Your Google Business Profile (GBP) is your hotel’s welcome mat on Google. When properly optimised, it's a free and effective method to display your property's style, offers, events, and amenities while gaining more real estate on the search results page. On average, local search accounts for up to 25% of website traffic, so it’s a huge opportunity to capture guest attention.
For years, GBPs have been the cornerstone of Local SEO. With the roll-out of Google’s new AI Mode, their importance has only grown. AI-driven results now frequently pull content directly from profiles, meaning an accurate, engaging GBP isn’t just helpful, it’s essential to standing out online, boosting organic traffic and driving direct bookings.
Google AI Mode’s Impact on Local Search
Launched in the UK in July 2025, Google’s AI Mode compiles information from multiple sources into one clear, conversational result. When travellers ask specific hotel-related questions, the link provided often directs them to your GBP. In many cases, this is now the very first impression potential guests will have of your hotel, so it pays to make it a good one.
If Google perceives your profile as accurate, active and trustworthy, it’s more likely to surface your listing ahead of the OTAs (Online Travel Agencies). At 80 DAYS, we’ve already seen a sharp rise in traffic being driven through GBPs, and we expect this trend to accelerate as travellers adopt AI-powered search.
How To Optimise Your Google Business Profile in 2025
If your profile has been sitting idle, now’s the time for a refresh. Here are the essentials to get AI-ready:
Visual Content
Making sure your visuals are functioning as effectively as possible is the first step. Select a cover photo that best shows off your property, and update your image gallery frequently to add exterior, interior, and facility photos. Be sure to also review images that guests have posted to ensure they are not misleading or inaccurate. Another simple win is video: you can repurpose social media content and post it straight to your GBP to increase engagement and foster brand trust.
Utilise Posts Regularly
Next, think about how you keep your profile alive. Use posts to share updates, special offers, or forthcoming events because Google rewards freshness. These guarantee that your listing feels current and relevant in addition to improving your local SEO performance. Offers and events are ideal for sharing time sensitive information, and the more generic posts are perfect for highlighting awards, behind-the-scenes stories or insights into your neighbourhood.
Example of how hotel events/offers can appear on GBP
Example of the more generic post option
Managing Reviews and Q&As
Reviews remain critical. Encourage genuine feedback and respond quickly to every review, good or bad. This signals to both Google and future guests that your hotel is engaged, trustworthy and people-focused. Don’t forget about the Q&A section, either. Answering questions directly with your official account ensures accuracy, avoids confusion, and can even influence the snippets that AI surfaces.
Naturally Incorporate Keywords
Your GBP is full of opportunities to weave in the right keywords. Posts, categories and services all provide valuable space to reflect the language your guests are actually using when they search, such as “hotel near a golf course”.
Keep Amenities Up to Date
There are so many amenity options on your GBP and the more specific you can be the better! Even if not every detail is visible on your profile, Google still takes them into account. The more accurate your amenities, the greater your chances of appearing in specific, high-intent searches, the ones most likely to convert into bookings.
Unique F&B, Spa and Other Google Business Profiles
If your hotel has a restaurant, spa or bar that’s open to non-residents, give each outlet its own dedicated GBP. Not only will this capture additional search demand, but it will also help position your property as a destination in itself.
Keep Information Consistent
Consistency is crucial. Google checks your Business Profile details against your website, OTAs and directories, and any mismatch can hurt both visibility and trust. Keep your data consistent and accurate, and you’ll give Google confidence while reassuring guests - often the difference between a booking and a bounce.
Track Performance with UTMs
Once your profile is fully optimised, you’ll want to make sure you can properly track traffic, and a UTM is the way to do this. By adding UTM-tagged links to your website within your GBP, you can clearly identify visits coming directly from your profile in Google Analytics. You should use this code at the end of your website URL, not just for the GBP link, but also in post, offer and event links.
In Summary
For hotels, having a well-maintained Google Business Profile is no longer a nice-to-have SEO bonus. It’s now an essential tool for visibility, credibility and conversions. It should be actively managed, refreshed, and cared for as an extension of your hotel's brand. Invest the effort into GBP and your hotel won’t just show up in searches, it will stand out in them.
If you’d like to ensure your profile is fully AI-ready, our team can help. Discover more about our SEO & GEO services for hotels and how we can sharpen your competitive edge.