Get a verified Google Business Profile with the right category, collect real reviews, and use the same business name, address and phone number on your website and on every listing. That is what puts a local business on Google Maps. AI tools such as ChatGPT, Gemini and Google's AI Overviews then repeat what they read on your profile, your website and the directories that list you, so your website has to say plainly what you do and which areas you serve. Most of this you can do yourself for free. A local SEO agency charges a monthly fee to do it for you.
How does Google decide who shows up on Maps?
Google says local results depend on three things:
| Factor | What Google means | What you can change |
|---|---|---|
| Relevance | How well your profile matches what the person searched for | Your category, services and description |
| Distance | How far your business is from the person searching | Nothing, beyond an accurate address or service area |
| Prominence | How well known your business is, partly from reviews and links to your website | Reviews, and being mentioned on other sites |
Google also says that businesses with complete and accurate details are more likely to show up, and that "there's no way to request or pay for a better local ranking". So the work is on relevance and prominence.
How do I set up a Google Business Profile properly?
- Claim or create it at business.google.com. If a profile for your business already exists, claim that one. Google allows one profile per business.
- Use your real name, exactly as it appears on your signboard and website. "Kedai Aircon Ah Seng" is fine. "Ah Seng Best Aircon Service PJ" is not, and Google can suspend a profile for it.
- Pick the fewest, most specific categories. Google's test is that the category should finish the sentence "This business is a ...". Categories are not a place for keywords.
- Choose an address or a service area. If customers come to you, show the address and keep a permanent signboard there. If you go to them, hide the address and list the areas you cover. Google does not accept virtual offices or P.O. boxes.
- Fill in everything else. Opening hours, phone number, website and photos of your real premises or work. The description cannot contain links or promotions.
- Verify it. Google says verified businesses are more likely to show up in search results.
Do reviews really matter?
Yes. Reviews count towards prominence, and Google says more reviews and positive ratings can help your ranking. AI answers lean on them too. When ChatGPT recommends local businesses, it can show each one's Google rating and number of reviews beside the name.
- Ask every customer, not only the happy ones you expect. Send a review link or put a QR code at the counter.
- Never pay for reviews. Google prohibits offering anything in exchange for posting, changing or removing a review.
- Reply to them, short and polite, without promotions. Replies are public, so write them for the next customer reading.
What gets a local business into AI answers?
AI tools can only describe your business from what they read about it online: your website, your Google profile and the directories that list you. When they recommend a local business, they name its services and its town, so both need to be written down where AI can read them.
- Say it on your website in text. Your services, the towns you cover, your hours and your prices. AI cannot quote what is only in a photo or a PDF.
- Write in the languages your customers ask in. Malaysians ask AI in English, Malay and Chinese, and AI answers in the language of the question.
- Keep your details identical everywhere. Your website, Facebook page, Google profile and every directory should show the same name, address and phone number.
- Add LocalBusiness structured data. This is code on your website that states your name and address for machines. Google lists name and address as required, and recommends phone number with country code, opening hours and map coordinates. Google also says it does not guarantee any result from it.
- Register with Google Search Console and Bing Webmaster Tools. Both are free, and some AI tools search with Bing rather than Google.
Who can help, and what should I ask them?
You have three choices: do it yourself, hire a freelancer, or pay an agency a monthly fee. At Alchemistic Cloud, Google Business Profile upkeep is part of our SEO and AEO service. The Starter package is RM2,000 a month and also includes 2 articles a month and a report that counts how often ChatGPT, Gemini and Google's AI name you. The first report is free.
Whoever you hire, ask them:
- Will the profile stay in my Google account? You should own it, and give them manager access.
- How do you measure Maps and AI visibility? Ask for a monthly count, not a screenshot. AI gives a different answer each time.
- Do you write in English, Malay and Chinese? Your customers search in all three.
- Do you promise the top spot? Google says nobody can pay for a better local ranking, so a promise of first place is a reason to walk away.
If your question is ChatGPT in particular, read How do I get ChatGPT to recommend my business?
Sources
- Google Business Profile Help, "Tips to improve your local ranking on Google". support.google.com/business/answer/7091
- Google Business Profile Help, "Guidelines for representing your business on Google". support.google.com/business/answer/3038177
- Google Business Profile Help, "Tips to get more reviews". support.google.com/business/answer/3474122
- Google Search Central, "Local business (LocalBusiness) structured data". developers.google.com/search/docs/appearance/structured-data/local-business