You run a bakery. A plumbing company. A photography studio. A dog grooming business. Whatever it is, you're good at it. That's why customers keep coming back.
But here's something you probably don't know. Last week, someone in your area asked ChatGPT: "What's the best [your type of business] near me?" And ChatGPT gave them a name. Not yours. A competitor's.
That customer drove past your shop on the way to the competitor. They might have loved your work more. They'll never find out, because AI pointed them somewhere else before they ever had a chance to find you.
This isn't a tech thing you can ignore. It's the modern version of word-of-mouth. And right now, AI might be doing word-of-mouth for everyone except you.
People are asking AI instead of Google
You've noticed the change, even if you haven't thought about it much. Your kids ask Siri questions. Your spouse checks ChatGPT for restaurant recommendations. Your neighbor asked Perplexity where to get their car detailed.
The shift is simple. Instead of Googling "best plumber near me" and scrolling through ads and listings, people are asking AI directly: "I have a leaky faucet, who should I call in [your town]?"
AI gives them one or two recommendations. With reasons. "This plumber specializes in residential repairs and has excellent reviews for quick response times."
That's not an ad. That feels like a friend's recommendation. People trust it. They call. They book.
If your business is the one AI recommends, you get customers without spending a dime on ads. If it's not... well, you get nothing, and you don't even realize you're losing out.
You don't need to be a marketer to care about this
You got into business because you're great at what you do. Not because you love marketing. The idea of "optimizing your AI presence" probably sounds like one more thing on the endless list of stuff that pulls you away from actual work.
Fair enough. But think about this: you already care about your Yelp reviews. You already care about your Google listing. You already know that when someone searches for your type of business, you want to show up.
AI visibility is the same concept, just a newer channel. And unlike SEO or paid ads, you don't need to become an expert. The steps to improve are straightforward, and tracking where you stand takes about two minutes.
Why some businesses get recommended and others don't
AI doesn't recommend businesses randomly. It looks for signals that tell it which business is the best answer for a specific question.
Clear information about what you do and who you serve.
If your website says "Joe's Services" and has your phone number and hours, AI has almost nothing to work with. It doesn't know what services Joe offers, what Joe is especially good at, or why someone should choose Joe over the other 30 options in town.
The business that says "Joe's Plumbing, specializing in residential plumbing repair in the Austin area. Same-day emergency service. Licensed and insured since 2005" gives AI a clear picture. When someone asks for a plumber in Austin, AI has a reason to mention Joe.
Reviews that describe specific experiences.
"Great service, 5 stars" helps your rating. But "Joe fixed our water heater on a Sunday morning with one hour's notice. Fair price, clean work, and he explained everything before starting" helps AI understand when to recommend you.
The more your reviews mention specific services, situations, and what made the experience good, the better AI can match you to people asking for exactly that kind of help.
Consistency across the internet.
Your Google Business profile, your Yelp page, your website, your Facebook page. If they all say the same thing about what you do and where you do it, AI gets a strong signal. If your Google profile says "handyman" but your website says "general contractor" and your Facebook says "home improvement," AI gets confused.
Pick how you describe your business and use that everywhere.
The prompts that bring customers to local businesses
People asking AI about local businesses tend to be specific. They describe a need and a location.
"Best Italian restaurant in [neighborhood] for a date night." "Reliable house cleaner in [city] who does deep cleaning." "Dog groomer in [area] who's good with anxious dogs." "Affordable wedding photographer near [city]."
Each of these prompts describes a specific situation. The businesses that get recommended are the ones whose online presence matches the specifics. The Italian restaurant with reviews mentioning "great for date night" wins the date night prompt. The dog groomer whose website mentions experience with nervous dogs wins that prompt.
You don't need to match every possible prompt. You need to match the ones that describe your actual strengths.
Simple steps that actually make a difference
You don't need to hire a marketing agency or learn SEO. Here's what matters, in plain language.
Update your website with specifics. Don't just say what you do. Say who you do it for and what makes you different. "Family-owned bakery in Denver specializing in custom birthday cakes and wedding desserts. Gluten-free options available." That's a hundred times more useful to AI than "Welcome to our bakery."
If you don't have a website, even a simple Google Business profile that's fully filled out makes a difference. Make sure every field has real, specific information.
Ask happy customers for detailed reviews. Next time someone tells you they love your work, ask them to leave a review. And gently suggest they mention what service they used, what the situation was, and what they liked. "We'd love a Google review, and it really helps if you mention what we did for you."
Those specific reviews are the most powerful thing you can do for AI visibility. More than any fancy marketing tactic.
Make your online profiles consistent. Check Google, Yelp, Facebook, and any industry-specific directories. Do they all show the same business name, address, phone number, and description? If not, fix the inconsistencies. This takes 30 minutes and makes a real difference.
Add a few pages to your website (if you have one). A page about each major service you offer. A page about the areas you serve. A simple FAQ answering the questions customers ask you most. This gives AI more information to work with when matching you to queries.
You're competing with bigger businesses (and you can win)
Big chains have big marketing budgets. They dominate Google Ads. They have teams managing their SEO.
But AI recommendations work differently. AI isn't recommending the business that spent the most on advertising. It's recommending the business that best matches a specific need. A local bakery with passionate reviews about custom birthday cakes beats a national chain for "best custom birthday cake in [your city]" every time.
Your size is an advantage here. You're specialized. You're local. You have loyal customers who say specific, genuine things about your work. That's exactly what AI looks for.
Track where you stand (it's easier than you think)
This is the part most small business owners skip, because they assume tracking AI visibility requires technical skills. It doesn't.
Sign up for Mentionable. Enter your website (or your Google Business URL). Mentionable checks whether AI tools like ChatGPT, Perplexity, Gemini, Claude, and Grok recommend your business for the prompts that matter in your area.
You'll see where you show up, where competitors show up instead, and what you can do about it. No jargon. No complicated dashboards. Just clear answers about whether AI is sending customers your way.
Your competitors might already be getting recommended. Find out where you stand, and make sure the next customer who asks AI for help finds their way to you.