Is Your GBP a Ghost Town? 5 AI Features to Activate Now (2026 Guide)

For many business owners, their Google Business Profile (GBP) has become a digital ghost town—a static listing that was set up years ago and then forgotten. You might see a trickle of views, but it feels disconnected from the real activity of your business. The critical shift in 2025 is understanding that your GBP is no longer just a listing for human customers; it has become the primary data source for Google’s AI systems.

When someone asks a voice assistant for a recommendation or when Google’s new AI Overview generates an answer about local services, it’s pulling directly from the rich, structured data in GBP profiles. An incomplete or stale profile means AI has less to work with, making your business invisible in these new, conversation-driven search experiences.

The good news is that new AI-powered tools and features are available to help you not just update your profile, but to truly optimize it for this new era. This guide walks through five practical AI features you can activate now to bring your GBP back to life.

1. Activate the AI-Powered “Smart Assistant” for Your Profile

Manually figuring out which tiny tweak will boost your local ranking is a frustrating game of guesswork. A new class of specialized AI agents is designed to end that. These tools, like the one described by local SEO platform Localo, act as a dedicated analyst for your GBP.

Instead of you having to become an SEO expert, these AI agents audit your profile, compare it to local competitors, and provide specific, actionable recommendations. They can identify that your primary business category should be more specific (e.g., “personal injury attorney” instead of just “lawyer”), suggest keyword-rich phrases for your service descriptions based on local searches, or remind you to post new photos. The AI handles the complex analysis; you simply review and approve the clear steps.

2. Use AI for Intelligent Review Management and Insights

Customer reviews are the lifeblood of local trust and a major ranking signal. AI can help you manage this critical area not by replacing your voice, but by amplifying your efforts. Here’s how:

• Sentiment Analysis: AI tools can instantly scan new reviews and flag negative sentiment, ensuring you address concerns promptly.
• Trend Spotting: Beyond single reviews, AI can analyze all your feedback to surface recurring themes. Are multiple people praising a specific employee? Complaining about parking? This insight helps you make real business improvements.
• Drafting Assistance: Crafting thoughtful responses to dozens of reviews is time-consuming. AI can generate sincere, professional draft responses for you to personalize. This ensures no customer feels ignored and frees you up to focus on the personal touch.

3. Connect Conversational AI with WhatsApp Integration

Google has deepened the connection between your GBP and how customers communicate. A significant 2025 update is the direct integration of WhatsApp as a messaging channel within your profile.

This is powerful when combined with the expectation of instant, AI-assisted communication. Imagine a customer finds you in an AI-generated local summary. They see a “Message” button on your GBP, click it, and are connected to you on WhatsApp. You can then use AI-powered chatbots (many available within WhatsApp Business) to handle initial FAQs about business hours or services, ensuring the customer gets an immediate response, with complex queries escalated to a human. This creates a seamless, modern customer journey from AI discovery to real-time engagement.

4. Optimize Content for “Google AI Mode” and Conversational Search

Google is rolling out an “AI Mode” in search, which provides conversational, summarized answers to queries. For a local business, this means a search like “best patio restaurant in Seattle with vegan options” might generate an AI summary pulling data from relevant GBP listings.

To be featured in these answers, your profile needs to speak AI’s language. This means:

• Completing Every Field: AI uses robust data. Ensure every section—from attributes like “wheelchair accessible” to detailed service menus—is filled out.
• Using Natural Language in FAQs: Instead of “Return Policy,” phrase questions as customers would ask: “Can I return an item if I lost the receipt?”.
• Updating Content Regularly: AI prioritizes fresh, active businesses. Use the GBP “Posts” feature to share updates, and consider using AI content tools to help generate ideas or drafts for these posts, keeping your profile dynamic.

5. Leverage AI to Create and Manage Visual Content

Google’s AI can now interpret images and videos. This means your photos are not just for customers; they are direct ranking factors. AI features can help here, too.

For instance, Google has introduced an AI feature within GBP that can analyze a photo of your physical menu and automatically generate a structured digital menu for your listing. Furthermore, AI tools can help you manage a consistent schedule of uploading authentic photos of your team, your workplace, and your projects. As noted by experts, you should avoid using AI-generated images for your profile photos, as authenticity is key. The goal is to use AI for organization and scheduling, while providing the real visual evidence that builds trust with both customers and algorithms.

Common Pitfalls to Avoid When Using AI for Your GBP

As you integrate these tools, a measured approach will save you future headaches. Keep these cautions in mind:

• Don’t Lose Your Authentic Voice: An AI-generated review response or social post should always be a first draft. Infuse it with your brand’s personality before posting. Generic, robotic content helps no one.
• Never “Set and Forget”: AI tools are assistants, not autonomous managers. You must maintain human oversight. Regularly check that automated suggestions align with your business reality and Google’s guidelines.
• Beware of Over-Automation: Especially with visuals, authenticity is paramount. Using AI-generated images of a fake storefront or team can mislead customers and potentially violate Google’s policies. Use AI to manage and enhance real content, not to fabricate it.
• Focus on Foundation First: AI works best with clean, structured data. Before chasing advanced features, ensure your core GBP information—name, address, phone number, hours—is 100% accurate and consistent everywhere online.

From Static Listing to AI Partner

The businesses that will thrive in local search are no longer those with just a complete GBP, but those with an AI-ready GBP. This means moving from a static, one-time setup to treating your profile as a dynamic data hub that feeds Google’s intelligent systems.

The transition doesn’t require you to become a data scientist. It starts with a commitment to ongoing management, empowered by the new generation of AI assistants designed for this exact purpose. By activating features that help you optimize intelligently, communicate conversationally, and showcase your business authentically, you transform your GBP from a forgotten ghost town into a vibrant, AI-powered storefront that works for you 24/7.

The practical takeaway: Pick one of the five areas above—perhaps starting with AI-powered review insights or the new WhatsApp integration—and implement it this quarter. Use the technology to handle the analytical heavy lifting, so you can focus on what you do best: running your business and serving your customers.