An approval workflow for agencies managing Google profiles in Ireland

Short answer: keep the Irish business as the primary owner of its Google Business Profile, give the agency manager access, and agree what needs approval before anything goes live. Draft replies, posts and profile edits in batches, check local details such as the Eircode and bank holiday hours, and record approval against the exact wording. Start with approval required for everything; relax that rule only through a written agreement.

An agency may manage the profile, but the client remains the public face of every response. A rushed reply to a complaint or an incorrect opening time can create a problem that polished copy cannot fix. For businesses serving Dublin, Cork, Galway or Limerick, the workflow should connect account permissions, local accuracy and client sign-off—not just produce more content.

Start with ownership and a named decision-maker

The client should retain primary ownership of the profile. Add the agency through Google's user-access settings as a manager rather than sharing a password. Google distinguishes between owners and managers; choose the access level needed for the work, not the broadest available permission.

Before drafting anything, name one person who can approve routine content and a backup for leave or busy periods. A small business might nominate its owner and an operations manager. A multi-location business may need a local contact to confirm hours and a central contact to approve sensitive replies.

Record who can remove agency access when the contract ends. The handover should include outstanding drafts, unresolved complaints, upcoming hours changes and the approval history. The client should not need to recover control of its own profile at the end of an engagement.

Build a local facts sheet before using AI

AI can help organise drafts, but it should not supply missing business facts. Give each client a verified facts sheet and treat it as the source for profile content.

Include:

• The business name as genuinely used, without adding city or county keywords to it.
• The customer-facing address, where eligible to be displayed, including the correct Eircode.
• The town or city and county, plus genuine service areas.
• The approved telephone number, whether landline or mobile.
• Normal opening hours and the person responsible for bank holiday hours.
• Current services, approved pricing statements and any restrictions on offers.
• The correct website and location landing page.

An Eircode is not a substitute for checking the full address. For a service-area business, do not expose a private home address merely to complete a directory listing. Follow Google's eligibility and address-display rules, and get the client's confirmation before making location changes.

Local pages should also reflect where the business actually operates. A relevant service page might link to Dublin local SEO services or Cork local SEO services. Do not create pages that imply offices, staff or coverage the business does not have.

Agree approval rules by risk, not just content type

A routine thank-you reply and a response to an allegation should not follow the same approval route. Set out the rules in writing before the first publishing batch.

Routine content: drafts of straightforward review replies, service updates and factual posts go to the named approver. At the start of the relationship, none should be published without explicit sign-off.

Operational changes: hours, mobile numbers, website links, addresses and service areas need confirmation from someone who knows the current business details. A marketing approver may not know that a location is closing early.

Sensitive content: complaints, refund disputes, pricing disagreements, legal threats and allegations about staff always go back to the client. Do not let an AI-generated draft decide liability or promise compensation.

Claims and promotions: discounts, qualifications, availability and performance claims need supporting facts. Never invent a testimonial, customer experience or ranking guarantee to make a draft more persuasive.

Agree a realistic response window, but make clear that silence is not approval. If no decision arrives, hold the item and flag any approaching deadline.

Put bank holiday hours into the approval calendar

Ireland-specific scheduling should happen before the weekly content batch. Ask clients about bank holiday hours well ahead of St Patrick's Day, Easter Monday, the June Bank Holiday and Christmas Day. St Brigid's Day also needs attention: the public holiday is not always observed on 1 February, so check the relevant year's date rather than recycling last year's schedule.

A public holiday does not tell you whether an individual business is open. Confirm each location separately, including any reduced hours on surrounding days. Do not assume that all branches in the same county follow one timetable.

Google provides special-hours settings for temporary changes. Use them appropriately rather than repeatedly replacing regular opening hours. Keep the client's written confirmation alongside the planned edit, and check the live profile after the change is made. This is especially useful for customers checking opening times on a mobile before travelling.

Draft, review and approve one controlled batch

A simple weekly cycle reduces scattered messages and unclear decisions:

1. Monday: verify and draft. Check new reviews, upcoming dates and the local facts sheet. Use AI to prepare drafts, then have a person check accuracy, tone and privacy.
2. Tuesday: request approval. Send one organised batch per client, separating posts, review replies and profile changes. Show the proposed wording or exact field change—not merely a summary.
3. Wednesday: resolve comments. Apply feedback and return changed items for approval. An approval for an earlier version must not carry over to new wording.
4. Thursday: publish or schedule where supported. Act only on approved items, using an authorised route. Record what was actually published and when.

