Google Business Profile in the AI era: is it still worth it? (yes, very much)

Every time a new technology dominates the headlines, the same question comes up: what I already use, is it dead? With AIs answering patient questions, many clinic owners concluded that Google Business Profile had become a relic. The answer is clear: it is still worth it, very much so. In the AI era, the profile stopped being just a listing on the map and became one of the heaviest sources in the recommendations of Gemini, ChatGPT and virtually every local search.

At Bincoo, as we monitor thousands of clinics, we see this pattern without exception: the most cited in local answers have a complete profile, active reviews and data identical to the website.

More than 10,000 businesses already use Bincoo to be recommended by ChatGPT, Gemini and other platforms.

Why the profile became even more important?

Gemini is Google's assistant, and it reads Business Profile as a primary source. When someone asks 'best dentist near me', Gemini cross-references Maps, the profile and reviews before answering. ChatGPT, in turn, uses search indexes that absorb that same data. In other words: the profile is the shortcut between your clinic and the AI's answer.

Data from our monitoring: clinics with an optimized profile and more than 50 responded reviews appear in up to 3 times more local answers than those with a dormant profile.

What to optimize for AIs

Profile item	AI weight	What to do
Categories	High	Exact primary category and secondary ones per service
Description	High	Specialties, differentiators and city in the text
Reviews	Very high	Constant volume and a response to all
Photos	Medium	Real and recent photos, including the team
Opening hours	High	Always up to date, with consultation hours
Questions and answers	Medium	Answer and seed the questions patients ask
Services and products	High	List each treatment with a description

The step-by-step optimization

1. Fix the categories: the primary category should be the main specialty, not 'office';
2. Rewrite the description: specialties, city and neighborhoods served, technologies and audience;
3. Drive review volume: ask every satisfied patient, with a direct link;
4. Respond to every review: with personalized text, never copied boilerplate;
5. Seed questions and answers: the five most common patient doubts;
6. Complete services: each treatment listed, with a short description;
7. Align with the website: identical name, address, phone and hours;
8. Publish weekly updates: posts, photos and offers signal activity.

The mistakes that sink the clinic

• Abandoned profile: reviews unanswered for months, old photos, wrong hours;
• Generic category: 'medical office' instead of 'dermatology clinic';
• Name with a search keyword added to the official name, a practice punished by Google;
• Data diverging from the website, creating a contradiction that the AI resolves by ignoring you.

The profile and the patient journey in AI

Think about the current journey: the patient asks the AI, gets two or three names, and only then opens Google to see photos, reviews and directions. Business Profile is exactly what they find in that second moment, and the AI knows it. That is why it prioritizes clinics whose profile confirms the recommendation it just made, with real photos, a high rating and visible responses.

Optimizing all of this is routine work

Keeping the profile active, responding to reviews and aligning data with the website takes consistency. That is why Bincoo includes local signal management in the plan: profile diagnosis, correction priorities and weekly monitoring of what AIs answer about your clinic.

With the Essential plan, at R$ 39.00/month, you get the local visibility report and ready-made instructions to bring the profile to the standard that AIs reward.

Conclusion

• Google Business Profile is not dead, it became the primary source for AIs in local search;
• Categories, description and responded reviews are the highest-weight items;
• Align the profile with the website and keep everything active every week.

Want to know how your clinic shows up on Google and in AIs today? access Bincoo and receive the full diagnosis of your local presence.