How to Get Your Local Business Found on Google (and Recommended by AI)
Key takeaways
Reviews are the routine maintenance that helps you get your local business found on Google. Google's own guidance says more reviews and positive ratings can help your local ranking.
Most clients won't leave a review on the first ask. Ask when they've just had a great result, and expect to follow up.
A complete, active Google Business Profile tells Google you're still trading and helps you get into the local map pack.
AI tools draw on the same signals as search. If they can't find you, or you've only got a handful of reviews, they won't recommend you.
Your website is the one piece of marketing you own. Social platforms and ads are rented space.
Our guest Maria Sandy has a line we haven't been able to shake since we recorded this episode. When she talks about client reviews, she puts it like this:
“It's like the brushing and flossing of marketing.” — Maria Sandy
It isn't glamorous. Nobody brags about it. And like flossing, most of us know we should do it and still skip it when we're busy.
Maria runs Bits Web Design. She trained as an architect before moving into websites, local SEO and reviews, and she works mostly with local businesses that need customers in their own service area. We asked her how to get your local business found on Google, whether AI changes the rules, and what to make of advice that says you don't need a website at all.
We're Dr Kate De Jong, a PhD engineer turned business strategist, and Sam Morris, a Navy veteran who's spent 20 years in business working out what makes businesses tick and what makes them stall. Here's what we took away.
Why do Google reviews matter so much for a local business?
Reviews are a trust signal for customers and an activity signal for Google.
Reviews matter because they tell people and Google that you're real, active and good at what you do. Google says prominence, meaning how well-known a business is, is one of three factors in local results, and that more reviews and positive ratings can help your local ranking.
Maria put the flip side plainly. A business with no reviews looks to Google like it might not be operating at all, and prospects draw the same conclusion. We both admitted we pick businesses the way most people do. We compare the reviews and go with the one that has more of them.
The numbers back that up. BrightLocal's Local Consumer Review Survey 2026, a survey of 1,002 US consumers, found 97% of consumers read reviews for local businesses and 74% look for reviews written in the last three months. That recency figure is why Maria treats reviews as ongoing maintenance, not a one-off job.
It's also Robert Cialdini's social proof principle from Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion (1984) at work. When we're unsure, we look at what other people have done. A page of recent, specific reviews does that job for you while you're busy doing the work.
“Because as we know, these reviews are the bloodline.” — Dr Kate De Jong
How do you ask clients for a Google review without it feeling awkward?
Ask at the high point, make it easy, and don't stop at one.
Ask when the client has just had a great result, and expect to ask more than once. Maria's rule of thumb is at least three asks, and then she leaves it there.
“It's generally quite hard to get a review on the first ask” — Maria Sandy
People aren't ignoring you. They're busy. Maria's experience is that clients are usually happy to help once they understand a review helps you reach other people in the same spot they were in. Timing matters too. Ask while they're still excited about the result, because that feeling fades fast.
BrightLocal's 2026 survey supports the asking part: 83% of people who were asked to leave a review went on to leave one.
Make it easy. One approach that came up in our conversation is sending a client a few specific questions, shaping their answers into a draft, and asking them to check it and post it. Good questions get you a review that tells a story, which is exactly what you want. Maria was clear on one more thing. Swapping reviews with another business is only fine if you've genuinely worked together. A good review describes real work and a real result.
If you want more of those great-result moments to ask about, our post on improving client experience so clients stay and refer you is a good place to start.
How do you get your local business found on Google Maps?
Claim your Google Business Profile, fill in every field, and keep it active.
To get your local business found on Google, start with a claimed, verified and fully completed Google Business Profile. That's what puts you in the running for the map pack, the top three map results that appear above the regular search results.
Google's own help page says businesses with complete and accurate info are more likely to show up in local search results. So fill in everything: services, hours, service area, photos.
Sam asked a question plenty of owners have. Her social scheduling tool can post to her Google Business Profile, but what does that actually do? Maria's answer was that posting offers, events and photos shows Google you're still trading. FAQs on the profile add useful detail too.
“it's telling Google that your business is alive and kicking.” — Maria Sandy
Two more things came up. Google sometimes creates profiles automatically, so check whether one already exists for your business and claim it. And verification can be hard for home-based and service businesses.
