If it’s not on your radar for getting in front of your customers, it should be.

Now, TikTok is expanding its role in local search with the Local Explorer Program, a new initiative that rewards users for posting place-based reviews. It’s another step toward making TikTok a destination for real-time discovery, giving users more ways to surface local recommendations directly within the app.

For SEOs, understanding how this program works is key to staying ahead of how visibility is shifting across platforms.

What is the TikTok Local Explorer Program

The TikTok Local Explorer Program is for people who love sharing authentic reviews of places they’ve visited. It works similarly to Google’s Local Guide program.

Whether it’s your favorite neighborhood restaurant or a hidden gem you stumbled across while traveling, TikTok wants to hear about it. By regularly posting meaningful, location-based reviews, you can earn experience points (XP), level up through the program, and unlock special perks that give your content more visibility.

This is a community-driven feature designed to help users discover trusted local recommendations on the app. As you contribute more helpful content, TikTok rewards you with perks that help boost your presence on the platform.

Requirements

To participate in the Local Explorer Program, you must be 18 years old or older and not be using a merchant account. This feature is only available in certain regions as of right now (Oct 2025), without specification of those regions in the TikTok documentation.

To get started, you must submit location-based reviews that follow TikTok’s standards:

• You must include text in your review
• Your review should reflect your real, personal experience
• Photos aren’t required but can earn you extra experience points

There are levels within the Local Explorer Program once you start submitting reviews. You’ll start at Level 0 and work your way up by earning experience points (XP) from your approved reviews. There are six levels total:

• Level 0
• Level 1 (20 XP required)
• Level 2 (80 XP)
• Level 3 (200 XP)
• Level 4 (500 XP)
• Level 5 (1,000 XP)

The more XP you earn, the higher your level and the more benefits you unlock, such as badges, access to exclusive communities, and monthly Promote coupons (available in the U.S. starting at Level 5). Another thing to note is that TikTok approves reviews before XP is applied; they state that it usually happens within 24 hours. So, it could take a little bit for the XP to show up in your account.

More on XP

XP is how TikTok tracks your contributions in the program. You earn it by submitting location reviews, and the amount depends on the length and quality of your content.

The maximum XP you can earn per review is 25 XP, which is reached by submitting a review with at least 200 characters and including a photo.

If you submit more than one review for the same location in a single month, they’ll count the highest-earning one and give you the difference as long as it doesn’t exceed the 25 XP cap.

Once you begin earning XP, you can work your way towards Perks. These are automatically unlocked as soon as you reach a new level. At higher levels, you gain access to exclusive communities, receive profile badges, and at Level 5 earn a $2 monthly Promote coupon in the U.S.

This system is designed to reward users who consistently contribute thoughtful, helpful content. So the more value your reviews offer, the faster you level up.

Why TikTok is Even More Important for Local SEO

The Local Explorer Program is one of the strongest signals yet that TikTok is investing in being a destination for local discovery. By encouraging users to post authentic, review-style content tied to specific places, TikTok is shaping how people explore and evaluate businesses in their area. From searchable place tags to location reviews and city-based content feeds.

For SEOs, this is something to pay attention to. The content coming out of the Local Explorer Program provides valuable signals:

• What types of businesses are getting visibility
• Which creators are influencing local discovery
• What language users are using to describe places and experiences

It also creates an opportunity to work more closely with social media teams. By tracking local tags, mentions, and review activity on TikTok, you can bring that data into your broader visibility strategy.

How to Use TikTok to Your Advantage

The Local Explorer Program opens the door for SEOs to take a more proactive role in how local businesses show up on TikTok. While a social media team may be managing the content itself, the insights coming from TikTok reviews and creator activity are valuable for shaping local visibility strategies.

This is where SEO and social can work in sync. TikTok gives you real-time data on what people are engaging with, how places are being described, and which businesses are gaining traction in discovery.

• Monitor what users are saying about your business
• Use reviews from TikTok on the site
• Learn from TikTok reviews and use language from there to write more compelling headings and conversion-friendly content
• Look for content opportunities within the app through filters, others searched for, etc
• Reuse TikToks for your GBP or embed on relevant pages on the site

Explore It, Don’t Ignore It

TikTok gives us direct access to how people are discovering and talking about local businesses. You can use that to your advantage by pulling insights directly from the app to strengthen your SEO strategy.

Just like you would monitor reviews from a GBP or Yelp and use that as social proof on a website, you can do the same with TikTok reviews. Highlight them on the site! Get an overall feel of what users are saying in their reviews and use that to write more conversion-focused content to urge users to take the next step.

Aside from review monitoring, you can use TikTok search itself as a research tool. Let’s use Voodoo Donuts as an example.

You’ll notice the app displays suggested filters under the search bar. Here we see “ASMR” and “Austin” which hint at how people are engaging with the brand. These behavioral patterns can help you uncover content opportunities tied to user intent that you won’t find in traditional keyword tools. In this instance it highlights they’re looking for satisfying sound-driven videos or trying to find information about the closest location.

You can also see “Others searched for” when looking up a specific business as well. This is similar to People Also Ask and can be another way to find content opportunities within the app. So for Sofi Stadium, people are often searching for the purse policy. They want to know what it is and what the actual size of an allowed purse looks like. That’s an opportunity for Sofi to create social and website content for.

Use these search features to better understand what people want to know before visiting a location, then apply that insight to your content. Whether that’s building out an FAQ, adding information to a Google Business profile, or creating website content to address potential concerns, TikTok is giving you real-time demand data.

You can also start by embedding relevant TikToks on high-intent service or location pages or uploading to a Google Business Profile listing to boost engagement, time on page, and to build trust and create social proof with content that feels authentic and relatable.

Set Your Sights Ahead

As search behaviors continue to evolve, SEO strategies can’t rely on Google alone to stay competitive. The rise of AI-generated results has created a growing demand for content that feels personal and trustworthy. People want that human connection, and TikTok allows users to have it.

With its emphasis on real experiences and community-driven content, the Local Explorer Program is just one example of how the platform is moving further into local search. SEOs need to pay attention.

By collaborating with social teams, tracking local activity, and using TikTok data to inform your strategy, you’ll be better equipped to keep up with how people are actually discovering and choosing local businesses today.

The truth is, Google doesn’t just take your word for it when you fill out your Google Business Profile (GBP). Google loves to crowdsource information, and reviews are the best, most verifiable way for the search engine to do that. Your reviews are a direct, lagging indicator of how customers perceive your business, and they hold the key to ranking higher, converting better, and improving operations.

Julian Hooks, SEO Director at Asurion, who oversees more than 700 franchise and corporate locations, recently joined us for our Local SEO for Good event to share the strategic insights he uses every day.

We’ve taken his advice and compiled it into this helpful guide to mining your reviews for gold.

1. Identify Keyword-rich Themes (And Apply Them Everywhere)

In reviews, customers naturally describe your business in their own words, and these phrases are your high-converting keywords disguised as compliments.

The Golden Nuggets (Positive Reviews)

Your first step is to scan your positive reviews for recurring language, specifically, top adjectives, service descriptions, and value statements.

For example, a recurring phrase might be: “Same day phone repair,” “friendly and knowledgeable staff,” or “fixed my iPhone fast.”

