10 Ways to Show Up in AI Search

Artificial intelligence is reshaping how people find information online. Search isn’t just about typing keywords into Google anymore—it’s about conversational answers from tools like ChatGPT, Google’s AI Overviews, and Perplexity.

Now, you may have heard that AI search means a completely new game: new ranking rules, new acronyms (“AEO,” “GEO,” etc.), and a new set of tactics for achieving visibility. If someone’s telling you that, get ready for the sales pitch that’s coming next. Here’s the thing: Google says you don’t need special magical optimizations to rank in AI Overviews. Old fashioned SEO still works. That means focusing on the fundamentals—content quality, local relevance, and credibility.

That’s not to say things aren’t changing—they are. But AI Overviews and generative results build on the same systems that already drive traditional search. In other words, the foundation of good SEO hasn’t gone anywhere.

This article sets out 10 practical ways you can make sure your business shows up in AI-powered search results. No fluff, no gimmicks—just what works.

1. Optimize Your Core Profiles

AI models depend heavily on structured, reliable sources to answer local queries. Platforms like Google, Yelp, and Bing are the primary inputs powering generative results, especially for local business discovery. If your profiles there are incomplete, outdated, or inconsistent, AI will downgrade your visibility.

What this means for you: Think of these profiles as your digital storefront. Just as you wouldn’t let a customer walk into a shop with broken signage, you can’t afford inaccurate listings online.

Practical steps:

• Ensure NAP (name, address, phone number) and business hours are consistent across Google, Yelp, and Bing.
• Regularly update photos, service descriptions, and categories.
• Check for duplicate or conflicting listings that may confuse AI.

2. Build Local Landing Pages

Every location you operate should have a dedicated landing page tied to your main website. These pages help AI systems clearly understand your footprint and surface the right location in response to local queries. Remember that you control the content on your local landing pages, making them the perfect place to showcase what differentiates your business from the competition.

What this means for you: Local landing pages act as structured signals. Without them, AI may misattribute your business or miss it entirely when compiling recommendations.

Practical steps:

• Create a unique page for each store, office, or service area.
• Include full contact details, differentiators, and local promotions.
• Ensure your landing page content aligns with your Google, Yelp, and Bing profiles to avoid conflicts.

3. Use Structured Markup

Structured markup isn’t new—it’s been part of SEO best practices for years. Google crawlers have always relied on signals like title tags, metadata, and internal links to interpret websites. Schema takes that same concept further by labeling the specific elements of your site—like your business hours, reviews, and location details—so machines can read them with absolute clarity.

What this means for you: Think of Schema as giving search crawlers and AI models a “legend” to your website. Without it, they see a wall of text. With it, they know exactly what’s a phone number, what’s a review, and what’s an address. That clarity makes it far more likely your information will be pulled directly into AI Overviews and conversational answers.

Practical steps:

• Implement LocalBusiness Schema on each location page.
• Use markup for hours, services, reviews, and FAQs to maximize eligibility for AI and SERP features.
• Treat Schema as an extension of core SEO—not a separate discipline—and audit regularly as standards evolve.

4. Add “Why Choose Us?” and FAQ Content

AI thrives on clear, contextual answers. By explicitly stating why customers should choose you, and answering the most common questions, you make it easier for AI to highlight your strengths. Details like years in business, turnaround times, certifications, and awards give LLMs the context they need to recommend you over competitors.

What this means for you: This isn’t fluff—it’s factual, differentiating content that aligns with how customers make decisions. AI surfaces it because it maps naturally to common customer questions.

Practical steps:

• Add a “Why Choose Us?” section on every location page.
• Include awards, specialties, and differentiators unique to each site.
• Incorporate FAQs that address practical queries like pricing policies or service areas.

Further read: Easy Win for AI Local SEO: a Strong “Why Choose Us” Page on Your Site

5. Monitor and Grow Your Reviews

Reviews remain one of the strongest trust signals in AI discovery. Generative tools often repackage review content directly into their answers. Customers also report being more likely to choose a business that responds to reviews.

What this means for you: Both quantity and quality of reviews matter. AI understands reviews as social proof and uses them to answer conversational queries like “best pizza place near me.”

