Google Business Profiles Introduces ‘What’s Happening’ Feature

Google has unveiled an exciting new tool called “What’s Happening” for Business Profiles, giving restaurants and bars a powerful way to showcase promotions, events, and daily specials directly at the top of their listings. This visibility boost helps businesses attract more customers by making time-sensitive offers impossible to miss.

The feature displays updates like “Happy Hour Specials” or “Weekend Brunch Menu” in a prominent position. According to Google’s announcement, these real-time notifications put time-sensitive content where potential customers will see it first.

Here’s how the feature appears to users:

To qualify for this enhanced visibility, businesses need to either create Google Posts with their current promotions or link their social media accounts (Facebook, Instagram, or X) to their Google Business Profile for automatic updates. Currently, the feature is available only to single-location food and beverage establishments in the United States, United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, and New Zealand.

For hospitality marketers, this represents a valuable opportunity to drive foot traffic through improved search visibility. The updates appear both in standard Google Search results and potentially within Google Maps, giving businesses dual exposure to local customers actively looking for dining options. By keeping their “What’s Happening” section current, establishments can effectively turn their Google presence into a dynamic digital storefront.

(Source: Search Engine Land)