Here’s how to apply these recurring phrases to your SEO strategy:

• On-page content: Incorporate these customer-validated phrases into your H1s, content, titles, and service blurbs. If customers rave about your “friendly service,” make sure that phrase is featured on your landing page.
• Conversion rate optimization (CRO): Use these phrases in your meta descriptions to help increase your click-through rate (CTR).
• The ranking factor debate: While some experts argue that keywords in reviews don’t matter for ranking, data from businesses with hundreds of locations suggests otherwise. Julian has seen that keywords in customer reviews do have a great impact on where you rank for specific terms. Google increasingly highlights verbatim review snippets in the local pack to justify relevance, often over service descriptions or website mentions.

“We’ve seen data across hundreds of locations showing that keywords in customer reviews do have a great impact on where you rank for specific terms. Google will often highlight those verbatim snippets to justify its relevance.” 

2. Embrace the Gift of Negative Feedback

No one likes getting a one-star review, but every negative review is an opportunity that should not go underutilized. Think of negative feedback not as criticism, but as a valuable gift for improvement.

Frequent complaints highlight operational and content opportunities. Your job is to identify and fix the issue, and then fix your reputation with the customer.

“We have to think of a negative review not as criticism, but as a valuable gift for improvement that should not go underutilized. It’s an opportunity to identify and fix both an operational problem and a content problem.”

How to turn negative feedback into improvement:

• Create FAQs: A lot of negative feedback comes down to simple miscommunication. If important details are “buried in the fine print,” and they keep showing up in reviews, you need to be more upfront. Use the complaint to create a clear, front-and-center FAQ section on your website or Google Business Profile.
• Rewrite service descriptions: If customers think they are getting one thing, but receive a different product or service, their expectations aren’t aligned. Rewrite your service descriptions and landing pages to clarify exactly what is (and isn’t) included.
• Run CRO tests: Use the pain points mentioned in negative reviews to inform your CRO testing and user experience updates on the site.

3. Scale Your Insights with AI

It is impossible to do this analysis manually for hundreds of locations, but even a local business with a few dozen reviews can effectively use AI tools like ChatGPT or Gemini.

You don’t need a custom API; you can simply:

1. Use a tool like Pleper.com or BrightLocal’s Reputation Manager to scrape and download your reviews (and your competitors’).
2. Upload that Excel file into an AI tool.
3. Ask the AI to “look for themes,” “analyze sentiment,” and “tell me what we’re doing right and what we’re doing wrong”.

This will save manual hours and provide instant data on things like keyword frequency, sentiment, and even how often a specific employee’s name is mentioned (great for incentivizing staff!).

4. Don’t Stop at Google: Multi-platform Optimization

While Google is the “big dog” in search share, you can’t ignore other platforms like Yelp, Facebook, and Reddit.

As Large Language Models (LLMs) and AI search tools (like Perplexity and ChatGPT) become more prevalent, they are heavily citing reputation and citation data from multiple ecosystems. Your strategy must include:

• NAP consistency: Ensure your Name, Address, and Phone number (NAP) are consistent everywhere. This isn’t just a Google ranking factor; it prevents an AI from citing an old directory from ten years ago and sending a customer to the wrong place.
• Monitor all platforms: If you have no presence on Yelp or Facebook, you will come up short in these LLM-driven searches. You must monitor and optimize your presence on all relevant platforms.

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5. Master the Art of the Ask

The best way to get a keyword-rich review is to master the art of asking.

The Power of the Personal Ask

The in-person ask at the point of sale by far outperforms everything else.

“The best way to get a keyword-rich review is to master the art of the ask. The in-person ask at the point of sale will by far outperform every follow-up email, text message, or automated prompt you try.”

Customers are much more likely to leave a review if they believe they are leaving a review for the person who assisted them, not the corporation.

The Script

The employee should simply say, “I hope you had a great experience. It would be great for my career and my job here if you could leave me a review. Please just mention what I did for you or what I fixed for you.”

Why does this work? Because they are leaving John a review on his service, which makes the request feel personal and easy.

Phrasing Digital Requests for Keywords

If you are sending follow-up emails or text messages, it’s all about the questioning.

• Don’t ask, “What could we have done better?” (This tends to turn them toward something negative.)
• Instead, ask, “What did we fix for you today?” or “How did we help you today?”.

This phrasing inherently encourages the customer’s answer to include the product or service you want to rank for (e.g., “You guys fixed my cracked iPhone 3 on the same day. It was awesome.”).

A Firm Stance Against Review Gating

In the conversation, Julian was asked about using a “middle page” to filter positive reviews to Google and negative ones to an internal channel.

His advice? Do not review gate.

It is a violation of guidelines, and you must “take the give” and accept that you will sometimes get a negative review. The benefits of a natural, honest review profile far outweigh the risk of being seen as fake or violating policies.

When a suspension occurs or a verification fails, it can feel like Google just pulled the rug out from under you. To help you stay one step ahead, our CEO, Myles Anderson, sat down with two of the industry’s sharpest minds, Joy Hawkins and Ben Fisher, at the 2025 Local SEO for Good event to get their most practical, no-nonsense Google Business Profile advice.

Here’s a breakdown of the top strategies and insider tips they shared.

Mastering Suspensions and Reinstatement

Suspensions remain one of the biggest frustrations for GBP managers, but if you prepare properly, you can be reinstated.

Be Proactive and Patient

Joy Hawkins’ advice was simple but critical:

“Have your required documents, like your business license, ready before a suspension hits.”

— Joy Hawkins, Owner/Founder, Sterling Sky

Don’t wait until panic mode sets in. Gather your documentation early, keep it updated, and store it safely.

Patience is also key. Reinstatements can take time, and Google’s new appeal process can be unforgiving. Once prompted, you may only have 60 minutes to upload all your files.

Your Suspension Reinstatement Checklist

When submitting an appeal, your goal is to provide a body of proof that your business exists and operates legitimately at its stated address.

Here’s what to include:

• Business license: The name and address must match your GBP listing exactly. There can be no variations or typos.
  
• Secretary of State entry: Provide either a link to your official record or a screenshot of it alongside the search URL.
  
• Utility bills: Only include if necessary, and make sure they match the business name.
  
• Alternative utility proof: If utilities are included in your rent, use a cell phone bill in your business name instead, but ensure it is in the exact GBP business name, not a personal name or parent company name.
  
• DBA/fictitious name: Have your DBA (Doing Business As) information handy and updated.
  
• Third-party proof: Gather supporting evidence from organizations like the Better Business Bureau or the Chamber of Commerce that can prove your business’s existence.

Verification Made Simple

Verification can be confusing, especially for service area businesses (SABs).

For Service Area Businesses (SABs)

Ben Fisher cleared up one major misconception:

“A service business doesn’t have to verify using the owner’s home address.”

—Ben Fisher, Co-Founder and Diamond Google Product Expert, Steady Demand

• Verify at a client location: You can drive to a location that matches your service area (e.g., a home you are selling if you are a realtor) and use that for verification.
• Signage is not required: If you are a service area business and your address is hidden, you do not need to show signage during video verification.

How do you handling failed video verification?

