Cornerlens

Local SEO guides for Google Maps and AI answers

How Google Maps rankings, Business Profiles and AI answers really work, written from Google's own help pages, the local search studies and the people who test this for a living, with every source listed under the guide that uses it.

Written by Aness Belbati, co-founder of Cornerlens

13 guidesUpdated

Google Maps rankings

How Google ranks the map results, why a rank changes from street to street, and how to measure it.

How to rank higher on Google Maps

What Google says matters, what the 2026 expert survey ranks highest, and the shortcuts that break Google's rules.

5 min read

In short

Pick the most specific primary category that describes the business, make every detail on the profile complete and true, list the hours the business really keeps, earn reviews steadily, and give the profile a strong page to link to. Leave keywords out of the name unless they are really in it, and never use an address where the business doesn't operate. Then measure across the area, the same way each time.

Your Google Business Profile

Getting a profile verified, keeping it live, and earning reviews the way Google allows.

AI answers

How ChatGPT, Gemini and Google's AI pick local businesses, and how to measure it.

Check every corner, not one

Cornerlens checks your clients' Google Maps rankings from every point of a grid, from 3×3 to 21×21, and on maps of 7×7 and up asks Google AI Overviews, Google AI Mode, ChatGPT and Gemini about the same keywords.

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