Open Google Maps and look up your restaurant. How old is the last photo? If the most recent review is months old and the latest post announces a dish that no longer exists, the listing looks like a closed restaurant. It does not shut with a sign in the window: it fades photo by photo until nobody opens it.
Why the listing carries so much weight for a restaurant
Your listing does the job of the door, window and menu at once. Someone searching "restaurant with a terrace in Estepona" sees three listings in the local pack. They do not open three websites: they pick one and call, and the photo decides that click.
Then they check the reviews and the hours. When both are up to date, the listing says the restaurant is open and looked after. Google ranks the local pack by relevance, distance and prominence, and nobody can guarantee you the top spot on the map. What you can control is that the listing never looks abandoned: one post a week, one new photo and a reply to every review.
The four post types you will actually use
Google lets you publish posts with an image, text and a button. For a restaurant they come down to four formats:
| Type | What it is | Length | When to use it | Image | Button |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Update or offer | A short note about something specific: a new dish, a lunch deal, a brunch. | 40-80 words | When there is something to say this week. | Photo of the dish or a set table. | Book, see menu |
| Event | A live-music dinner, a wine tasting, a themed night, a New Year's menu. | 60-120 words | Two or three weeks ahead. | The room's atmosphere or your own poster. | Book a table |
| Lunch menu | The week's set menu with starters, mains, dessert and price. | 30-60 words + link | Monday morning, before service. | A photo of the star dish. | Call or book |
| Dish spotlight | One dish in detail: produce, season, how it is made. | 40-70 words | Midweek, when it is quieter. | Close-up from the diner's angle. | See the menu |
On a phone the text is cut to two or three lines: the opening sentence must carry the point, and the button must lead somewhere real.
A weekly calendar you can keep
Forget posting daily. Five small gestures spread across the week keep the listing alive without stealing time from the kitchen:
Monday
The week's menu
Publish it before you open. It is the most repeated question Monday to Friday.
Wednesday
A photo of a dish
A new shot of a real dish, never stock imagery.
Friday
Event or live music
DJ, flamenco, a tasting, the terrace open. The day people decide where to eat.
Sunday
Review reply of the week
Answer the week's reviews and turn a good one into a post.
Every month
Seasonal menu
Swap the menu and cover photo: cold soups in summer, stews in winter.
If a Saturday in August gets away from you, cut back to three. What sinks a listing is going quiet.
Photos: the five that are always missing
No photo shoot needed: just these five shots diners look for and hardly anyone uploads:
Interior
The dining room with tables set: it says whether the place is formal or casual.
Terrace
Parasols and the sea behind. In Marbella and Estepona it sells harder than the interior.
Dish from the diner's view
At eye level; shot from above it looks like a catalogue.
Kitchen at work
A hand plating up gives craft and confidence, with no posing.
The team
Staff working: it humanises without anyone staring at the lens.
- No stock photography. Another restaurant's table does not sell yours.
- Correct location and date. Upload from the premises with location switched on.
- Refresh every season. Winter blankets do not work in July; a packed summer terrace does not in January.
- Show the real light. A terrace in Puerto Banús at eight in the evening sells itself.
Reviews: asking for them and answering them
Reviews do not arrive on their own. You ask for them at the right moment:
- A QR code on the table. At the foot of the menu or on the bill: if it is one gesture away, it gets used.
- The moment of payment. That is when the guest has your listing open and is not in a hurry.
- Reply to all of them, bad ones included. Thank them, clarify and offer a private channel; never argue in public.
- No copy-paste replies. Anyone reading fifteen identical answers knows nobody read them.
The step-by-step is in how to get more Google Maps reviews.
Common mistakes that cost you tables
Hours left unchanged on holidays
A long weekend without touching the hours sends guests to a locked door. Check it on every holiday.
Expired posts still visible
An August offer in January is confusing. Review the archive and clear out the old ones.
The menu linked to a PDF that is unreadable on mobile
If people have to pinch and zoom, they go elsewhere. Use a menu page, not a scanned PDF.
Answering every review with the same sentence
It shows. Personalise even one line and never argue in public.
Posting only in summer
A listing abandoned from October to May arrives in June with nothing new.
How this fits into local SEO
Posts are one piece of the listing, along with the category, hours, photos and reviews. The rest is covered in our Google Business Profile guide.
At Solaris we handle these pieces with two fixed-price plans, no lock-in:
Local Pack
€150 /month + VAT
- Your Google Maps listing only
- Posts, photos and reviews
- No website articles
Content Pack
€250 /month + VAT
- Everything in the Local Pack
- SEO articles on your website
- No lock-in
If you only want the listing plan, see Local Pack Google in Marbella. One extra table of four a week already covers part of the monthly cost.