What free fixes get a business found by AI?
Five free fixes decide whether Google, ChatGPT and Claude can find a business at all: a complete Google Business Profile, a Bing Places profile, a website that is actually indexed, a way to book without a phone call, and the same name, address and phone everywhere. None of them cost money. Most businesses have at least one of them missing, and a missing one can keep an otherwise good business off every AI short list.
This page is the written version of LAB 01 of The Agency Workshop, the hands-on companion to The AI-Ready Agent, presented by InsuranceWebX and hosted by Nathan Hockley. The session ran these checks live on a volunteer advisor's website and fixed what it found. The recording and its chapters are below.
of independent insurance agencies have AI embedded in their daily workflows, while about two thirds plan to increase their use of it.
That gap between intending and having is the reason the Workshop exists. Knowing what to build changes nothing on its own; the foundation below is the part anyone can finish this week.
The five fixes, in order
| Fix | Why it matters | How to check it |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Google Business Profile | Gemini and Google's AI Overviews lean on it for local answers. Reviews, hours, services and posts all live here. | Search your business name on Google Maps. Is it claimed, complete, and showing recent reviews? |
| 2. Bing Places | ChatGPT's web search leans on Bing. A business that exists only on Google is thin in ChatGPT's answers. | Search Bing Maps for your business. If it is missing, import your Google profile into Bing Places. |
| 3. An indexed website | An unindexed site cannot be cited by any AI tool, no matter how good it is. | Search site:yourdomain.com on Google and Bing. Few or no results means this is the problem to fix first. |
| 4. A way to book | A client who finds you at 9 PM will book with whoever lets them. No calendar link sends them to the next name. | From your site, can a stranger book a time without calling? Count the clicks. |
| 5. One identity everywhere | AI tools cross-check your name, address and phone across sites. Mismatches read as doubt. | Compare your website, both profiles and your directory listings. Every detail should match exactly. |
Ask the AI who it would recommend
The most useful test in the session took two minutes. Open ChatGPT, Gemini and Claude and ask each one the question a client would ask, such as who is a good independent life insurance agent near your town. Note who gets named, and then ask why. The answer usually points at reviews, a complete profile, or a page on someone's site that answers the question directly.
In the live audit, one competitor kept getting picked across tools. The reason was not a bigger budget. It was a complete profile, steady reviews and pages written around real client questions. Reviews carry more weight than many owners expect: 97% of consumers read local reviews, and 31% will only use a business rated 4.5 stars or higher (BrightLocal Local Consumer Review Survey, 2026).
Then build what the AI is looking for
AI tools fan one client question out into many smaller ones and look for pages that answer each piece. A page that lists your products answers none of them. A page that answers how much life insurance a young family needs, or what happens to a business if the owner dies, answers several. Write those pages in your own words, under your own name, and keep publishing.
Video counts too. YouTube accounted for 18.8% of the sources cited in Google's AI Overviews in a study of more than 680 million citations, second only to Reddit at 21% (Profound, 2025). A short recorded answer to a real question, with an accurate title and description, is a source the AI can find.
Two things people get wrong
Setting it up once and walking away
The Workshop runs every fix through the same loop: analyze, strategize, implement, monitor, and back to the start. A profile that was complete last year and has not been touched since is losing ground to one that posts weekly and asks for reviews on a schedule.
Letting AI write everything
AI is a good research assistant and a poor author. Pages that read like mass-produced filler, with no real person behind them, do not earn citations. Use the tools to find the questions and draft the outline, then answer in your own voice.
Watch the workshop
The Agency Workshop, LAB 01: Read Your Audit, Fix Your Foundation. About an hour, recorded September 17, 2026.
Chapters
- Welcome, and what today covers
- Simple fixes, and finding where you stand
- A buyer asked ChatGPT, and bought the same day
- LinkedIn, and the employee benefits market
- Why every agent needs a Google Business Profile
- Bing, and why ChatGPT looks there first
- Live audit: a volunteer advisor's site
- Asking the AI who it would recommend
- Why one competitor keeps getting picked
- No way to book: calendar links and speed to lead
- Posting to your Google Business Profile
- Finding an open niche nobody has claimed
- The two take-home checklists
- The content your site needs to answer
- How AI fans one question out
- Why AI can't write it all for you
- Analyze, strategize, implement, monitor
- YouTube as a source AI trusts
- An unindexed site can't be cited
- One identity everywhere, and keep monitoring
- What's next
Questions people ask
How do I get my business to show up in ChatGPT?
How do I check whether my website is indexed?
Do I need a Bing profile if I already have Google?
Should I post to my Google Business Profile?
Does YouTube help with AI visibility?
Start from the beginning: how clients choose an agent when they ask AI, from Episode 1.
Want the foundation checked for you?
ElevAIte CRM, the AI and automation division of Impact Solution Services in Gettysburg, PA, runs these checks and builds what comes after them: the Voice agent, booking and follow-up that answer first. Start with a free market insight brief, or join the next Workshop live.
Get your free market insight brief Register for LAB 02This page is education, not legal or compliance advice. Rules differ by state, carrier and product line; confirm with your compliance contact. For Medicare, CMS rules apply on top of everything here.