Practical steps:

• Encourage satisfied customers to leave reviews on Google and Yelp first, then industry-specific platforms.
• Respond quickly and personally to both praise and complaints.
• Ask customers to mention specific services or experiences—details AI is likely to reuse.

6. Engage with Local Audiences on Social Media

AI tools increasingly surface content from social networks alongside websites and directories. In fact, more than 70% of consumers now use social networks like Facebook, TikTok, and Instagram every month to research local businesses. Mentions on Reddit and other forums are also frequent inputs for LLM results.

What this means for you: Social content is no longer just about engagement—it’s an input to AI discoverability. Community conversations, tagged posts, and customer feedback all create signals AI systems interpret as credibility and relevance.

Practical steps:

• Post locally relevant updates weekly.
• Join community conversations on platforms like Facebook Groups and Reddit.
• Respond to feedback in ways that build local trust and demonstrate attentiveness.

7. Build Local Authority: Press, PR, Community Involvement

Authority remains a critical factor in how AI selects sources. ChatGPT, for example, favors sites with credibility, structured data, and authority when compiling business results. That means press coverage, organizational memberships, and community involvement directly influence your discoverability.

What this means for you: Building authority locally signals to AI that you’re a trusted source worth recommending. Press mentions, partnerships, and chamber listings all serve as validation points that reinforce your legitimacy.

Practical steps:

• Pitch story ideas to local media about your community impact.
• Join chambers of commerce and ensure your listings are up to date.
• Sponsor events or collaborate with local nonprofits to create content worth amplifying.

8. Connect Your Brand Voice to Your Local Digital Presence

Consistency across digital touchpoints matters more than ever. AI platforms penalize businesses that appear unresponsive or disconnected across profiles, reviews, and websites. Customers, too, expect your online tone to reflect their in-person experience.

What this means for you: A mismatched or silent brand presence signals unreliability to both AI and customers. By extending your brand voice across every local channel, you increase the likelihood of being surfaced as a trusted option.

Practical steps:

• Align your location profiles and landing pages with your brand tone.
• Develop review response guidelines so your replies are consistent.
• Treat every digital interaction as part of the customer journey, not a silo.

9. Track Other Industry-Specific Sources

Beyond the major platforms, LLMs often pull from niche directories and specialized review sites depending on the vertical. For example, restaurants may surface via OpenTable, healthcare providers through Healthgrades, and service businesses via platforms like Houzz.

What this means for you: Visibility isn’t only about the “big three.” If AI consistently pulls answers from niche directories in your industry, you need to be there—and accurate.

Practical steps:

• Run test queries in ChatGPT, Perplexity, and Gemini to see which sources they cite for your category.
• Ensure your presence on those platforms is complete and consistent.
• Encourage reviews or activity on those niche platforms to strengthen your signal.

10. Prioritize LLM Optimization

Google searches are down 15% since April 2024, while ChatGPT doubled its user base in early 2025, and local traffic from AI tools surged by 158% for some multi-location retailers. Still, research shows 95% of consumers use traditional search monthly, while 40% now use AI every month—and 20% use it more than 10 times per month.

What this means for you: Dedicate about 20–30% of your local marketing strategy to optimization for platforms like Google’s AI features, ChatGPT, and Perplexity. But don’t neglect your traditional SEO, reputation management, and social strategies—they remain the foundation that AI pulls from.

Follow Where Search Is Headed

AI isn’t replacing search—it’s transforming it. Customers will still use Google, but increasingly they’ll also use AI platforms to get recommendations, ask questions, and discover local businesses. By following these 10 steps, you’ll position your business to show up wherever customers are searching—whether that’s in a browser, a chatbot, or an AI-powered map.

How SOCi Can Help

Staying visible in AI-powered search takes more than one-off fixes—it requires consistency across listings, websites, reviews, social, and local authority. That’s exactly what SOCi was built for. Our platform centralizes everything you need to manage and scale your local digital presence, from optimizing core profiles and local landing pages to monitoring reviews, publishing social content, and tracking performance across all your locations.

If you’re ready to make sure your business shows up wherever customers are searching—whether that’s Google, Yelp, or the latest AI platforms—sign up for a SOCi demo today and see how we can help you put these 10 strategies into action.