Offers, ordering links and AI replies: what's showing on your Google profile

Most business owners think of their Google Business Profile as something they fill out: hours, phone number, photos, services. That's still true. But more and more of what customers see on that profile comes from somewhere else: partner apps, your social media accounts and, now, an AI that can answer messages for you.

Three changes from the last couple of weeks make that clear. Together, they're a good reminder to look at your profile the way a customer does and make sure everything on it is something you actually stand behind.

On November 6, 2026, Search Engine Roundtable reported that Google published a new help document called "Manage offers on your Business Profile". It describes the "special offers, discounts, and promotional badges" customers may see attached to your listing when they find you in Search.

The part that caught my attention is how those offers get there. According to the report, an offer can come from:

• An Offers post that you create yourself in your profile
• Special offers found on your linked social media profiles
• Third-party partners, which is why the document includes steps to request removal of offers from those partners, plus a path to escalate to Google Support if the provider isn't authorized

Google also notes that offers are available only in select regions and languages, so not every business will see them yet.

Why this matters: if a promotion you ran on Facebook last spring, or a deal a partner site listed for you, is still floating around, a customer could see it on Google and expect you to honor it.

On October 28, 2026, Google gave restaurants a long-requested control. As Search Engine Journal reported, restaurants can now turn off individual third-party ordering providers right from their Business Profile dashboard, with a "Show provider to customers" setting that has separate switches for pickup and delivery.

Before this, a restaurant that didn't want a delivery app linked on its profile had to ask that provider to remove the link. Google's Lisa Landsman, who announced the change on LinkedIn, put it this way in a quote shared by Search Engine Roundtable: "You decide which partners represent your brand on your profile."

One detail worth knowing: Search Engine Journal points out that Google's current policy says "All partner integrations are enabled by default." In other words, if you don't look, the links stay on.

On October 29, 2026, Search Engine Roundtable reported that Google is opening AI-powered messaging to more Business Profiles. Here's how it works, based on that report:

• Customers can message your business from Search and Maps using their phone's regular texting app.
• An AI agent answers routine questions and hands off the ones it can't answer. You can step in and take over a conversation at any time.
• All the messages show up in your Business Profile.
• The AI agent works only for customers whose phone and network support RCS, which is the newer, richer version of text messaging. Other customers' texts go straight to your phone.
• Owners who have it will see a red dot on the Messages button and a welcome screen to turn it on.

The advice shared in that report is the same advice I'd give: the AI answers from what's on your profile, so update your hours, services and menu before you turn it on. An AI agent working from old information will confidently give customers old information.

Here's what I'd do this week.

1. Search for your own business on your phone. Look at your profile the way a customer would, in both Google Search and Google Maps. Note any offers, badges, ordering links or booking buttons you didn't add.
2. Clean up old promotions at the source. If an expired deal is still pinned or posted on your social media accounts, take it down or mark it as ended, so it can't be picked up and shown as current.
3. Ask about anything you don't recognize. If an offer comes from a partner you never authorized, use the removal steps in Google's help document, and escalate to Google Support if needed.
4. Restaurants: review your ordering providers. Keep the apps you actually work with, turn off the rest and decide whether each should show pickup, delivery or both.
5. Get your facts straight before turning on AI messaging. Hours, services, service areas and policies should be current. Then check the conversations regularly.

The bigger lesson: your profile is now a mix of what you say and what others say about you. Keeping it accurate is ongoing work, and it's a big part of the Google Business Profile management I do for clients.

If you run a business here in Surprise or anywhere in the West Valley, winter visitors are back and searching for places to eat, shop and get things fixed. They'll judge you by that profile before they ever call. If you'd like a second set of eyes on yours, my Surprise, AZ Google Business Profile page explains how I help, or call or text me at 480-550-2871.