I run a small marketing consultancy focused on helping businesses understand how they show up - or don't - when customers use AI tools to find services.
Over the last few months, I've done AI visibility audits for 30+ small businesses across hospitality, professional services, and retail. The pattern is painfully consistent.
Most businesses are invisible to AI search
Go to ChatGPT right now. Ask: "What's the best [your service] in [your city]?"
Try it. I'll wait.
If your business showed up - congratulations, you're in the minority. Most don't. Some get mentioned with outdated information. A few get described with details that are flat-out wrong.
This matters because AI-powered search is growing fast. Google's AI Overviews, ChatGPT, Perplexity, Copilot - they're all pulling from a mix of web data, reviews, and structured information to answer user queries. And they're deciding who gets recommended based on signals most businesses aren't even thinking about.
The 5 things I keep seeing
1. Paying for "AI SEO" tools that do nothing useful
Half the businesses I audited were spending $50-200/month on tools promising "AI optimization." These tools mostly generate generic blog posts stuffed with keywords.
Here's the thing: AI search engines don't work like traditional Google. They don't care about keyword density. They synthesize information from multiple sources and look for consistency, authority, and specificity. A blog post titled "Top 10 Reasons to Choose Our Plumbing Services" isn't helping.
2. Neglecting Google Business Profile
This is free. It's also the single biggest lever for local businesses wanting AI visibility. AI tools pull from GBP constantly - your hours, reviews, photos, categories, Q&A.
Most businesses I audited had outdated hours, no photos from the last 6 months, and zero responses to reviews. Quick win: update your GBP today. Respond to every review, even the positive ones. This takes 15 minutes and improves both traditional and AI search visibility.
3. No idea what AI actually says about them
This is the one that surprises business owners the most. They've spent years building their reputation, and when I show them what ChatGPT or Perplexity says about their business, it's either nothing or something outdated.
The fix is simple but tedious: check multiple AI platforms, document what they say, and then work on the source data they're pulling from (reviews, directories, your website's structured data).
4. Spending big on chatbots nobody uses
I've seen businesses drop $1,000+ on website chatbots that handle 2 conversations a month. Before investing in customer-facing AI tools, check your actual customer journey. Where do people find you? Where do they drop off? Spend your money there.
5. Missing the boring fundamentals
The businesses that DO show up well in AI results all have the same things:
- Consistent NAP (name, address, phone) across every directory
- Recent reviews on multiple platforms
- A website that loads fast with clear service descriptions
- Structured data (schema markup) that machines can parse
- Active social profiles that confirm the business is current
None of this is exciting. All of it works.
The uncomfortable takeaway
Most small businesses don't need AI tools. They need to nail the fundamentals that AI tools use to decide who to recommend.
The gap between "we have a great business" and "AI knows we have a great business" is mostly about data hygiene - making sure your information is accurate, consistent, and up-to-date across the web.
This isn't a technology problem. It's an information management problem. And it's fixable.
DIY starting point
If you want to check your own AI visibility:
- Ask ChatGPT, Perplexity, and Google Gemini about your business by name and by category + location
- Audit your Google Business Profile - is everything current?
- Check your directory listings (Yelp, industry-specific directories) - are they consistent?
- Look at your website - does it clearly state what you do, where you do it, and how to contact you?
- Read your reviews - what themes come up? AI tools use review sentiment as a ranking signal
Most businesses can fix 80% of their AI visibility issues in a weekend. The other 20% is where it gets interesting.
I'm Jenna, founder of JennaMade. I help small businesses figure out how they show up in AI search and what to do about it. Happy to answer questions in the comments.
