How Do I Get AI to Recommend My Local Business
When someone searches for what you offer in your town, they’re not just looking at Google results. They’re asking an invisible jury of algorithms, map listings, review systems, and increasingly, AI chatbots a single question: “Is this business legit?”
You want to show up. You want them to understand who you are and what you offer. You want them to know where you are and how to find you. That’s the visible part. The part your potential customers see.
But here’s what most local business owners don’t realize: behind that search result is an entire ecosystem of interconnected systems all working together or against you. You need your SEO lined up. You need your AEO ready. Your Google Business Profile has to be bulletproof. Your citations have to be consistent. And if you want AI to actually recommend you, you need to think about how you show up in those systems too.
This isn’t about one magic tactic. It’s about getting the fundamentals right across multiple channels so that when someone is looking for you, every system points in the same direction.
Let’s break down what’s actually happening behind the scenes and give you some concrete steps to take control of your visibility.
SEO: The Foundation of Being Found
Search Engine Optimization is still the baseline. If your website doesn’t rank, nothing else matters much. Google’s algorithms are looking for three things: relevance, authority, and experience. For a local business, relevance means your content speaks directly to what people in your area are actually searching for.
Here are two essential moves:
- Claim your local keywords in your website copy. Don’t just assume people are searching for “massage therapy.” They’re searching for “deep tissue massage in Bend” or “sports injury massage near me.” Go into your homepage, your service pages, and your about section. Where does it make sense, add your town name or neighborhood. Not forced. Not spammy. Just woven into sentences that explain what you do and where you do it. A physical therapy practice in Redmond should mention “Redmond” and “physical therapy for runners” on the pages that actually serve runners.
- Build internal links on your website that make sense. If you have a blog post about common shoulder injuries and another page about your shoulder-specific services, link between them. You’re telling Google, “These pages are related, and they’re all about the same topic.” This helps Google understand your expertise and gives people a natural path to deeper information.
AEO: Making AI Systems Understand Your Business
AEO stands for AI Engine Optimization. It’s newer than SEO, but it’s getting more important fast. ChatGPT, Perplexity, Google’s AI Overviews, and other AI systems are answering questions and making recommendations directly to people. You want to show up in those answers.
Here’s the thing about AI: it reads differently than human visitors. It scans your website for structured information, clear expertise signals, and sources it can cite. If you’re vague or buried your best information in unstructured text, AI won’t pull it into its recommendations.
Two practical steps:
- Write clear, direct answers on your website. Create a FAQ section or a blog post that directly answers the questions your ideal clients are asking. “What should I expect during your first session?” “How is your coaching different from group programs?” “What’s your refund policy?” AI systems pull directly from content that answers these questions clearly. If your website is the source for the answer, you get recommended.
- Use structured data to tell AI what you are. Your business name, what you offer, your address, your phone number, your hours, your service areas—this all needs to be in a format called schema markup. It’s a behind-the-scenes code that tells AI systems exactly what information is important. If you’re using WordPress or Wix or Squarespace, there are built-in tools to add this. If you’re not sure, your web designer can add it in an hour. AI systems use this data to understand and recommend you faster.
Google Business Profile: The Local Visibility Command Center
Your Google Business Profile is how Google understands your physical location, your services, your hours, and what people think about you. It shows up in Google Maps, in search results, and increasingly in AI recommendations. If this is incomplete or inconsistent, you’re invisible.
Two critical things:
- Fill out every section completely and accurately. Your business name has to match exactly what’s on your business license and your website. Your address, phone number, and service areas need to be precise. Add photos of your actual location or workspace. Add your actual hours, not “by appointment only” if you also have walk-in hours. The more complete your profile, the more Google trusts it and the more it shows up.
- Respond to reviews and keep your information current. Every time someone leaves a review, you’re getting feedback. Respond to it, thank them, answer questions. Google’s algorithm treats active, responsive businesses differently than dormant ones. And when you update your hours or add a new service, do it immediately in your profile. These updates signal to Google that you’re paying attention.
NAP Consistency: The Unglamorous Thing Nobody Wants to Talk About
NAP stands for Name, Address, Phone. It sounds boring because it is. But here’s why it matters: Google and other search engines use NAP consistency to verify your business is real and legitimate. If your business name is spelled three different ways across the web, if your address is “123 Main Street” in one place and “123 Main St.” in another, if you have two phone numbers floating around—that confusion makes AI systems doubt you.
One concrete step: Do an audit. Search your business name in Google and look at the first ten results. Check your Google Business Profile, your website footer, your Facebook, any business directories you’re on, any local listings or community sites. Write down every instance of your name, address, and phone. If there are variations, you have work to do. Fix your website first, then systematically update your social profiles and any listings. This is tedious, but it’s one of the fastest ways to improve how both Google and AI systems understand you.
Citations: Getting Other Websites to Vouch for You
A citation is when another website mentions your business name, address, and phone number. Directories like Yelp, Angie’s List, industry-specific directories, the Chamber of Commerce, and local business listings all count as citations. Search engines use citations as a trust signal. If you’re listed on trusted websites, you’re probably legitimate.
One move: Make sure you’re on the major local directories relevant to your business. Don’t try to be everywhere. A local accountant doesn’t need a listing on a pet grooming directory. Focus on the platforms where your clients actually look. A massage therapist should be on Yelp, Google, WellnessLiving or Mindbody, and maybe a local directory site. Consistency matters here too—use the same name, address, and phone number you used for your NAP audit.
Putting It Together
Getting found isn’t one thing. It’s not just SEO or just reviews or just AI optimization. It’s an ecosystem where each piece affects the others. Your website helps your Google ranking and makes AI recommend you. Your Google Business Profile consistency helps your NAP, which helps trust signals, which helps everything else. It all connects.
If you want to do this yourself and understand the full picture, I’m running a workshop called “Get Found and Get More Customers” on June 16 at the Bend Central Library. It’s 35 dollars, and we’ll walk through every layer of this together. You’ll walk out with a checklist tailored to your business and a clear understanding of what to tackle first.
If you’d rather have someone handle this for you, let’s talk. A one-on-one consultation is the place to start. We can look at where you are right now, identify the biggest gaps, and create a plan that fits your business and your budget.
Either way, you deserve to be found. Let’s make it happen.