Why Does Google Business Sometimes Return No Results for Local Shops?

Cole F. · 2026-01-14T22:35:50.818Z

Is there any reason why Google business would return nothing found here? I know there are shops in the area on the map but it will occasionally do this and then I have to continuously re-run.

Why Does Google Business Sometimes Return No Results for Local Shops? | Clay

Cole F.
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This is for a large downtown metro
Clay Support
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Google Maps limits results to 20 per search area, so it divides your search into smaller circles. [1] If your search covers non-business areas like water or empty zones, you'll get empty returns.
Try adjusting your search radius to focus on denser business areas within the downtown metro. Also, aim for locations that would yield fewer than 1,000 results to optimize your search.
Before we dig deeper, have you tried using Sculptor? It's our built-in AI tool in the top-right corner that can help optimize your Google Maps searches and workflows.
Sofia C.
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You should try openmart, I found it to be better vs google maps
Clay Support
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You're right! OpenMart is great for SMB prospecting and has some advantages over Google Maps. It allows unlimited results, can search multiple locations at once, and pulls from more data sources like Yelp beyond just Google Maps. [1]
OpenMart also has advanced filtering for things like website presence, review count, and employee size estimates. Currently works in USA, Puerto Rico, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand.
Have you tried using Sculptor yet? It's our built-in AI tool in the top-right corner that can help you set up OpenMart searches and optimize your workflows. Let me know if Sculptor helps or if you need more guidance!
Clay Support
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If you still need help with your Google Maps or OpenMart searches, I’m here to assist. Would you like to share more about what you’re trying to achieve or any specific issues you’re facing?
Cole F.
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yes sculptor has many bugs that take too long, and yes tried openmart and found the data was not much better for our use case
Clay Support
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I'm sorry to hear about the issues with Sculptor and OpenMart. I'll connect you to a human agent who can assist you further.
Clay Support
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Our support team has got your message and we'll get back to you soon!
If you’re dealing with a specific table, drop the URL below so we can help you quicker. Otherwise, someone from our team will be in touch soon!

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Cole F.
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Should the limit on the Google biz module always be 20 then? Because I typically input a higher number and it returns a higher quantity. It is however not working that way here
Cole F.
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After several re-starts and re-runs it has now worked correctly - still worth looking into why this continues to happen and requires re-trying
Ariana (.
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Hey there, thanks for reaching out and sorry for the delay here. I am not able to reproduce this internally on my side, but this is definitely something we would want to look into. The next time this happens, do you mind sending over the table link where you're seeing No businesses found so we can dive in further?
Taimoor A.
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I think for Google search you have to use serper.dev it's really effective
Cole F.
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Yea for sure Ariana (. thanks
Mayato (.
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Cole F. Hi Cole, I am sorry about the Google business search issue. I will share your case with the team that owns this. Thank you for your patience and for continuing to use Clay.
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Cole F.
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No worries! Thanks

27 comments