LocalBusiness Schema: The #1 Fix for AI Visibility

If you could do only one thing to improve your AI visibility, it should be adding LocalBusiness schema to your website. Nothing else comes close in terms of impact-per-minute-invested.

LocalBusiness schema is a block of structured data in JSON-LD format that tells AI engines exactly what your business is, where it is, and how to reach it. Without it, AI has to guess. With it, AI knows.

We have audited thousands of local businesses. The correlation between having LocalBusiness schema and being recommended by AI is the strongest signal in our data. Businesses with proper schema are recommended at 3 to 5 times the rate of businesses without it, holding all other factors equal.

Yet over 70% of local business websites have zero structured data. This is the single biggest opportunity in local marketing right now.

What LocalBusiness schema tells AI

When you add LocalBusiness schema to your website, you are providing AI engines with machine-readable facts about your business. These facts include your business name (the exact official name), your business type (dentist, restaurant, attorney, HVAC company), your physical address (street, city, state, zip), your phone number, your website URL, your business hours (for every day of the week), your price range, your geographic coordinates (latitude and longitude), and links to your profiles on other platforms (Google Business Profile, Yelp, etc.).

Each of these facts serves a specific purpose. The business type lets AI filter you into the right category. The address and coordinates let AI match you to location-based queries. The hours let AI answer "is this business open right now" questions. The price range lets AI match budget queries. The profile links let AI cross-reference your data for validation.

Without schema, AI has to extract these facts from your page text, which is unreliable. Your business hours might be in a footer, an image, or a PDF. Your address might be formatted differently on your homepage versus your contact page. AI engines deal with this uncertainty by choosing a competitor whose data is clean and unambiguous.

The code: a complete LocalBusiness example

Here is a complete LocalBusiness schema block for a dental practice. Adapt it for your business type.

{
  "@context": "https://schema.org",
  "@type": "Dentist",
  "name": "Miami Smile Dental",
  "image": "https://miamismiledental.com/images/office-photo.jpg",
  "address": {
    "@type": "PostalAddress",
    "streetAddress": "1450 Ponce de Leon Blvd, Suite 200",
    "addressLocality": "Coral Gables",
    "addressRegion": "FL",
    "postalCode": "33134",
    "addressCountry": "US"
  },
  "geo": {
    "@type": "GeoCoordinates",
    "latitude": 25.7509,
    "longitude": -80.2584
  },
  "telephone": "+1-305-555-0184",
  "url": "https://miamismiledental.com",
  "openingHoursSpecification": [
    {
      "@type": "OpeningHoursSpecification",
      "dayOfWeek": ["Monday", "Tuesday", "Wednesday", "Thursday", "Friday"],
      "opens": "08:00",
      "closes": "18:00"
    },
    {
      "@type": "OpeningHoursSpecification",
      "dayOfWeek": "Saturday",
      "opens": "09:00",
      "closes": "13:00"
    }
  ],
  "priceRange": "$$",
  "sameAs": [
    "https://www.google.com/maps/place/Miami+Smile+Dental",
    "https://www.yelp.com/biz/miami-smile-dental-coral-gables"
  ],
  "hasMap": "https://www.google.com/maps/place/Miami+Smile+Dental"
}

To implement this, wrap it in a script tag and place it in the head section of your homepage:

<script type="application/ld+json">
  // paste the JSON above here
</script>

Choosing the right business type

Do not use the generic "LocalBusiness" type if a more specific subtype exists for your business. Using the correct subtype helps AI engines match you to specific queries.

Here are the most common business types for local businesses:

For healthcare: Dentist, Physician, MedicalClinic, Optician, Pharmacy, VeterinaryCare. For legal: Attorney, LegalService, Notary. For food: Restaurant, BarOrPub, CafeOrCoffeeShop, Bakery, FastFoodRestaurant. For home services: HVACBusiness, Plumber, Electrician, Locksmith, RoofingContractor, MovingCompany. For personal care: BeautySalon, HairSalon, DaySpa, NailSalon, TattooParlor. For fitness: ExerciseGym, HealthClub, SportsClub. For automotive: AutoRepair, AutoDealer, GasStation. For professional services: AccountingService, FinancialService, InsuranceAgency, RealEstateAgent, TravelAgency. For retail: Store, ShoeStore, ClothingStore, HardwareStore, ElectronicsStore.

The full list is at schema.org/LocalBusiness. Scroll through the subtypes and find the one that best matches your business.

Common mistakes to avoid

Using your keyword-stuffed marketing name instead of your real business name. Your schema name should be your actual business name, not "Best Miami Dentist Top Rated Dental Care Center." AI engines penalize spammy structured data and may ignore your schema entirely.

Leaving the address incomplete. Include the suite or unit number if you have one. Include the country code. Missing details reduce matching accuracy.

Using the wrong coordinates. Do not guess your latitude and longitude. Look them up on Google Maps (right-click your location, coordinates appear). Wrong coordinates mean AI places your business in the wrong location.

Forgetting to update hours. If your hours change seasonally or for holidays, update your schema. Incorrect hours erode trust when a customer shows up to a closed business based on AI's recommendation.

Only putting schema on the homepage. Add LocalBusiness schema to every page of your site, or at minimum to your homepage and contact page. Some AI crawlers enter your site through interior pages and may miss homepage-only schema.

How to verify your schema works

After adding schema, validate it using Google's Rich Results Test at search.google.com/test/rich-results. Enter your URL and check that your LocalBusiness markup appears without errors or warnings.

You can also paste your JSON-LD into the Schema Markup Validator at validator.schema.org. This checks for structural issues and missing recommended fields.

After validation, the final test is to re-audit your website. The GEO score should improve noticeably once AI engines can read your structured data. The improvement is usually visible within one to two weeks as AI crawlers re-index your site.

Going beyond LocalBusiness

Once you have LocalBusiness schema in place, add these complementary schema types for maximum impact:

AggregateRating with your Google review rating and count. This is the second highest-impact schema for AI visibility.

FAQPage on any page with FAQ content. This directly matches AI's question-and-answer format.

Service schema for each service you offer, linked to your LocalBusiness. This helps AI match your business to service-specific queries.

Review schema for individual testimonials displayed on your site. This provides granular review data beyond the aggregate.

Each additional schema type adds another layer of structured information that AI engines can use to evaluate and recommend your business. The cumulative effect is significant.

Let BizScore generate it for you

If writing JSON-LD by hand feels intimidating, run a free BizScore audit on your website. The fix-it plan automatically generates complete LocalBusiness schema pre-filled with your actual business data. It also generates AggregateRating, FAQPage, and any other schema types you need, all with your real name, address, phone, and hours.

Copy the code from the report, paste it into your website, and you are done. No coding knowledge required. The hardest part is knowing what to add. The audit handles that for you.

Check your website now and get your custom schema code in 60 seconds.