Ask Maps: Check What Google Says About Your Business
When a customer asks an AI tool about your business, check whether the answer accurately describes your services and how to contact you. For Ask Maps, that means reviewing both the information you manage and the actual response a customer sees.
Distinguish Ask Maps from the old Q&A API
Google announced Ask Maps in March 2026 as a conversational experience powered by Gemini. It helps people ask questions about places and explore recommendations.
Separately, Google's developer changelog records that the Business Profile Q&A API was discontinued on November 3, 2025. The API no longer supports reading or posting those questions and answers. That date describes an API change, not proof of a single replacement date for every customer-facing interface.
Review information you can substantiate
Check your business name, contact details, hours, services, and service area against current operations. Explain availability clearly. Do not describe an appointment as guaranteed or claim a credential unless the business can support it.
Use enough detail to answer a customer's question without padding a description to an arbitrary length. A precise explanation of the services you perform is more useful to readers than filling every available character.
Use the fields actually available to your business
Google's services editor guidance explains how eligible businesses can add services and details such as descriptions. Review the available entries and remove or correct anything that misrepresents your work.
Business attributes vary by location and category, and some come from customer input. Do not assume that every contractor profile offers licensing, insurance, or emergency-service checkboxes. Select accurate options where offered, and keep supporting information clear on your website.
Profile maintenance does not give you control over every generated answer. Avoid treating a saved field as proof that Ask Maps will repeat it correctly.
Inspect and report inaccurate answers
Use Google's Ask Maps instructions for your device. Ask a specific question a customer might have, and record the date, question, location context, response, and any sources shown.
Compare the answer with current business records and the information displayed on your profile and website. Correct a source error where you control it. For an inaccurate generated response, Google's instructions describe submitting feedback through the thumbs-down control and explaining the problem.
Recheck after making a correction, but do not promise an immediate update. One accurate answer does not demonstrate that every future answer will be correct, and one poor answer does not establish which source caused it.
Keep customer feedback authentic
Read customer feedback to understand recurring concerns and useful service details. Do not supply invented customer experiences or coach praise to manufacture an AI signal. Improve the underlying service and explain your own operations accurately.
Track answer accuracy separately from business mentions, website visits, inquiries, and booked work. Choose the next improvement from an observed problem rather than a claimed formula for making Ask Maps recommend you.