• Check the link: Google’s messaging can be poor. If you receive an email saying verification failed, click the link to view your profile; it may actually be verified.
• Request a live agent: If the automated verification fails, contact support and request a live agent to conduct the video verification. This allows you to interact and explain your situation (e.g., if you are in a new development without street signs).
• Bulk verification: If you manage ten or more storefront locations with the same business name, you should use the bulk verification process via Google’s Business Profile Help Center.

Ranking, Service Areas, and Physical Addresses

When it comes to local rankings, location still matters… a lot!

As Ben Fisher put it:

“The data is clear: having a physical address has a massive impact on your ranking radius.”

—Ben Fisher, Co-Founder and Diamond Google Product Expert, Steady Demand

Service area businesses (SABs) rank, on average, within a two-mile radius of their address. A storefront location, however, can rank anywhere from five to ten miles away.

Should SABs get a physical address?

If the potential lead generation outweighs the rent cost, SABs should invest in a staffed office. A published physical address provides a clear ranking benefit and can expand your reach fivefold.

Guidelines:

• The office must be staffed during business hours.
  
• Avoid coworking spaces as they frequently trigger filtering issues. As Joy warns, “Avoid them at all costs—they’re the landmines of local SEO.”
  
• Adding service areas to a storefront listing will not help you rank. You should never have overlapping service areas on multiple listings, as this is a cause for suspension.
  
• You cannot set your service area to be more than two hours of driving time from your verification address.
  

Resolving Missing Reviews

You’ve earned the review, but it’s not showing up. Frustrating, right? This often happens when Google’s filters remove reviews from brand-new accounts or shared Wi-Fi networks.

Here’s how to fix it:

1. Identify the cause: Reviews from new Google accounts are most likely to disappear.
   
2. Escalate to Support: Contact GBP support. Remember to reply to the first self-directed email you receive to open a path to a human agent.
   
3. Provide detailed proof: You need to help Google manually match the review to your profile. Ben explained why: “Google has to manually match up the review to your profile because reviews live in the Maps database, not the GBP database.” Provide a spreadsheet containing the reviewer’s name, the date, and the full review text.
   
4. Extract text easily: If a customer sends you a screenshot of the review, upload it to an OCR tool to quickly extract the text for your spreadsheet.
   

AI Content and NAP Consistency

Is NAP consistency still important?

Don’t sweat the small stuff. You no longer need to obsess over exact matches in punctuation or address formatting (like “Street” vs. “St”) across all directories. Google’s algorithm is smart enough to handle minor variations.

For managing citations at scale, tools like BrightLocal’s Citation Builder ensure your listings are correct where they count.

Can you use AI-generated content and images?

• AI-generated text: You can use Google’s feature to generate a description with AI inside the GBP control panel, as tests have shown there’s no negative impact on GBP ranking.
  
• AI-generated images: Proceed with caution. Google appears to be working to devalue them, and tests have shown that an initial ranking benefit was later reversed.
  
• Text on images: Adding keyword-rich text to an image and uploading it to your profile can provide a small, marginal ranking impact for long-tail queries.
  

Final Thoughts

Getting the most out of your Google Business Profile comes down to one thing: planning ahead.

Gather your documents early, keep your data clean, and build from a real, staffed address when you can. If AI tools save you time, great, but stay human at the core of your marketing.

You can see more of the videos from this year’s Local SEO for Good event on our YouTube channel.

Local SEO can mean a lot of things. For the sake of this article, it refers to organic visibility in Google Maps via the Local Pack. Or, more plainly, your Google Business Profile (GBP).

GBP is particularly relevant today because small businesses are losing organic clicks from top and mid-funnel queries to AI Overviews (AIO). For any business or marketer, fewer clicks means less data. For these small businesses, it can mean fewer leads, too.

In other words, showing up for bottom-of-funnel search queries is more important than ever. For local businesses, those queries are the ones driving prospective customers to the Local Pack.

How AIOs Impact SMBs: A Quick Look at 2025

For a lot of businesses, clicks go down as AIOs take over relevant search engine results pages (SERPs). This is true even if the business ranks well in the overviews, as the business referenced below does. While some AIO citations result in clicks, many do not.

Correlation is not causation, but this is not an isolated example. SMBs are seeing fewer clicks across the board, and it’s not difficult to guess why.

GBP is a Critical Source of Leads for SMBs

The bright side is this: GBP remains a critical source of leads for SMBs. In fact, I’ve seen about 10-15% more calls come through GBP compared to pre-AIO times.

Additionally, first-time calls to businesses with aggressive marketing packages saw their Google listings start to drive more leads than their organic website traffic (which was unusual for the businesses I work with, historically).

With the advent of AIOs, GBP has overtaken organic search for phone calls by a margin of about 12%.

Small Business Local SEO 101: Make Patterns, Not Big Changes

SMBs need an actionable and consistent approach to GBP. We’ll dive into tactics in a minute, but for now, I want to focus on the right approach: Don’t look for one “big” change to fix everything. Look for small improvements and iterate on them.

Google actually encourages this approach with on-site SEO in its SEO Starter guide. It says “…if you’re not satisfied with your results and your business strategies allow it, try iterating with the changes and see if they make a difference.”

This statement isn’t about GBP, but the same principle applies. Don’t chase the big fixes; instead, iterate on the small ones to create a positive pattern.

This includes things like:

• Posting regularly, in a natural cadence that reflects your business’s updates, events, specials, etc.
• Gathering reviews over time, naturally, and in a way that reflects customer experience
• Consistently reviewing changes to your GBP data and keeping it fresh, accurate, and updated
• Responding to reviews consistently, over time
• Responding to customer questions in the Q&A section as they are asked
• Keeping your website updated with relevant content and information

Let’s Talk Strategy: Tactics that Customers (and Google!) Love

So, what patterns should you create? And which tactics create them? The simple answer is this: Focus on the things you can control, or at least try to.

Below, I’ve listed what I consider the more important local SEO tactics for small businesses. Some of them may seem obvious; others not. But they’re all important, especially when taken as part of a larger strategy.

Keep Your Profile Updated & Accurate

This one’s pretty obvious: it’s important to keep your business information updated and accurate. Not because it’ll help you rank, but because it’s a good customer experience. (And because customers will get annoyed if your information is wrong.)

A 2023 study from BrightLocal found that 62% of consumers would not use a business if they found incorrect information about them online.

It’s also completely within your control and could impact whether or not a customer is able to find or call you. Thus, it’s worth noting.

Describe Your Business Accurately (Don’t worry about the SEO)

As a general rule of thumb, make sure your GBP accurately reflects your business as customers experience it in the real world. This means filling out every field in your profile and adding as much detail as GBP allows, including your business description.

Here are a few best practices for the description:

• DO fill out your business description with as much helpful information as possible, so customers can see what you’re about.
• DON’T use keywords in your description or try to cater to what you think Google wants.

Keep Your Photos Updated (and Helpful)

Include photos of your business storefront so customers know what it looks like from the street or parking lot. Add pictures of the inside, too, so they know what to expect when they get there.

Update images if something changes. This is especially relevant for businesses (such as restaurants) that change their menu frequently. Service-based businesses, such as law firms, may not need to update their photos as often unless something at the business location changes.

