Buddy Rathmell · Founder, MAP Winners

Win on Google Maps.
Get recommended by AI.

I've been building on the internet since 1998 and helping business owners grow online since 2003. Today my team at MAP Winners puts local businesses at the top of Google Maps — and in the answers when ChatGPT, Gemini, and Perplexity recommend who to call.

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Years building on the internet

Years helping businesses grow online

Years ranking businesses on Google Maps

MAP Winners rating on Google

The story

28 years of building online.
The scars to prove it.

1998

Built my first website

The internet was dial-up and ugly. I was hooked anyway — and I never stopped building.

2001

Fortune 500 consulting

Recruited by Arthur Andersen Consulting out of college, then founded my own consulting firm serving multiple Fortune 500 companies two and a half years later.

2003

Started helping others win online

Shifted from building for myself to building for other people — websites, systems, and strategy for business owners.

2005

Launched one of the first leadership podcasts

Leadercast.com grew into a recognized brand — acquired in 2009 and still alive today as a national leadership event.

2009

Founded Stop Slavery

Turned attention to fighting human trafficking, with teams working in Thailand, India, and Cambodia.

The hard chapter

Lost $250K. Paid back every investor.

Two businesses in two countries went underwater at the same time. I let 15 employees go, repaid $100K to investors, and rebuilt from zero. That comeback taught me more than any win.

2019

Fell into Google Maps

Discovered the highest-leverage marketing channel in local business: the map pack. Started ranking businesses where their customers actually search.

Today

MAP Winners

My team ranks local businesses on Google Maps — and gets them recommended by ChatGPT, Gemini, and Perplexity through AI ranking (GEO).

What I do now

The complete local growth system.

Google Maps Rankings

Show up in the map pack where buying customers actually search. Google Business Profile optimization, local SEO, and review systems that compound.

AI Discoverability

Customers now ask ChatGPT, Gemini, and Perplexity who to call. Generative Engine Optimization (GEO) makes sure the answer is you.

Growth Systems

AI-powered websites, automation, CRM, and lead capture — so every call and lead gets answered, followed up, and closed.

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Proof

What people say after working with me.

"He was able to draw out of us in five hours what we had not been able to do ourselves in 6 years. Our team was reignited."

Eric Ford

Cru International

"Buddy is an amazing facilitator which is why I bring him to help me with my own team each and every year. He always delivers. I can't recommend him highly enough."

Mark Plummer

Training Director, BAMTraining.org

"Buddy is unrelenting in pushing you to be the best version of yourself. If it wasn't for this lesson I'm not sure my business would exist today."

Founder

LivThai.com

Beyond business

Hey, I'm Buddy.

I live in Roanoke, Virginia with my wife. We've raised three kids, sent all three to college, and spent two decades doing work across the U.S. and Asia — including founding Stop Slavery, a nonprofit fighting human trafficking with teams in Thailand, India, and Cambodia.

I run on radical honesty and a bias toward action. My StrengthsFinder top five starts with Activator — which means once we know what to do, I want it moving today, not next quarter.

When I'm not ranking businesses, you'll find me on a boat, on the road with my family, or facilitating masterminds for entrepreneurs who want their business to fund their calling — not consume their life.

Buddy working from a beach chair by the water

Real clients, real family, and an office that moves.

Win on Google Maps.
Get recommended by AI.