The way people find local businesses is changing fast. We’re moving away from traditional search engines like Google and toward AI-powered tools like ChatGPT, Grok, and Gemini. These platforms are gaining users at a rapid pace, and taking huge chunks of traffic away from search. If you’re still relying on search to reach new customers, you’re targeting a rapidly-shrinking audience.
AI tools aren’t just smarter, they’re faster, more convenient, and often more helpful than search ever was. That’s why more people are turning to them to ask questions, get recommendations, and even find local service providers. And here’s the key: these tools are already deciding which businesses to recommend… and which ones to ignore.
That’s why businesses like yours need to act now. If you wait until the pain sets in, it’ll be too late, and you can’t just “buy your way in” like you can with PPC ads. Even worse, these AI models don’t refresh daily, weekly, or even monthly. It’s common for AIs to be a year or two behind in their knowledge because retraining can cost millions of dollars. That means new information (like your website), may not be included for many months, or even years.
Here are 10 easy actions you can take today to help AI recognize your business and recommend you to future customers.
1. Ask for Better Reviews
Not just more reviews, but better ones. Ask your happy customers to be specific:
- “They quickly and professionally installed a new water heater in San Marcos, TX” (pure gold!)
- “Good plumber” (mostly unhelpful)
The first one has a specific service, uses some great adjectives (quick & professional), and includes the city and state. That’s the trifecta! The more detail, the easier it is for AI (and customers) to understand exactly what you do and where you do it. If you have to offer a discount or reward for a review, do it. If you have to offer a better reward for the RIGHT keywords in the review…do that too. Be upfront and tell the customer why. They’ll appreciate the candor and think you’re smart for being on top of the AI trend.
2. Get More Reviews
Gone are the days of skating by with 10 reviews. ChatGPT, the most lenient in this category, says that it expects small local businesses to have at least 50 now. Grok wants 100+. If you have fewer than this, the AIs will likely pass you over in favor of a business with a larger sample set of reviews.
Ask every happy customer. Offer a discount or small gift card if needed. Just start getting those numbers up!
If you need some ideas on how to get more reviews, check out these posts we did on that subject:
- Reviews: Why you MUST get them and tips for getting more of them
- Looking to Get More Google Reviews? Here’s Our Strategy
- How to Get More Customer Reviews Just by Asking for Them
3. Reply to Reviews (Professionally)
AI tools (and real humans) pay attention to how you respond to reviews — especially the bad ones.
- Thank people for positive reviews.
- Stay calm and professional with negative ones.
- Never argue or blame the customer.
Good responses show you’re responsible and trustworthy. Believe it or not, these are two traits AI is programmed to value.
Struggling with this? Don’t worry, most people do, but we help customers with this every day. Just reach out and we’ll be glad to help you.
4. Create Pages for Each Service You Offer
You’ve heard us harp on this for years: make a page for each service. Now it’s not just for Google, it’s for the AI too.
Rather than just saying that you offer “plumbing services,” break out each one into separate pages like:
- Toilet repair
- Faucet installation
- Water heater installations
AI can’t recommend you for a service if it doesn’t know you offer it. As smart as AI is, it still needs to be told exactly what you do.
5. List All Services Clearly
If you’re not ready to build out separate service pages, at least make sure all your individual services are listed in one spot. That means, for example, you will list “water heater installation” and “water heater repair” as separate items. Make this list exhaustive. While this is not a very helpful SEO practice, it can give you at least some benefit in the AI optimization realm.
6. Clearly State Your Hours And Whether You Offer Emergency Services
This one’s big and often missed. If you’ll respond to a call 24/7 and offer emergency services, say it clearly and prominently on your website. Why? Because when someone tells an AI, “I need an emergency plumber near me,” you’ll only show up if that term is on your site. Similarly, if it’s 8pm and someone asks for a plumber, being marked as open for business until 9pm gives you a chance to be in the running for that query.
7. Make Your Contact Info Prominent
Make sure your phone number, email, and business address are easy to find. Put them:
- In the header and footer
- On a Contact page
- On your service pages
AI tools can’t recommend you if they can’t figure out how customers will reach you.
8. Show Off Your Experience
Have you been in business for 10, 20, 30 years? Say it! A long track record builds trust. AIs (and customers) are more likely to recommend companies that seem stable, experienced, and reliable.
9. Win Some Awards (And Display The Ones You Already Have)
You don’t need a Nobel Prize, just something to signal credibility:
- A local “Best Of” award
- Chamber of Commerce recognition
- A trade association shoutout
- HomeAdvisor, Angi, BBB, or Thumbtack awards
These third-party mentions tell the AI you’re reputable and that makes you more recommendable. Even if your awards are a few years old, get the graphic and put it on your site with a couple sentences about it. This will tell the AIs that you are winning awards and will give you credibility.
10. Get Listed in the Right Directories
AI pulls a lot of its info from business directories. Of course more is better than fewer, but make sure your info is listed (and consistent) on the ones below, specifically, because the AIs are using these when they formulate opinions about your business.
- Google Maps / Google Business Profile
- Yelp
- BBB (Better Business Bureau)
- Thumbtack
- Nextdoor
- Houzz
- Angi
These listings also give you more chances to collect reviews, which as you know, is critical.
Final Thoughts
As we discussed last week, AI is changing how customers find businesses. Unfortunately, while it’s making things easier for the consumer, it’s making things quite a bit harder for businesses. You’ve got to continue doing everything you’ve been doing for search engines, but now you have more to do and fewer chances to show up in the results. Sometimes, just one…But with a few smart moves, you can stay ahead and make sure your company shows up when someone’s asking an AI for help.
And if you ever need help with any of this (websites, reviews, directories) we’re just a message away.