A few things to avoid:

• Stock photos
• Geo-tagging your images
• Low-quality images
• Outdated images

Show Customers What You Have to Offer

If it’s available for your business type, add products and services to your listing.

Products are detailed snapshots of what you offer; services are more like a menu of what you do.

I find the products feature particularly valuable because you can add a detailed description, image, and link to a related page on your website from the product listing. Even for service-based businesses (like law firms or dentists), “products” are a great way to give customers more information about how you can help them.

Prep for GBP Suspensions Before They Happen

Google Business Profile suspensions are a hassle. Prepare for them in advance. There are two types of suspensions: hard and soft suspensions. A soft suspension keeps you from editing your business information; a hard suspension completely removes it from SERPs.

If your listing gets suspended, you can appeal it and submit evidence for reinstatement.

Here’s a quick list of what you should have on file to make sure you can appeal your listing quickly in the unfortunate event of a suspension:

• Business registration
• Business license
• Tax certificates
• Utility bills (Internet, phone, water, etc.)

I also recommend keeping a picture of their storefront with signage on hand as well.

Reviews, Reviews, Reviews

Treat reviews like an ongoing part of your business operations and request them consistently.

The number of reviews and average star rating are important, but velocity (how often people review your business) is also important. If you can, I recommend using review management software, such as BrightLocal, GatherUp, or Podium, to request reviews.

A few best practices and notes regarding reviews:

• It’s okay if your star rating isn’t 5/5. People know you’re not perfect, and a 4.8/5 can look more authentic to customers anyway.
• Respond to reviews. Be kind and don’t get defensive. If you’re able, offer to fix the problem. If not, let the customer know you’ll do better next time.
• If a review is fake or harassment, do not respond to it; instead, report it to Google so it can be removed.
• Do not have your employees leave reviews! Only reviews from real customers count.

Perfect Your Intake (Make Every Lead Count)

It’s easy to treat your digital marketing as something separate from your business’s day-to-day operations. Once you get a lead or someone walks through the door, your Google Listing has done its job, right?

Kind of. The next step is just as important, though. When you get a lead (call, form, text), you need to make sure that prospective customers have the same helpful experience they got online. If you can, audit your intake (you’ll need call tracking for this!) and coach your team on how to work with prospective customers/clients when they reach out.

The goal is to turn leads into revenue, and that only happens when the lead converts.

Track everything really well (call Tracking, UTM codes, etc.)

Speaking of call tracking, if your business gets leads over the phone, use call tracking software on your website and your Google listing. Call data is part of your local SEO Strategy.

Set up call recording (if permitted by local laws) and pay attention to the origin of your calls.

Additionally, make sure to add UTM tracking codes to your Google listing and any links on it (appointment link, product link, website link, etc.). I won’t go into too much detail here, but this resource from Claire Carlile has everything you need to know (including a template!).

What about directory listings (other than GBP)?

“Local SEO” used to be synonymous with “directory listings,” and the general rule of thumb was this: The more, the merrier! Today, it’s more closely associated with Google Maps optimization, and it’s worth asking whether other directories are worth the time and money it takes to stay listed in them.

Not long ago, I revised my approach to these third-party listings and removed clients from many of them. Here’s what happened:

• Rankings did not go down (they went up, on average, for important terms)
• Leads did not go down (they went up, on average, for most clients)

This doesn’t mean directories don’t have their place, but syndicating your business information to 80+ listings that will never be indexed or seen by humans simply is not needed to achieve local SEO success.

When Third-party Directory Listings Really Matter

Local SEO is still SEO, so “it depends” applies even to third-party directory listings. There are a few technical instances in which directories are relevant, and not just for your ideal clients:

New Businesses

I’ve worked with some new businesses that struggle to get their Google listing verified because they are so new.

If your business falls into this category, consider getting it listed in more directories than I recommended above. Listings that come with a unique profile that Google can index are best. Syndicating your data to many publishers is one way you can show search engines that your business is, in fact, “legit” and has some semblance of an online footprint.

Website Indexation

The same goes for new websites (often associated with new businesses).

In recent years, I’ve seen new domains struggle to get indexed without the help of some third-party mentions. Directory listings are one way to encourage crawlers to engage with your site.

Of course, your website needs to include some kind of value and helpful content, too, but getting onto directory listings can help move the indexation process along.

Address Changes

Changing an address in GBP can be really easy, but it can also be tough if Google deems the change unreliable. Having additional listings (ones that are easier to update, ideally) with the new address in place can increase the likelihood of Google accepting the change quickly.

LLMs Use Listings for Business Information

Kate Herbert-Smith, Digital Learning Manager at BrightLocal

BrightLocal’s research from July 2025 found that AI has bought citations and listings back into a more prominent position. While their importance had been waning for a few years, LLMs now use them as a regular source of information for your brand.

A few of our findings:

• Yelp is used as a source in a third of all searches, and often multiple times in one search.
• LLMs use reviews from Yelp, Google Business Profile, and other sources to get additional rich information.
• LLMs also take information from social media channels.
• Businesses own websites are incredibly important sources for LLMs.
• Industry niche directories are a regular source of information.

Read the full study

Your On-site SEO Matters, Too!

Your website is part of your local SEO strategy, too. Not only because it can rank for local queries, but also because your website optimization can impact your performance in Google Maps.

It goes without saying that for your GBP to reap the benefits of an optimized and authoritative website, you need a live website to optimize. But research shows that only 40% of SMBs said they had a dedicated website for their business.

Here’s an example of how an active website can impact your local SEO:

I encountered a business not too long ago that wasn’t new, wasn’t indexed except for the home page. Additionally, Google refused to display their website on GBP (would deny the update every time). Initially, the clear problem was thin content. However, the site encountered the same issues after that was fixed.

After checking the site’s technical elements (robots.txt, internal links, etc.), I noticed unsavory backlinks in the client’s backlink profile and submitted a disavow file.

Within two weeks, the site was indexed, and the firm’s visibility in Google Maps increased by 44%. Calls followed a similar pattern:

In short, the relevance of your website impacts the relevance of your Google listing.

If you’re interested in how to structure your website for local success and how to optimize your service pages, check out my course on mastering service page optimization from BrightLocal Academy.

Conclusion

SEO is iterative, and local SEO is no exception. Don’t look for one big lever you can pull and walk away. GBP isn’t a slot machine. If you treat it like one, you’ll end up disappointed. Look for the little things you can do consistently (and well!) that pile up over time. That’s how you win.

The good news, though, is that Google Business Profile will play a key role in what comes next.

As he put it:

“Google Business Profile is the digital storefront. It’s the point of truth across Google Search and Maps.”

From Keywords to Conversations

According to Riaz, search has moved far beyond “pizza near me.” Today’s customers type, or speak, more nuanced queries: “find me a gluten-free deep-dish pizza with vegan cheese that I can enjoy on a dog-friendly patio.” These conversational searches carry more context and more commercial intent.

“We’ve gone from people typing ‘pool cleaning’ to asking ‘why is my pool green and how do I fix it?’ Search is becoming more conversational and contextual.”

For businesses, this means two things:

1. Your visibility depends on how complete and accurate your information is.
2. Customers are closer to taking action when they find you.

Search Without the Search Box

Riaz pointed to Google Lens, Circle to Search, and AI Overviews as proof that discovery is expanding. One in five Lens searches already has purchase intent.