Keep urgent operational changes outside the routine queue, but not outside the approval process. An unexpected closure needs a faster decision from the named approver, not an agency guess.

A useful approval record contains the client, location, draft version, approver, approval time and intended publication date. If something changes after approval—even a price or a sentence—request sign-off again.

Worked example: an illustrative Galway repair business

Illustrative example only: this is a hypothetical workflow, not a client story, testimonial or claim of results.

Consider an independent repair business in Galway that asks an agency to prepare Google review replies and service updates. The owner retains primary ownership, the agency receives manager access, and a workshop supervisor becomes the backup approver.

Before work begins, the owner confirms the business's actual address, Eircode, mobile number and service coverage in County Galway. No address, opening schedule or service promise is invented for the draft.

The agency prepares a batch containing three items: a reply thanking a customer for feedback, a draft response to a complaint about a delay, and a proposed bank holiday hours update. The routine reply goes to the owner. The complaint is held until the owner checks the underlying facts. The supervisor confirms the proposed hours before the owner signs off on the edit.

The AI draft initially includes a promise about turnaround time that is absent from the facts sheet. The agency removes it rather than treating plausible wording as evidence. The revised reply is submitted for approval as a new version.

After sign-off, an authorised user makes the approved changes through an available publishing route. The monthly report records the actions and any unresolved issue. It makes no claim about improved rankings, additional bookings or revenue.

Treat reviews and directories as accuracy work

Ireland's Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (CCPC) is a relevant consumer-protection regulator when considering misleading commercial practices and online reviews. Approval should be a truthfulness check, not just a tone check. Never write a review as though it came from a customer, purchase fabricated praise or turn an unverified draft into a testimonial.

For genuine reviews, keep responses proportionate and avoid disclosing private customer information. Where a complaint requires account details, invite the reviewer to use the client's approved private contact channel without repeating those details publicly.

Directory checks belong in the same workflow. Golden Pages and Cylex Ireland are examples worth assessing for an Irish business; neither should be presented as a requirement or a guarantee of visibility. Confirm relevance, listing terms and client approval before submitting details or buying an upgrade. Check the business name, address, Eircode, telephone number and website for consistency wherever the business is listed.

Report actions honestly and keep product limits clear

A monthly report should distinguish drafts, approvals and live changes. Summarise replies published, posts published, hours updated, directory corrections and items still awaiting a decision. Add one practical recommendation, such as confirming the next public holiday schedule earlier.

Do not describe profile interactions as sales. Where the client has reliable enquiry or booking data, report it separately and explain its limits. An approval workflow protects accuracy and accountability; it does not guarantee a ranking position.

Local SEO AI records approvals against the exact content: if a draft changes after approval, the previous approval no longer applies. Agency workspaces keep clients separate, with their own locations, content and reports. You can also explore review management.

Publishing to Google is awaiting Google's connection approval. Do not promise direct publishing through Local SEO AI while that remains pending, or describe the service as a Google partner. Use an authorised manual route where needed. Custom domains and commissions are not included. For subscription information, see pricing; pricing is billed in GBP (£), without currency conversion here.

Frequently asked questions

Which Irish regulator is relevant to misleading online reviews?

The Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (CCPC) is a relevant regulator for consumer-protection issues in Ireland, including misleading commercial practices. Agencies should reject fabricated reviews, unsupported testimonials and misleading claims, even if a client approves them. Keep factual evidence for promotional statements and escalate legal concerns rather than asking AI to resolve them. Client approval is not a substitute for compliance.

Which directories should an Irish business check?

Golden Pages and Cylex Ireland are examples to assess, alongside relevant local chamber or sector directories. Prioritise listings that suit the business and its genuine location or service area. Confirm the name, address, Eircode, telephone number and website before submission. Obtain approval for paid options, and do not present directory inclusion as a guarantee of better Google rankings.

How should we approve bank holiday hours in Ireland?

Ask the client to confirm each location's hours before holidays such as St Patrick's Day, Easter Monday and St Brigid's Day. Check the date for the relevant year, especially where observance varies. Use Google's special-hours settings for temporary changes where appropriate, retain the client's confirmation and check the live profile afterwards. Never infer opening hours from the holiday alone.

Should drafts use Eircode, county and mobile rather than overseas terms?

Yes. Use Eircode when referring to Ireland's postcode system, county where it helps describe an address or genuine service area, and mobile for a mobile telephone number. More importantly, verify the details rather than merely changing terminology. A County Cork service area does not establish a Cork city office, and adding an Eircode does not justify displaying an otherwise ineligible private address.