How to find businesses without a website on Google Maps

To find businesses without a website on Google Maps, search for a business type plus a city or neighbourhood, open each listing and check whether it shows a Website button. If there is none and the listing is active, you have a possible lead. The rest of this article shows how to do that sorting properly, without losing your evenings to it.

The manual method, step by step

All you need is a browser and a spreadsheet. The method is slow, but it teaches you how to read a listing, and that reading is what lets you write a relevant message later.

1. Open Google Maps on a computer. A wide screen lets you keep the result list on the left and the open listing next to it.
2. Type a business type followed by a precise place, for example "hair salon Ennasr" or "dentist Sousse". A neighbourhood gives cleaner results than a whole city.
3. Open the listings one by one, in the order of the list. Do not skip the ones with few reviews, you will sort them afterwards.
4. Look for the Website button or line. If it exists, click it to see where it leads, then move on if it is a real website.
5. If there is no website, note the name, the phone number, the rating, the number of reviews, and look at the photos.
6. Read three or four recent reviews. They tell you what customers really like, and that is the raw material of your first message.
7. When the list runs out, move the map to the next street or neighbourhood and search again in that area.

Keep a steady rhythm. A short session every day beats a long session once a month, because you can contact the businesses while their listings are still fresh in your mind.

What makes a good lead

Having no website is not enough. A good lead is a business that is alive, reachable, and for which a website changes something.

• An active listing. Opening hours filled in, photos, sometimes owner replies to reviews. Somebody looks after this listing.
• Recent reviews. Sort the reviews by date. If the latest ones are recent, the business is receiving customers today.
• Photos. They prove the place exists and they become the base of the website. Without photos you will have to produce everything yourself.
• A phone number. Without one you can neither call nor write on WhatsApp. A mobile number is the most practical.
• A trade where customers compare before coming. Clinics and medical practices, hair and beauty salons, restaurants, hotels and guesthouses, gyms, artisans. Before booking or travelling, the customer wants to see services, prices, photos and an easy way to get in touch.

The more boxes a business ticks, the more sense your offer makes. An owner who already replies to reviews quickly understands what a website can add.

Signs of a bad lead

Remove early the listings that will waste your time.

• Closed. A "Permanently closed" or "Temporarily closed" label settles the question.
• No phone number. You have no simple way to reach the owner.
• A chain or a franchise. The branch of a bank, a telecom operator or a national brand depends on a head office that already has its website. The local manager does not decide.
• An abandoned listing. No photos, no reviews, no hours. The business may exist, but nothing shows it.
• A vague address. A pin dropped in the middle of a residential area, with no clear shop name, is often a listing created by mistake.

A low rating is not automatically a bad sign. Read the reviews before judging, and stay careful if the complaints are about the honesty of the business.

A Facebook or Instagram page is not a website

You will often see a Website button that leads to a Facebook page, an Instagram profile or a menu link. That business does not have a website: it has an account on a social network. Keep it in your list and note the link.

That does not mean you should tell the owner their page is useless. It brings them customers and they care about it. Your argument is elsewhere: a website belongs to them, gathers services, prices, hours and contact on one page, and can be read by someone who has no account. The article on why a Google Maps listing is not enough develops that reasoning.

Keep a simple tracking sheet

A spreadsheet is enough. One row per business, and columns you will actually fill in.

The "Detail to quote" column is the most useful one. It is what makes your message personal. The "Status" column stops you from writing twice to the same person or following up with someone who said no.

Where to start in Tunisia

Without any statistics to lean on, here is a simple logic for choosing your first searches.

• Start with your own neighbourhood. You know the streets, you can walk past the business and, if the owner prefers, meet in person.
• Aim for dense shopping areas. Where several salons, cafes or practices compete within a few streets, the one that presents itself best online has a visible advantage. In Tunis, think of areas such as Ennasr, El Menzah, Les Berges du Lac or La Marsa. The same reasoning applies to the centres of Sousse, Sfax or Nabeul.
• Look at tourist areas. In Hammamet, Djerba or Sidi Bou Said, guesthouses, restaurants and rental businesses address visitors who choose from far away, which means online.
• Do not forget mid-sized towns. Fewer freelancers prospect there, and a shop owner can be easier to reach.

For business types, start with those where people book an appointment or a table: dental and medical practices, salons and beauty institutes, gyms, restaurants, accommodation. Then come the artisans people look for when a need arises: plumbers, electricians, carpenters, mechanics. Switch business type when a search stops giving results in an area.

Running the same search with a tool

Once you master the method, the longest part remains opening listings one by one to discard those that already have a website. That is the work LeadMax automates: you pick a business type and a city or region, and the tool keeps only the listings with no website, with the phone number, rating, reviews, photos and opening hours.

The tool does not replace your judgement. You still have to read the listing, check that the business is active and choose the detail you will quote. Once your list is ready, move on to contact with the guide on how to pitch a business owner on WhatsApp, and place it all inside the full approach to selling websites to local businesses in Tunisia.

Frequently asked questions

Can Google Maps filter businesses that have no website?

No, the Google Maps search does not offer that filter. You have to open each listing and check for yourself, or use a tool that does this sorting on the listing data.

How many listings should I go through per session?

There is no right number. Set yourself a duration rather than a count, and stop when you have enough leads to contact properly within the week. A very long list that you never contact is worth nothing.

What if the Website button leads to a Facebook page?

Count that business as a lead without a website and note the link in your sheet. In your message, do not criticise the page. Present the website as a complement that belongs to the owner.

Am I allowed to use the phone number shown on the listing?

The number is published so that customers can reach the business, but it is still personal data under Tunisian law 2004-63. Limit yourself to one personal, relevant message, send nothing in bulk and stop as soon as the owner says no.