“One in every five Lens searches has commercial intent. That’s a huge opportunity for businesses.”

Add to that AI summaries at the top of results, and even AI Mode, which reasons through complex questions, and you have customers discovering businesses in entirely new ways. 

Local businesses can no longer rely solely on text-based search. Visibility now requires being present in images, summaries, and AI-driven conversations.

Google Business Profile: The Digital Storefront

Despite the buzz around new AI features, Omar stressed the central role of the Google Business Profile. He described it as the “point of truth” across Maps and Search, and now, increasingly, across AI-driven results.

“Businesses with complete profiles see up to seven times more clicks than those without.”

Complete profiles, with categories, attributes, hours, and rich visuals, are far more likely to surface in conversational queries. In other words, GBP is no longer just a listing; it’s the storefront through which AI introduces your business to customers.

For practical steps, see our guides on Google Business Profile optimization.

SEO Isn’t Dead, It’s Evolving

Riaz was clear: don’t throw away your SEO playbook. The fundamentals still matter — crawlability, technical health, and unique content remain the foundation.

“The fundamentals of SEO are even more important now than before. The goal is still to help people find outstanding original content that adds unique value.”

But in an AI-first world, the yardstick is shifting. Success is measured less in raw clicks and more in engagement, conversions, and loyalty. For marketers, that means rethinking what performance looks like — focusing on outcomes, not just traffic volume.

Our Local SEO Checklist can help make sure you’ve got the essentials in place.

2025 Priorities for Local Businesses

Looking ahead, Google is steering businesses toward four key content priorities:

• Messaging and chat: adding WhatsApp and SMS directly into GBP.
• Social integration: linking Instagram, YouTube, and X to build authenticity.
• Google Posts: using posts as part of an active social strategy.
• Structured menus and ordering: especially for restaurants and cafés, where customers expect to browse and book without friction. For more, check out our restaurant SEO guide.

“We’re advising businesses to treat Google Posts as part of their social strategy — updating at least once a week improves visibility.”

The thread running through all of these? Freshness, completeness, and authenticity. Google wants GBP to be an active channel, not a static listing.

The Data Gap and What Comes Next

One audience concern resonated: visibility into AI traffic. Right now, tracking is limited. While Omar acknowledged this frustration, he noted that these are very new products, and analytics will evolve.

“AI Mode has only just launched in over 180 markets. Tracking and analytics will evolve, but right now it’s still very new.”

For now, his advice was to double down on what’s within your control: strong content, complete business profiles, and consistent engagement.

Google Doubling Down

Omar Riaz’s session underscored an important truth: Google isn’t moving away from local business visibility, it’s doubling down on it. By weaving AI into search, by expanding the role of Google Business Profile, and by emphasizing fresh, authentic content, Google is signaling that the businesses that adapt now will be best positioned tomorrow.

As Riaz made clear;

“Those who invest in completeness, authenticity, and adaptability will be the ones who thrive in Google’s AI-first future.”

This is a real issue that has grown significantly in recent months, so much so that Google has introduced new guidance and recommendations. While facing a sudden flood of negative reviews can feel stressful and even overwhelming, it’s important to know that you’re not alone and that there are clear, calm steps you can take to protect your Google Business Profile. Let’s look at what’s happening and how to handle it with confidence.

Understanding the Google review scam

This phenomenon, often called review bombing, is a coordinated effort in which a business receives a high volume of unearned, fraudulent 1-star ratings on Google Business Profile, often dropped all at once. Sometimes, the review includes a little text, but often, it’s just the star rating.

Source 

The unfortunate reality is that many of these campaigns are actually extortion attempts. The individuals responsible will post the negative reviews and then contact the business, claiming they can “fix” the problem and remove the reviews for a fee.

It’s crucial to understand that these attacks are not a reflection of your quality or service. They are a criminal scheme designed to panic you into paying.

If you are contacted by anyone claiming they can remove the bad reviews for money, the most important piece of advice is not to engage with them and not to pay them anything.

Paying the ransom simply encourages the criminals and makes your business a target for future attacks. Google’s platform is the only legitimate way to have fraudulent reviews removed.

New Policies & Shady Review Schemes: Is Google Helping or Hurting?

Learn more

How to confirm and identify Google review sabotage

Before raising the alarm, you need to confirm that you are dealing with a malicious attack and not an unfortunate wave of genuine complaints. Look out for these tell-tale signs of review sabotage:

• Sudden influx of negative reviews: Review ‘attacks’ often come in sharp waves. Keep an eye out for an immediate, unnatural spike in negative reviews on your Google Business Profile, particularly if they are all posted within a day or two.

If you are dealing with just one or two potentially fraudulent reviews that are not part of a coordinated attack, you should still report them.

You can find the steps for removing any fraudulent Google reviews here. 

• Phone numbers in reviews: Some fraudulent reviews may even include a phone number in the review text or even in the profile picture. This is a crucial red flag, as including contact information in a review is almost always against Google’s guidelines and is a clear indicator that the review should be removed. Under no circumstances should you call the number provided; this is just another tactic to draw you into contact with the scammer.
• Check reviewer history: Check how many reviews these Google accounts have made elsewhere. In most cases, fraudulent accounts will have none or only a few other reviews. Genuine, active reviewers typically have a broader history of activity.
• Look for red flags in the Profiles: Do the names and profile photos on Google look legitimate? Profiles with no profile picture and a generic alias as the name are often clear signs of a fake account. One person even saw someone use “John Doe” for one of the accounts. 
• Cross-check your system: Do your due diligence by checking your booking system, client records, or sales data to confirm whether these individuals had actually visited or purchased from you. This is the strongest way to verify which Google reviews are genuine and which are fraudulent.
• Trust your instincts: Do the reviews just feel wrong? If the content or tone of the reviews is inconsistent with your usual feedback, especially if you have a history of thousands of glowing reviews, it’s highly likely to be part of the attack. Some of the fake reviews have a very obvious pattern across each review. With a similar structure and generic complaints that could have been generated by AI.

Source

How to get these Google reviews removed

Dealing with a review bomb or extortion scam requires a calm, systematic approach. Focus on immediate flagging, thorough documentation, and a clear escalation path.

Step 1: Flag the reviews immediately

This is your first and most immediate action.

• Go to the negative review.
• Click the stop sign with an exclamation point next to it, and select ‘spam’.
• Ensure you are logged into Google as the manager/owner of the Google Business Profile (GBP).

Clay Seaman’s experience emphasizes the importance and speed of this initial step:

“I manage around 500 GBPs. Had this happen ONCE before about a year ago, and they mentioned in the review to pay them or more negative reviews were going to continue. I flagged those and they were removed very quickly.

On October 8, 2025 we had “10” 1 star reviews posted on one of our GBPs in a row with a lengthy specific message that looked legit but also you can see it was fake—all 10 had a similar message. Flagged all 10 on the 9th first thing. Google removed this morning first thing when I checked.”

Step 2: Document everything (build your case file)

You need evidence in case the initial flagging isn’t successful within a few days.

• Take Screenshots: Capture all suspicious Google reviews, noting the reviewer’s name, the time, and the date.
• Collect evidence: Save any emails or messages from people offering to remove the reviews for money. This evidence of a coordinated attack is vital. You can find advice from Google here on what evidence to prepare.

