sessions differently.
A wedding videographer in Bristol might find that "wedding videographer" is searched 12 times, but "wedding video highlight reel" appears 4 times and "cinematic wedding video" appears once. That's your cue that some people are searching for specific styles. They want highlight reels, not full ceremony footage. That changes your packages and your messaging.
The key: Google is showing you what people actually want, not what you think they want.
Spotting Seasonal Patterns (And Planning Around Them)
Photography and videography businesses are seasonal. You know this already. But Google Insights helps you see the pattern clearly in your specific area.
A portrait photographer should expect to see profile views spike in November and December. Family portraits before Christmas. But if your data shows a spike in September, that's unusual. Parents booking school photos. Back-to-school portraits. That's an opportunity you might not have expected.
Videographers working with events will see their profiles searched more during spring and summer. Wedding season. Corporate conference season. But if you're seeing consistent searches in January, that's worth investigating. New Year content? Corporate training videos? That's demand you could be chasing.
Pull your data monthly. Actually write it down. After three months, patterns emerge. After six months, you'll see whether your slow season is genuinely slow or just slow for everyone in your area.
The Geography Question
Where are your profile views coming from? Google tells you. Some photographers serve clients across a region. Others work locally only.
If you're based in London but see regular profile views from Manchester, you have a decision. Can you actually work there? Should you? Or are those views wasted because you'll never convert them?
For videographers especially, this matters. If 40% of your profile views come from outside your service area, your website copy might be attracting the wrong people. Update your location information. Be clear about where you work. Google will start showing your profile to the right people.
Using This Information to Actually Change Things
Data only works if you act on it. Here's what that looks like.
Month one: Read your Insights. Identify what's actually happening. Write it down.
Month two: Make one small change based on what you learned. Maybe you rewrite your website headline to match the search terms people use. Maybe you add a specific service package that matches what people are looking for. Maybe you add more availability information to reduce bounces from people who can't find your booking details.
Month three: See if that change worked. Did profile views go up? Did phone calls increase? Did the right people start contacting you?
This is how you actually use data. Not by staring at spreadsheets. By testing small changes and measuring what happens.
Your Google Business Profile is sitting there right now, collecting information about your market. Stop ignoring it. Read the numbers. Act on what they tell you. Your bookings will reflect that effort faster than any other marketing strategy available.