“I feel like Google's kind of dropped the ball in looking after us for getting verified” — Sam Morris
Maria's workaround is a virtual mailbox, and she pointed out that you can hide your address on the profile through the settings, though it isn't easy to find.
Does AI change how customers find local businesses?
Not as much as the people selling AI visibility packages would like you to think.
AI tools mostly draw on the same signals search does: your website, your profile and your reviews. Get the basics right and you've done most of the work AI needs to find and recommend you.
Sam raised the warnings some marketing companies are putting out, that you need a separate set of tactics to get recommended by tools like ChatGPT. Maria's answer was to look at where the AI gets its information. Her example was someone in Perth looking for a dog door installer.
“AI is not going to say you're the best dog door installer if you have like three reviews.” — Maria Sandy
AI has to find you online before it can recommend you. Reviews, a complete profile and a clear website are what it finds. If you're already thinking about AI in your business, our post on using AI to automate your business and our AI Setup Workbook cover the inside-the-business side.
Do you still need a website if you're on social media?
Yes. Social is rented. Your website is the bit you own.
You still need a website. Maria's view is that your website is the base of your marketing because you own it, while Facebook, LinkedIn and ad platforms are rented space that can change overnight.
“your website is the foundation of all your marketing because you own it” — Maria Sandy
When we raised the advice some coaches give, that you don't need a website, Maria called it bad advice and asked what they're trying to sell you instead. Landing pages are fine. But people who hear about you will still want somewhere central to check you're credible.
Your website also builds authority over time. Maria suggests regular blogs that cover each area of expertise you have. Even her own site, running since 2014, came back with a weaker authority score than she expected when an SEO colleague reviewed it. The fixes were backlinks, citations and more content.
Write for your audience first. Clear messaging that speaks to your clients' problems sends good signals to Google too. Keyword stuffing hasn't worked for a long time, and tricks like hiding search terms in white text on a white background get caught eventually.
Why don't most people who find you buy straight away?
Because most of them aren't ready yet, and that's normal.
At any given time only a small slice of your market is ready to buy. The rest will look you up later, and what they find then decides whether they get in touch.
Maria splits people into active searchers and passive ones. Active searchers need you now. Someone who's decided to put in a pool searches for pool builders in Perth, and local SEO and your profile are what put you in front of them. Passive audiences might need you later, so social media and advertising build awareness until they're ready.
Sam brought up the idea that only about 3% of people are buying at any one time. That comes from Chet Holmes' buyer's pyramid in The Ultimate Sales Machine (2007): 3% buying now, 7% open to it, and 90% not thinking about it yet. Maria's point was that funnels and email lists only catch the small share who are interested right now. Everyone else will check your reviews and your website when their time comes. Staying consistent keeps you front of mind, and collecting contact details early makes the follow-up easier.
Frequently Asked Questions
How many Google reviews does a local business need?
There's no magic number. What matters is how you compare with competitors in your area and how recent your reviews are. BrightLocal's 2026 survey found 74% of consumers look for reviews from the last three months, so a steady flow beats a one-off burst.
Is it okay to swap reviews with another business?
Only if you've genuinely worked with each other. A review should describe real work and a real result. Reviews given as a favour don't tell that story and don't build trust.
Do Google Business Profile posts help?
Maria's view is that posts, photos, offers and FAQs show Google the business is active. Google's own guidance says complete and accurate information makes a business more likely to show up in local results.
Do I need a separate strategy to get recommended by ChatGPT or other AI tools?
Not to start with. AI tools have to find you online before they can recommend you. Reviews, a complete Google Business Profile and a clear website do most of that work.
What can you do this week to get found by local customers?
Three small jobs. None of them glamorous.
Search for your business on Google Maps. Is your profile claimed, complete and showing your current hours? Add a few recent photos and one post.
List the last five clients who got a great result from you. Ask each one for a review this week, send a direct link, and put two follow-ups in your diary.
Open your main service page. Does it answer, in plain words, what a client in your area would search for? Fix one thing.
“What about the 97% that want to do it later?” — Maria Sandy
Further Reading
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