Aaron Jacob Jones

I'm not trying to insult anybody here but... Local businesses are still the absolute slowest to adapt to things that'll actually help them grow quickly. In one specific case it is costing them 10s of thousands of dollars every month. If you are ignoring the free traffic + sales you could be getting from ChatGPT and Google right now, you will be playing painful catch up in 2026 and 2027. Here is how to fix that without hiring expensive outside help. And if you want the private ChatGPT and Perplexity cheat codes we have been testing, just Follow + RT + Comment “2025 Local Guide.” You must do all 3 for the DM. Alright, let’s start at the top. Google and AI engines both rank based on authority and entity trust. They use different methods but the core signals overlap. For local businesses that means: PR and backlinks from locally trusted sites Brand mentions that reinforce your entity NAP and schema consistency across the entire web Structured, crawlable, and up-to-date business information Skip authority and you won't exist even for ZIP level searches. A few proven local authority plays: Partner with complementary local businesses for link swaps (there's room for creativity here; DM me/reply with your local biz if you need some tips) Pitch seasonal tips or cost data to neighborhood blogs and news outlets Submit to high trust local directories Sponsor school or charity events to earn recap backlinks Get featured in “Best of [City]” and local guides These placements are especially important now because a fairly large analysis from Yext in 2025 showed that a lot of AI citations come from brand controlled or brand adjacent sources. This means local publications, directories, and branded pages matter more than ever. Want a shortcut? SEO Stuff’s Gold Plan places links only on sites already surfacing in AI search results and that have proven authority. Check out the case studies I posted this week if you're interested. That said, authority alone is not enough. Your Google Business Profile is now one of the strongest signals for AI and Google combined. As of late 2025, ChatGPT and Gemini both pull GBP fields into their AI Overviews. This is backed by research from BrightLocal which shows GBP URLs and business sites appear heavily in ChatGPT local answers. GBP optimization checklist: Complete every field Upload at least 100 geo tagged photos Post weekly updates Add Q and A entries Reply to every review with service and location terms Maintain NAP consistency across directories GBP is now a required foundation for visibility in Maps, AI Overviews, and local ChatGPT recommendations. Next, build high quality service and location pages. AI Overviews often surface location pages above the map pack. To earn those placements you need structured, local, query aligned content. Every ZIP and neighborhood page should include: Embedded Google Map Local job photos and staff images Videos FAQ block with exact match city questions Internal links to main service and contact pages FAQ schema on all pages Fast mobile first layout Think of each page as an AI friendly Answer Hub. Now on to reviews. Gemini and Perplexity now pull review text into local summaries. Yext research also confirmed reviews are one of the most common brand controlled citation sources in AI answers. Your move: Request reviews through SMS and email as soon as service is completed Show top reviews on your site and GBP Reply using keywords and location Target 150 or more reviews per location More reviews create more machine readable mentions, which increases AI citation likelihood. Next, we need to talk technical SEO. Google and AI systems both rely on clean, structured, fast, and crawlable sites. Slow or broken sites lose both human users and AI engines. Local technical checklist: Core Web Vitals within thresholds Lazy load images and convert to WebP or AVIF Submit XML sitemap to Google and Bing Remove broken links and fix redirect chains Implement LocalBusiness, Service, Review, FAQ and Event schema Allow AI crawlers A technically sound site improves crawl efficiency for Google and improves confidence scoring for AI systems. Now let’s talk content. Google and ChatGPT both prioritize city specific, structured content with clear takeaways. Create: Hub pages like “Complete Guide to [Service] in [City]” Subpages for each ZIP Seasonal posts Cost breakdown posts Local problem posts “How it works in your city” posts Always include a TLDR or Key Takeaways section. Perplexity often surfaces these word for word. Next, drive branded search. Branded search is now one of the strongest signals for both Google and AI systems. Increasing branded search boosts entity trust. Ways to lift branded search: Post CTAs like “Search [Business Name] reviews on Google” Share localized customer stories Run retargeting with 5 star reviews Offer city specific promotions Even a small increase in branded search volume can significantly improve AI visibility. Finally, track the right metrics. Traffic means nothing if it does not turn into calls. What to measure: Branded search growth GBP views, calls and directions AI Overview and ChatGPT citation coverage Review growth and keyword usage Conversion rates on service pages Off site brand mentions These are the signals that correlate with AI citations and local bookings. Mind you, most local businesses still: Ignore GBP Have under 50 reviews Have trash technical SEO Publish no city specific content Which is why they are a non-factor in ChatGPT, Perplexity, Gemini and Google AI Overviews. Follow this roadmap and you will own visibility where customers are actually searching. Want the done for you version? Try the Gold Plan at SEO Stuff dot com and see why more than 80 percent of customers return for multiple purchases. If you want the private ChatGPT and Perplexity cheat codes we have been testing, Follow + RT + Comment “2025 Local Guide.” You must do all 3 for the DM.