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 quickly and taking big chunks of traffic away from search engines. If you still rely on search engines to bring in new customers, you’re targeting an audience that keeps shrinking.
AI tools aren’t just smarter, they’re faster, more convenient, and often more useful than traditional searches. That’s why more and more people use them to ask questions, request 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 it hurts, it’ll be too late. And you can’t just “pay your way in” like you would with PPC ads. Even worse: these AI models don’t update every day, every week, or even every month. It’s common for them to be out of date by a year or two, because retraining them costs millions of dollars. That means new information (like your website) might 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 it to future customers.
1. Ask for Better Reviews
Not just more reviews, *better* ones. Ask happy customers to be **specific**:
- “They quickly and professionally installed a new water heater in San Marcos, TX” (pure gold!)
- “Good plumber” (mostly useless)
The first one includes a specific service, strong adjectives (quick and professional), and the city and state. That’s the trifecta. The more detailed the review, 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 using the right KEYWORDS in the review… do that too. Be direct and tell the customer why. They’ll appreciate your honesty and think you’re on top of the AI trend.
2. Get More Reviews
Having 10 reviews isn’t enough anymore. ChatGPT (the most flexible on this) says it expects small local businesses to have at least 50. Grok wants 100 or more. If you have fewer, AI is likely to skip you in favor of a business with a higher review count.
Ask for reviews from every satisfied customer. Offer a discount or a small gift card if needed. Start getting those numbers up!
Need ideas for getting more reviews? Check out these articles we wrote on the topic:
- Reviews: Why You MUST Get Them and Tips for Getting More
- Want More Google Reviews? Here’s Our Strategy
- How to Get More Customer Reviews Just by Asking
3. Respond to Reviews (Professionally)
AI tools (and real humans) pay attention to how you respond to reviews, especially negative 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, those are two qualities AI is trained to value.
Struggle with this? Don’t worry (most people do) but we help our clients with this every day. Just reach out and we’ll be happy to help.
4. Create Pages for Each Service You Offer
You’ve heard us push this for years: make a page for each service. Now it’s not just for Google, it’s for AI too.
Instead of only saying you offer “plumbing services,” break them into separate pages like:
- Toilet repair
- Faucet installation
- Water heater installation
AI can’t recommend you for a service if it doesn’t know you offer it. As smart as it is, it still needs to be told exactly what you do.
5. List All Your Services Clearly
If you’re not ready to create individual pages for each service yet, **at least** make sure you list every service separately in one place. That means, for example, listing “water heater installation” and “water heater repair” as two different items. Make the list as complete as possible. Even if this doesn’t help much with SEO, it can give you a small edge in AI optimization.
6. Clearly State Your Hours and Whether You Offer Emergency Service
This one is important and often overlooked. If you answer calls 24/7 and offer emergency service, 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 phrase is on your site. Same idea: if someone is searching for a plumber at 8 p.m., the business marked as open until 9 p.m. is more likely to appear.
7. Make Your Contact Info Impossible to Miss
Make sure your phone number, email, and 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 don’t know how customers can reach you.
8. Brag About Your Experience
Do you have 10, 20, 30 years in business? Say it! A long track record builds trust. AI (and customers) are more likely to recommend companies that seem stable, experienced, and reliable.
9. Win a Few Awards (and Show the Ones You Already Have)
You don’t need a Nobel Prize, just something that boosts credibility:
- A local “Best of…” award
- Chamber of Commerce recognition
- A mention in a trade association
- Awards from HomeAdvisor, Angi, BBB, or Thumbtack
These third-party mentions tell AI you’re trustworthy, which makes you more recommendable. Even if your awards are a few years old, grab the graphic and put it on your site with a couple sentences about it. That tells AI you’ve won awards and increases your credibility.
10. Show Up in the Right Directories
AI pulls a lot of its information from business directories. Sure, the more the better, but make sure your info is included (and consistent) on these specifically, since these are sources AIs use to form opinions about your business:
- Google Maps / Google Business Profile
- Yelp
- BBB (Better Business Bureau)
- Thumbtack
- Nextdoor
- Houzz
- Angi
These listings also give you more places to collect reviews, which, as you already know, is critical.
Final Thought
Like we said last week, AI is changing how customers find businesses. Unfortunately, while this makes things easier for consumers, it makes things harder for businesses. You still have to do everything you used to do for search engines, but now you have more work and fewer chances to show up. Sometimes only one. But with a few smart moves, you can stay ahead and make sure your company shows up when someone asks an AI for help.
And if you ever need help with any of this (websites, reviews, directories), we’re just a message away.