Step 3: Appeal/escalate to Google

If the reviews are not removed within 3 days after flagging, it’s time to escalate using Google’s dedicated tools.

• Submit a Report: Report the reviews immediately to Google using the dedicated reporting form. Provide all the requested information and attach the screenshots and files you collected in Step 2.

Step 4: Post a professional response

While you wait for Google to investigate, it’s a good idea to manage public perception.

• Post a Simple, Professional Response: Consider posting one general response to the cluster of fake reviews on your Google Business Profile. This lets your real customers know what’s happening.

Step 5: Dilute the impact and consider escalation

Here are proactive measures you can take while waiting for Google’s final decision.

• Encourage genuine reviews: To soften the blow to your overall average, gently encourage your recent, happy customers to leave an honest review on Google. A positive influx of real reviews helps dilute the impact of the fake ones.
• The Multi-layered strategy (if all else fails): If you are facing significant resistance or delays, you can consider a more aggressive approach, as advised by Local SEO specialist and spam fighter, Jason Brown:

“Flag the reviews using the tool. Go back and appeal the reviews and upload the image from the scammer. Then post for help on the forum. Finally, contact the local news stations. Once the press contacts Google, the reviews get removed prior to the story going live.”

Stay informed and prepared

The world of online reviews is always changing, and Google is constantly updating its policies to better combat these shady schemes. Understanding Google’s rules is your best defense.

For an in-depth look at the shifting landscape of review policies and the tactics being used, read this helpful BrightLocal article on shady review schemes.

By staying vigilant and handling these attacks calmly, you can successfully protect the great reputation you’ve worked hard to build on Google!

Google has removed the ability to view 100 search results per page. This was done by adding the parameter “&num=100” to the URL. 

It’s not confirmed whether this is a bug or a new feature right now, but you do need to be aware of the implications.

As you can see from this query for ‘coffee near me’, where filter is set to num=100, you don’t get 100 results.

What does this actually mean?

For Google users, this simply allowed you to view 100 results per page, which, while useful, isn’t necessarily an issue.

For businesses that rely on Google Search Console, you’ll likely notice a drastic drop in impressions.

Source: Brodie Clark

For rank tracking tools, this presents a problem, too.

• Any rank tracking tool that reports on data above the top 10 results will have been affected.
• You may have seen a jump in average rank due to this.
• This means that to get 100 results for a rank tracker, they’d need to make 10 requests rather than 1.

There is a chance that this has happened due to LLMs scraping search results, but Google hasn’t confirmed anything as of right now.

How does that affect you?

While things are being ironed out, your reports may look a little different. This is the case whether you use Search Console or any number of local rank trackers.

In reality, though:

• Actual rankings are unaffected.
• Some tools are pivoting on the number of results they are reporting on.
• Top 10 rankings will still be returned by most tools, and these are the most valuable to report on, regardless.
• The top 20 are still available for most tracking tools. These are where your opportunities often are.
• Anything outside the top 20 often drives minimal clicks or impressions and sees significant flux. Not being able to track keywords that rank here is not the end of the world.
• Local Pack rank tracking will not have been affected.

What is BrightLocal doing?

At BrightLocal, we offer two local rank tracking solutions. Only one of these has been affected.

• Local Search Grid: Our geo-grid rank tracker has not been affected by this change.
• Local Rank Tracker: Our local rank tracker provides the top 50 results, which means it has been affected by the change.

What is the plan for Local Rank Tracker?

To get 50 results for Local Rank Tracker, we now need to run 5 requests instead of one.

We have rolled out a temporary fix to make sure we will continue to provide you with the data we previously offered.

We will monitor the situation and, if anything changes, inform you of any effect this could have on our API and Local Rank tracker.

If you have any questions, please reach out to your account manager or contact customer support.

Most standard audit templates are generic and assume everyone just needs to do the same set of actions. Led by Local SEO expert Greg Gifford, the How to Create Custom Local SEO Audits That Win Clients course will show you how to build an audit that looks at the factors that truly matter for local businesses. 

For instance, you can customize your audit to adjust the weight of the Google Business Profile (GBP) section if it’s more important for a specific type of business. Perfect for a home services company. 

Once you have your custom audit, you can use it in three main ways to maximize its value:

1. Internal guidance: It can be used by a delivery team to quickly identify areas for improvement for new and existing clients.
2. Sales tool: Using the audit on sales demo calls allows you to discuss specific problems on a prospect’s site or Google Business Profile, which can make your agency appear more competent and increase your close rate.
3. Lead generation: Offering a free audit on your website can serve as a lead magnet. You can collect contact information through a simple form and follow up with a meeting to discuss your findings. 

What You’ll Learn 

You’ll learn how to create your audit by making a copy of Greg’s Google Sheets template. The course is packed with interactive tasks and quick quizzes in each module, to help you customize your template and check your understanding as you go. Including lessons on:

• How to create different versions of your audit for specific industries, such as car dealers, attorneys, or restaurants.
• How to adjust the scoring weights for different sections—like on-site, links, GBP, and reviews—to reflect their importance in the local algorithm.
• Three powerful ways to use your audit with both new and existing clients. 
• Master the formulas and functions used in Google Sheets to ensure you can tweak and customize your audits with ease.

When you’re done, you can take a final exam to earn a certificate for your hard work—perfect for showing off your new skills on social media!

Here’s Greg with a quick overview:

Who is this course for?

Whether you’re a freelancer, an agency professional, or working in-house, this course is designed for those who already have a solid understanding of Local SEO. If you’re ready to stop using generic templates and start winning more clients with a powerful, customized audit, then this course is for you!

How can I join?

Anyone can access this course, whether or not you’re a BrightLocal customer. You can also be among the first to find out when new courses drop by enrolling for free. Here’s how:

If you’re a BrightLocal customer, you can access the Academy via your BrightLocal account. Log in, click the question mark icon at the bottom of the screen, then ‘Webinars and training’, followed by ‘BrightLocal Academy’.

You must create a free BrightLocal Academy account before enrolling in the ‘How to Create Custom Local SEO Audits That Win Clients’ course.

If you’re not a BrightLocal customer, you can join BrightLocal Academy for free and follow the steps above to enroll in the course.

Want to know more about BrightLocal Academy? 

Check out the official BrightLocal Academy FAQs here: 

What is BrightLocal Academy, how does it work, and how can I enroll?     

What courses does BrightLocal Academy offer, and how long do they take?     

If you have any questions of your own, feel free to get in touch with us. We hope you find this fresh new course useful, and we can’t wait to hear how it’s helped you improve your local SEO skills.

We’ve previously talked about the changing nature of SEO, and how that means some tactics can become outdated or even no longer seen as best practice. Combine that with some of the, um, questionable advice that can sometimes be found online, and you can find yourself in a bit of a pickle.

Mistakes happen, but some can be more costly than others. If your business no longer ranks in the local map pack or organic results, that’s a problem because it means prospective customers aren’t able to find you. If you’ve recently received several negative reviews and didn’t respond to them in the hope the issue might go away, that’s a problem because it’s going to affect the way consumers perceive your business.

