Google introduced a couple of different updates for Google Business Profile (GBP). While a few updates simmer in the background without having a huge impact, these two are a pretty big deal. They’re great for both profile managers and those looking to report on their efforts.
Google has announced two separate connections for Google Business Profile: Google Analytics 4 (GA4) and Google’s AI, Gemini.
But what does that actually mean?
Google Gemini now connects to GBP, offering instant help for small businesses
So what’s actually happening? Google is allowing you to connect your GBP to their large-language model (LLM), Gemini. Plus, they’re creating ‘Business notebooks’ to help you keep on top of everything about your business.
They are essentially letting you manage your entire profile from within Gemini, in a conversational way.
Gemini connection
Rolling out soon, you’ll be able to hook your GBP up to Gemini. This will make Gemini your ‘AI assistant’. Google is highlighting how this will help Gemini get real context from your business. You can use Gemini to both mine for information, like review summaries, give recommendations, and take action, like updating your opening hours or posting updates.
In Google’s own words, you’ll be able to:
- Turn insights into action: Ask, “how did my business do this month?” and Gemini can analyze your actual search impressions, direction requests, call data, and customer engagement.
- Seamless review management: Ask, “help me respond to my latest review,” and it can draft a highly tailored response in your brand’s voice, referencing the specific feedback the customer left.
- Real-time profile updates: Ask Gemini to update your operating hours, post seasonal updates, or identify gaps in your profile seamlessly.
Business notebooks
In the same announcement, Google introduced Business notebooks. These are an extension of the original notebooks you could already create using Gemini. So what does that let you do?
This is all about organization. That could be about getting your plans together. But it can also be about setting alerts for when a customer needs a response, or a reminder to update your holiday hours.
It will also provide a lot of context for your business. This means you’ll be able to use your Business notebook to generate creative ideas, or get advice on the current market, and even your positioning.
Google said you can use Business notebooks to:
- Proactive alerts: See critical action items, like an unanswered customer question or holiday hours that haven’t been set yet.
- Tailored recommendations: Discover new market opportunities and receive grounded suggestions to optimize your daily operations, such as pricing or positioning for products based on the local market.
- Streamlined execution: Move quickly from ideation to action. You can develop creative concepts for promotional campaigns and analyze your performance metrics.
Why have they done this, and why is it useful for businesses?
Last year, we identified that only 35% of small businesses had claimed their Google Business Profile. There are a couple of reasons why that’s likely the case. In part, it’s because they simply don’t see the importance.
But the other reason? It’ll feel like yet another platform they have to manage. That’s why Google is allowing businesses to integrate their Google Business Profiles with Gemini. They want to make it as easy as possible for businesses to keep their GBP up to date.
“Entrepreneurs often find themselves stretched thin, playing the roles of CEO, CMO, and customer service team all before lunch.”
– Vishnu Sivaji, Senior Director, Gemini App, Google
They also want to make it simple for those same businesses to mine information from their profile. They’re making it easier than ever for businesses to get valuable information from their reviews, as well as data on performance.
It could be that Google is trying to drive more people to use Gemini, as Google seeks to gain an edge over rival LLMs. However, you can’t really ignore that making it useful is the way to do that, and these new features should really help with that. They should take significant pain away for business owners and offer you an incredibly useful assistant for their Google Business Profiles.
How to connect to Gemini
This is rolling out across June 2026, globally (although the Business notebook won’t be available in the UK and EEA). It will only connect to one GBP at a time.
To activate it, they have promised it will be with a ‘single tap’. We’ll give you full instructions once they are available.
You can now connect your GBP to GA4 for significantly improved reporting
Speaking of performance data, Google’s announcement that you can now connect your Google Business Profile to Google Analytics 4 is also a big deal. For a very long time, you were mainly limited to performance tracking for GBP via GBP Insights.
Now, you can join up the dots and bring your local data into GA4. You’ll be able to see:
- GBP interactions
- Phone calls
- Bookings
- Direction requests
- Website clicks
- Messages
- Menu views
Once you link your profile, you’ll get a dedicated GBP collection in your ‘Reports’ menu. The data will only be for the past 6 months.
Why is this good news for local businesses?
It now means you can get all your search data into one place. Rather than having to jump between GBP Insights and GA4, you can now get them all there. It also means you can start joining up dots to see what’s really working, or not working, for your business.
At the same time, there are limitations. The data will be aggregated. So while you can connect multiple Google Business Profiles, it won’t let you segment out your individual profiles. You’ll also be limited on how you customize or filter your reports.
Not sure where to get started with GA4? We’ve got you covered.
- Free course: GA4 essentials for local SEO
- Free guide: Getting started with Google Analytics 4 for local SEO
How to connect your Google Business Profile to GA4
You must be:
- Editor or Admin for your Google Analytics property.
- Owner or Manager of your Google Business Profile.
To connect your Google Business Profile, you must start from the admin dashboard in GA4.
- Open Admin and look for ‘Product links’ in the left-hand menu.
- Select Google Business Profile.
- Click ‘Link’
- You’ll then be given a flow of prompts to complete before clicking confirm.
Get all your local data in one place, with BrightLocal
Remember, you can connect your GA4 to your BrightLocal account too. This will let you get your GBP and website data alongside your local ranking data from Local Search Grid.
Getting a full picture of your performance and what you need to change to get more visibility is crucial for anyone looking to grow their business.
Want to make sure you see BrightLocal’s key updates on local search? Click this link to make us a ‘preferred source’ on Google search. (Learn about preferred sources)
