How to audit your Google Business Profile for AI search

Open your Google Business Profile as the owner and check fifteen things, in order: the primary category, secondary categories, the description, services, hours, holiday hours, phone, website link, address and pin, photos, the Q&A section, attributes, products if you sell them, the booking link, and the reviews you have not replied to. Fix each as you go. Most profiles fail on category, services, and the description.

The checklist

Primary category: the specific thing you are.
Secondary categories: only ones that apply.
Description: the quotable paragraph, matching your website.
Services: every one, each with a sentence.
Hours: correct, including the days you are closed.
Holiday hours: set for the year.
Phone: the same number as your site.
Website: links to your site, or the location page for a multi-location business.
Address and map pin: exact, with the pin on the door.
Photos: the building, the interior, the work, the people, real.
Q&A: seed it with the questions people ask, answered by you.
Attributes: wheelchair access, parking, payment types, identity attributes if you want them.
Products: if you sell items, listed with prices.
Booking or appointment link: if you take bookings online.
Reviews: reply to every one, restating the service.

Why the assistants care

Gemini reads the profile directly. ChatGPT, Copilot, and Perplexity read the directories that copy it and the search results it shapes. It is the one source every assistant sees. Every blank field is a fact the assistant has to guess or skip.

After the audit

Compare the profile to your website line by line. Where they differ, decide which is right and fix the other. Then check the top three directories against both.

Questions people ask

How often should I audit it?

Quarterly, and after any change to hours, services, or staff. Google also accepts public edits, so check that nobody changed something.

Does the description allow links or formatting?

No. Plain text, 750 characters. Write it as sentences.

Should I use Google Posts?

They help a little. The fields above matter more.

Want this done for you?

This is the work we do for every client: search, answer engines, and AI assistants, on one plan with one monthly report. Tell us about your business and we will tell you what we would do first.

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