Understanding the consequences of mistakes and missed opportunities can help you make sure they don’t happen. And if they do? We’ve gathered some of the biggest local SEO mistakes from our industry friends, and shared their fixes here with you. 

Not investing in the right platforms

It may come as a surprise, but the biggest mistake could be simple inactivity.

In August 2025, we surveyed 778 SMB owners and managers. While 72% of them said that SEO had a medium-high impact on their business, the reality of their tactics highlighted some serious mistakes.

• 40% said they have a dedicated website.
• 35% of SMBs have Google Business Profiles.

So before we get into the specific mistakes that experts often see across these platforms, it’s worth knowing that the biggest mistake of all is not being present in the first place. A Google Business Profile and a website are basic foundations for ranking and interacting with your customers.

The good news is these mistakes are simple to fix, and we can help. Read our guides on creating a Google Business Profile (they’re free, and simple to claim), and our step-by-step advice on creating a website from scratch.

Google Business Profile mistakes

There are many mistakes you can make with a Google Business Profile (GBP) beyond being among the two-thirds of businesses that don’t have one. If you are, quickly go and claim one now. Read on for tips to help you avoid a profile suspension and find out why adding secondary categories is more than just a tick-box exercise.

"GBP category errors are almost always highlighted in our audits and pitches."

Rachel Ellen, Local Search Strategist at Croud

When setting up or managing your GBP, you’re given the option to choose one primary category and up to nine additional ones. Sounds simple enough, but this is hands down one of the most common (and costly) mistakes I see across the wide range of clients I work with, no matter the industry.

Correctly chosen categories help your listing show up in the right local searches. But get them wrong, or worse, leave out relevant ones, and you’re practically handing over visibility to your competitors.

Take a recent example: I was reviewing a client’s GBP who specialises in boots and shoes. They hadn’t selected either “Boot shop” or “Shoe shop” as a category. Instead, they’d gone with something vague and less helpful. No wonder they were struggling to rank for the terms that actually mattered to them.

And it’s not just about visibility, it’s about instilling confidence in potential customers. Even if your profile does rank, having a broad primary category like “Clinic” while your competitors are listed as “Physiotherapy clinic” or “Chiropractor” can make you seem like a less relevant choice. Someone looking for a specific service is much more likely to click on the profile that spells it out clearly.

In multi-practitioner scenarios, think doctors, therapists, or dentists, shared primary categories across all profiles can even result in a practitioner profile outranking the main business listing. One way around this is to diversify categories across listings to protect your brand’s presence in local results.

"Time and time again: a merchant gets unsuspended or verified, and immediately makes changes to their GBP"

Ben Fisher, Founder and Lead Consultant at Steady Demand

I see it time and time again: a merchant gets unsuspended or verified, and they immediately do things like change their business name or add or remove an address. This can trigger another verification process and usually a suspension.

Another big thing I see is with profile suspensions in particular. The situation usually unfolds like this: the merchant is suspended and they do not read the appeal screen properly and rush through the process. They will ignore the section for adding proof or forget about it. Then, after the appeal is denied, they rush through the review process. These are your two chances to appeal, so don’t waste them.

Missed opportunities for content

Many business owners don’t realize the opportunities that posting their own photos, videos and posts to GBP presents. As Claudia Tomina explains below, it’s now more important than ever.

"Photos and videos aren’t just nice-to-haves anymore; they’re ranking signals"

Claudia Tomina, CEO at Reputation Arm

One of the most common mistakes I see in local SEO is the lack of content. Specifically, not generating enough photos and videos. These aren’t just nice-to-haves anymore; they’re ranking signals. Google now uses visual content to extract context, keywords, and relevance, so when businesses neglect this area, they’re missing a major opportunity to improve visibility.

The fix? Stop overthinking it and start recording. For service-based businesses like plumbers, contractors, or restoration teams, the job site is your content studio. Capture before-and-after photos, record quick videos explaining what was done, and upload consistently.

You don’t need to be a polished presenter, authenticity will resonate. Over time, this habit will build trust with potential customers and strengthen your brand presence across search.

"Hire a professional photographer to upgrade the quality of your images"

Mike Blumenthal, Co-founder at Near Media

For Mike Blumenthal, one of the biggest local SEO mistakes is:

Using stock photography. Hire a professional photographer for a day to upgrade the quality of the images uploaded to GBP.

Not carrying out competitor research

Local-level competitor research may seem like a ‘nice to have,’ but if you aren’t monitoring your closest competitors then you could be harming your own visibility without even realizing. Amsive’s Bambi Frazier explains in more detail below.

"People think they know what’s holding them back, when in reality, it’s their top competitors simply executing better at the local level."

Bambi Frazier, Sr. Product Manager (Local SEO) at Amsive

Review management missteps 

We’ve all seen funny examples of negative business reviews with sarcastic owner responses. But in reality, this response sentiment can be a detriment to the brand and how others perceive it. And not responding to reviews at all? Customers do notice.

"So many business owners don’t realise they shouldn’t do this: replying poorly to negative Google reviews."

Elizabeth Rule, SEO Analyst at Sterling Sky

"Appreciate those who write reviews"

Greg Sterling, Co-founder at Near Media

Not responding to business reviews. Business owners or managers should respond to all reviews to address concerns, appreciate those who wrote reviews and demonstrate general engagement and responsiveness. This will help with consumer perceptions of the business and may indirectly help with local visibility.

Responding to all of your business reviews

The 2025 Local Consumer Review Survey found that 89% of consumers would use a local business that responds to both positive and negative reviews.

 

Hopefully, these mistakes and missed opportunities have given you some food for thought, and something to keep front of mind as you navigate the realms of local marketing. But if you feel that these have simply added to your never-ending list of things to do, you might also want to consider how fully managed local SEO services could help you.

Citations and local listings are back in the spotlight

There’s been a lot of talk about citations in the context of AI search. For traditional SEOs, citations mean unlinked brand mentions, i.e., your business being mentioned in a news article, blog post, or PR, but without a direct link back to your site. While these have always been part of a solid online presence, now these unlinked mentions, along with local citations and listings, are being seen as key for ranking in AI searches.

Obviously, for local SEOs, citations are something we’ve been using for years.

Citations in the form of local listings and aggregators used to be absolutely vital for local visibility. In recent years, they have become more of a foundational task. But with AI-driven search on the rise, they’re making a big comeback, often being referenced directly by these new AI platforms.

For example, Data Axle points out how crucial it is to get your locations synced with major voice assistants like Amazon Alexa, Google Assistant, and Apple Siri, and to ensure accuracy for GPS services like Uber. If your business doesn’t refresh and rebuild its listings and citations for this new AI-driven world, it’s definitely going to miss out.

Foursquare’s surprising role with ChatGPT

Here’s a real head-scratcher that shows just how important diverse local data sources are: the partnership between Foursquare and ChatGPT. A few months ago, Foursquare teamed up directly with ChatGPT, meaning Foursquare’s location data is now powering many of the AI’s responses.

What’s really wild about this is that Foursquare has pretty much retired its consumer-facing apps and websites. Yet, it’s now a key aggregator for AI search. It’s important to note that Foursquare isn’t necessarily appearing as a directly linked source in the way other citation or listing sites might. Instead, AI models are pulling information straight from their vast database. Reports suggest that a significant 60% and 70% of local results on ChatGPT come straight from Foursquare’s city guide listings, especially for smaller towns or niche businesses.

