GBP messaging has long been a direct communication channel between businesses and their potential customers, integrated into the very heart of the Google Business Profile. This instant messaging feature offered merchants a platform for real-time dialogue, accessible from Google Maps and Google search. Since Google’s announcement of the phasing out of chat and call history functionalities on business profiles, the issue of customer communication via GBP has taken on a major strategic twist. Professionals who had built part of their customer service on this functionality find themselves faced with the need to rethink their exchange channels. Understanding what GBP messaging was, its role in building trust, and the alternatives now available, is a concrete challenge for any company concerned about its local visibility and e-reputation.
Definition of GBP messaging and its role for retailers
GBP messaging was the chat function integrated into Google Business Profile listings. It enabled users consulting a business listing on Google Maps or in search results to send a direct message to the business, without having to make a phone call or send a standard e-mail. The merchant would receive a notification on his Google Business Profile application and could respond instantly. This dialogue platform simplified contact, reduced friction and accelerated the conversion of a visitor into a customer. For an artisan plumber in Bordeaux or a beautician in Nantes, this messaging represented a quick way of confirming an appointment, clarifying a price or reassuring a hesitant prospect.
Google has officially put an end to this chat functionality on business listings, which has changed the game for thousands of French-speaking professionals. The decision is part of a series of changes to the GBP platform, in which Google is refocusing its tools on the most used and profitable features.
GBP messaging for professional communication
In a business context, GBP messaging fulfilled a precise mission: to shorten the path between discovering a business and making a decision. A customer searching for “Italian restaurant open tonight” on Google Maps could, with a simple click, ask if a table was still available. This immediacy of communication was a real competitive advantage. According to a 2023 BrightLocal study on local consumer behavior, 76% of people who perform a local search on their smartphone visit a business within 24 hours (BrightLocal, “Local Consumer Review Survey”, 2023, brightlocal.com). Speed of response via messaging played a key role in this conversion.
The customer service provided by this channel differed from traditional email exchanges, where response times often reach several hours. GBP messaging created an expectation of responsiveness comparable to that of an SMS or WhatsApp message. Professionals who activated this function and responded in less than five minutes received a “respond quickly” badge on their profile, reinforcing the perception of seriousness with prospects.
Link between GBP messaging, e-reputation and customer trust
Trust is built through every interaction. A prospect who receives a clear, rapid and personalized response via GBP messaging develops a positive perception of the business before even setting foot in it. This dynamic is directly linked to the mechanisms ofe-reputation: the quality of the first digital contact influences the rating and reviews that the customer will leave afterwards. A restaurant owner who took the time to respond courteously to an inquiry via GBP chat received reviews mentioning “warm welcome” or “exemplary responsiveness”, even though the exchange took place online.
The confidentiality of exchanges via this messaging system also merited particular attention. Google’s security rules governed these conversations, prohibiting the sharing of sensitive data (credit card numbers, medical information). Wise professionals directed their customers to secure channels as soon as the conversation went beyond a simple request for information. This responsible approach to communication reinforced the credibility of the establishment. Knowing how to write an appropriate proprietary response, whether in a review or in a direct exchange, remains a strategic skill for any manager.
GBP messaging and local referencing on Google Maps
Activating messaging on a GBP listing sent an engagement signal to Google. Listings offering this communication channel had a higher interaction rate, which indirectly contributed to their positioning in the Local Pack. Google values active, complete and interactive listings. According to data published by Whitespark in its annual Local Search Ranking Factors survey (Whitespark, “Local Search Ranking Factors”, 2023, whitespark.ca), behavioral signals (clicks, calls, messages, route requests) are among the criteria that influence visibility in Google Maps.
The disappearance of GBP chat is reshuffling the deck. Professionals must now compensate for this channel with other means of interaction on their profile: monitoring their profile’s performance indicators becomes even more strategic to measure the impact of these changes. Regular monitoring of notifications linked to route requests, calls and clicks to the website takes on even greater importance.
Case studies for retailers and self-employed workers
Take the case of Sophie, manager of a hairdressing salon in Lyon. Before the GBP chat service was discontinued, she received an average of eight messages a week via her profile’s messaging system. These exchanges concerned availability requests, questions about services or appointment confirmations. Every conversation converted into a visit to the salon generated direct sales. Since the end of this functionality, Sophie has redirected her customers to a contact form on her website and to her professional e-mail. She noticed a 30% drop in spontaneous contacts during the first month, before gradually increasing them by integrating a link to SMS and WhatsApp solutions directly into the description of her listing.
Another concrete example: Marc, an independent plumber in the Paris region, used GBP messaging to filter urgent requests. A message such as “water leak, need work today” enabled him to qualify the prospect in two quick exchanges. This responsiveness regularly earned him five-star reviews for his availability. Marc now uses a dedicated number with an intelligent answering machine, while maintaining careful communication on his profile via publications and responses to reviews.
Best practices and mistakes to avoid with GBP messaging
The first best practice, which remains valid even after the chat has been deleted, is to diversify your communication channels. Depending on a single platform for your customer service exposes you to a major risk when that platform changes its rules. Merchants who associated their GBP messaging with a professional email, web form and visible phone number absorbed the change better. Regularly consulting the latest Google Business Profile news helps to anticipate these changes rather than suffer them.
The most common mistake was to activate the messaging system without monitoring it. A message that remained unanswered for 48 hours sent a disastrous signal to the prospect and to Google. The “reply quickly” badge was lost, the listing lost its appeal, and thee-reputation silently suffered. Another mistake was sharing sensitive information in chat without verifying the identity of the correspondent, which raised questions of security and confidentiality. The most rigorous professionals adopted a simple rule: any financial transaction or personal data had to transit via a secure channel, such as a professional messaging system like Gmail Workspace or a dedicated payment system.
Upcoming developments and AI’s impact on school file messaging
Google’s abandonment of GBP chat does not mean the end of direct communication between businesses and customers via business cards. The signals sent out by Google since 2024 point to a gradual integration of generative AI into local interactions. AI Overviews, the AI-generated summaries at the top of search results, are beginning to integrate data from GBP listings: opening hours, reviews, descriptions, photos. The next logical step could be conversational assistants capable of answering customers’ frequently asked questions for the merchant, based on information from the listing.
This raises questions of security and confidentiality. If an AI responds on behalf of a business, responsibility for the information transmitted remains unclear. Professionals who feed their listings with accurate, up-to-date and verified data will position themselves advantageously in this new paradigm. GEO (Generative Engine Optimization) is gradually establishing itself as a complementary discipline to classic local SEO. Merchants who separate the myths from the realities of GBP ranking will be better equipped to navigate this changing environment. The messaging of the future, whether human or AI-assisted, will always rest on an unchanged foundation: the quality, speed and reliability of the information transmitted to the customer.
