u/quainttelescope

Running a small (mortgage broker) professional services business in Melbourne, operating across the metro area rather than from a fixed shopfront.

Set up our GBP a while back and picked what seemed like the most specific primary category available, then added a few secondary ones. Rankings in Maps have been pretty inconsistent, showing up well for some suburb searches but dropping off completely in others a few km away.

I've read a lot of conflicting stuff about how much categories actually influence the local pack vs proximity being the dominant factor. Some people say getting your primary category exactly right is critical, others say it barely matters for SABs compared to reviews and citations.

Anyone have real experience switching primary categories and seeing a meaningful change? Specifically interested in whether it matters more or less for professional services vs trade-type businesses (plumbers, electricians etc who seem to dominate all the SAB discussions).

Going up for 5 days in late July with 3 mates. Two of us have done a few days on snow before but still pretty shaky, and the other two have never been at all.

Been going back and forth on whether to pre-book ski school packages now or just sort it when we get there. Main concern is whether July gets so busy that you genuinely can't get a spot if you leave it last minute.

Also wondering if it makes sense to do private lessons for just the first day for the complete beginners, or if group lessons are fine to start with. Any advice from people who've done ski school at Perisher would be much appreciated!