This really hammers home that listings beyond just Google Business Profile (GBP) and Yelp have real value. If ChatGPT doesn’t find enough info on Foursquare, then it turns to other sources, including Google Business Profile. With over 100 million points of interest in more than 200 countries, Foursquare’s database is a surprisingly powerful player in the AI search game.

Source

What we’re seeing in AI search: All LLMs are using directories for sources, and Yelp is prevalent

From what we’re observing across various AI search platforms, there’s a clear shift in how local business info is being pulled and presented. We did some real-world searching and found the following.

Directories are key for AI search

All LLMs are using directories and citations for business information across every industry.

• Platforms like MapQuest were frequently leveraged by both Google AI Mode and Perplexity, demonstrating that even long-standing directories remain highly influential in the AI ecosystem.
• For specialized sectors, AI models exhibit a strong preference for industry-specific directories.
  • In our dentistry searches, for example, ChatGPT exclusively sourced information from ten different dental directories. Toprateddentist.com appeared as a key source for Gemini, AI Mode, and ChatGPT across these searches.
  • Similarly, sites like Superlawyers.com and Findlaw.com were heavily relied upon by ChatGPT and Perplexity for legal-related queries. This emphasizes the need to be present and accurate within your specific industry’s leading directories.

Yelp is a strong influence

Despite a fluctuating reputation among some users, Yelp remains an undeniable force in AI search:

• Yelp was used as a source in 33% of our overall searches. Perplexity notably used Yelp in every single industry we investigated, though not for every individual search within those industries.
• While Google Gemini was the only LLM that did not directly cite Yelp, Google AI Mode still pulled information from Yelp for multiple industries, including dental, hospitality, and fitness.
• LLMs utilized Yelp not only to extract specific business information but also, crucially, to surface and summarize customer reviews.

Google Business Profile is still essential for Google’s LLMs

Unsurprisingly, Google’s own AI models heavily favor Google Business Profile listings:

Even in instances where GBP wasn’t the main cited source, AI Mode would still display GBP information within its results. It often summarizes key details via text alongside data from other sources before presenting the full GBP listing further down. This highlights its importance for visibility within Google’s AI environment.

Your business website really matters

Perhaps the most reassuring finding for businesses is the continued importance of their own websites.

In our previous ChatGPT source study in December 2024, we found that ChatGPT used business websites as a source 58% of the time. This continues to be the case.

The vast majority of sources across every single LLM and industry were businesses’ own websites. This finding really highlights just how critical it is to have your own, well-maintained website. Your website serves as the ultimate authoritative source for LLMs seeking the most accurate and complete information.

How to Build a Local Business Website From Scratch (Without Screwing It Up)

Learn more

Other notable findings

While directories and your website form the backbone, our research also points to other content types and platforms influencing AI search results:

• For industries like hospitality, blogs and lifestyle-oriented websites frequently appeared as sources, indicating the value of content marketing and partnerships beyond traditional listings.
• Social platforms are increasingly contributing to the AI search landscape.
  • Instagram was cited as a source by both Google AI Mode and Perplexity.
  • Facebook was used by Google AI Mode and ChatGPT.
  • YouTube content influenced results for both Gemini and Perplexity.

This shows your business needs a complete online presence with accurate information, good review management, and engaging content on many different platforms to help AI find you easily.

What this means for your business

The rise of AI search is a game-changer for how your business needs to approach getting found online. To make sure your business stays in the running in this new era, here’s what you need to focus on in terms of citations and listings: 

1. Build and optimize your foundational citations (including niche and key directories)

Our research clearly shows that directories are key for AI search. LLMs are extensively using them across every industry. This means actively working on getting your business mentioned across all sorts of online platforms, both broad and niche-specific. 

Platforms like MapQuest were frequently cited, highlighting the continued importance of even long-standing directories. Also, for specialized sectors like dentistry (where Toprateddentist.com was a key source) or legal (with Superlawyers.com and Findlaw.com), AI models show a strong preference for industry-specific directories.

Our Citation Builder service can streamline this process. Our team of experts finds and builds high-quality citations on relevant directories for you. You can also use our Citation Tracker tool to keep an eye on your existing citations, helping you spot inconsistencies or new opportunities that can boost your online authority.

2. Prioritize Google Business Profile

Google AI Mode consistently relied on GBP as a primary information source, often summarizing its details even when other sources were also used. This highlights that a complete, accurate, and optimized GBP is non-negotiable for visibility within Google’s AI environment.

3. Optimize your website

Our findings show that your business’s own website is often the dominant source for LLMs. This means your website is truly your most important online asset. Ensure it’s up-to-date with essential information, including your Name, Address, and Phone number (NAP), detailed services offered, current opening hours, compelling photos, answers to FAQs, customer reviews (and links to review platforms), and comprehensive business descriptions. 

4. Leverage data aggregators

Platforms like Data Axle, Foursquare, Neustar, and others are crucial for making sure your business info gets shared across AI search engines, voice assistants, and navigation systems. These aggregators push your core data out widely, ensuring LLMs have access to consistent information.

As part of our Citation Builder service, we offer direct submissions to the five major Data Aggregator Networks (including Data Axle, Foursquare, and Neustar). This ensures your core business information is pushed out to thousands of directories, apps, and mapping services, widening your reach to where AI models get their data.

5. Stay on top of your listings management

Our research, particularly on Yelp, demonstrates the strong influence of review platforms. Yelp was a source in a significant 33% of our searches, used not just for business info but crucially, to summarize customer reviews. This underscores the need to make absolutely sure your business name, address, and phone number (NAP) are identical across all your online listings, your website, Google Business Profile, Foursquare, Apple Maps, and social media. 

Keep all your profiles complete, accurate, and up-to-date with details like categories, hours, and photos. And don’t forget to actively manage customer reviews; they play a big part in how AI pulls together information and ranks businesses. Also, using strategic keywords in your listings can help improve their performance in local searches.

Our Active Sync tool ensures your most important business information is consistent and accurate across major platforms like Google, Facebook, Apple Maps, and Bing. It helps prevent unwanted edits and quickly pushes out updates. 

With our Reputation Manager tool, you can monitor reviews across 80+ sites, get notified of new feedback, and even generate more positive reviews, all helping to build the strong online presence AI algorithms are looking for.

6. Cultivate local mentions and PR

Beyond directories and your website, our findings show that other content types and platforms are influencing AI search. For instance, content and lifestyle sites were sources for hospitality queries, with reputable lifestyle publications like Time Out and smaller, more location—or industry-specific blogs.

Social media platforms like Instagram, Facebook, and YouTube were also cited by various LLMs. 

Cultivating local mentions and securing links from local news sites, community blogs, and other authoritative online sources is increasingly important. Our research into AI sources shows that these types of online local mentions are key signals in the eyes of AI algorithms. So, investing time in local public relations and actively seeking out these non-directory mentions will play a crucial role in your success.

AI search isn’t something that’s coming; it’s here now. Adapting your local SEO strategies to fit this new AI landscape will put you in the best position to get seen by customers, no matter where they’re looking.