Web & AI Solutions Google Now Writes the Answers About Your Business - Here Is How to Control the Inputs

**What Changed**

Google retired the customer Q&A section on Business Profiles and replaced it with Ask Maps, a Gemini-powered feature that generates answers on the spot. Public Q&A threads started disappearing in December 2025, existing threads are frozen, and new profiles launch without the feature at all. Ask Maps rolled out through 2026 and reached Canada and Australia in August 2026.

**Why Michigan Owners Should Care**

You no longer write the answer a customer reads. Ask Maps ignores anything you typed in the old Q&A box and instead pulls from your Business Profile data, your reviews, your photos, and your website content, then builds an answer in real time. A thin profile means Gemini fills the gaps with guesses or says nothing useful about your Metro Detroit shop.

**Four Fixes You Can Make Today**

- Fill every Business Profile field: categories, services, hours, holiday hours, products, and payment options.
- Add attributes customers actually ask about, such as wheelchair accessible, veteran-led, free parking, and appointment required.
- Post a fresh photo or update this week. Profiles that go more than 30 days without a post or photo show measurable drops in AI visibility, because Google treats stale profiles as possibly inactive.
- Move your old Q&A answers onto a real FAQ page on your website, with one clear question per heading and a direct answer below.

**Ask for Specific Reviews**Gemini reads review text, not just star counts. When you request a review, ask the customer to name the service performed and the city. A review that says "furnace repair in Royal Oak, same day" feeds Ask Maps far better than "great service."

**Your Next Step**

Open your Business Profile today, fill in every blank field, and publish one new photo with a short caption naming your service and city.

Want a full profile and AI visibility audit? Book a free consultation at https://appwt.com/schedule or call +1 (888) 565-0171.