Hey there, and welcome back to AI on the Fly.
My name is Ryan Kelly, and I’m your host.
Today, I’m answering the question: how has AI changed local search?
In a previous episode, I talked about how search behavior is shifting away from short phrases like “furnace repair near me” toward longer, more specific prompts such as “who is the best furnace repair company in Sonoma County.” That change reflects how people are searching, but local search itself is not going away.
People are still searching for local businesses. They are still looking for restaurants near them, restaurants in Santa Rosa, California, or carpet cleaners in Petaluma, California. Local intent still exists. The real question is how AI is changing local search and how marketers, business owners, and CMOs need to adapt their frameworks and strategies.
Local search used to be centered almost entirely around Google My Business. You would search for something like Thai restaurants in Santa Rosa, California, and a map would appear along with a few listings, commonly referred to as the Google three pack. The focus was on basic factors such as name, address, phone number accuracy, and listing verification. For a long time, doing just those things was often enough to get visibility.
That has changed.
Local visibility is no longer driven by a single listing. It is now influenced by your entire digital marketing footprint. Reviews matter more than ever, not just the number of reviews, but the quality and specificity of them. AI systems read those reviews closely. Reviews that clearly describe services, experiences, and outcomes carry more weight than vague statements.
Posting regularly to your Google Business Profile matters. Sharing blog content, leadership articles, and proof of expertise matters. AI is evaluating credibility, trust, and relevance across all of these signals, not in isolation.
Local search optimization used to focus heavily on “near me” queries. Now, as search behavior becomes more conversational and specific, content needs to reflect how people actually ask questions. That means targeting topics, services, and intent rather than just short phrases.
Measurement is changing as well. Local marketing success was traditionally measured by traffic, keyword rankings, and three pack placement. Those signals still exist, but new indicators are becoming more important. Engagement, impressions, visibility across platforms, and being cited in AI overviews all matter.
You may see less website traffic over time, and that alone is not a reason to panic. In many cases, businesses are seeing more conversions even with fewer clicks because AI-driven discovery does not always require a website visit. Being cited as a trusted source can lead directly to calls, bookings, and purchases.
That makes conversion tracking more important than ever.
Local optimization is no longer about a single tactic. It is about a search-everywhere approach. Posting to Google Business Profiles, earning high-quality reviews, maintaining strong social signals, creating the right content, and aligning all of those signals toward the same local intent.
If you want to be found locally, build a cohesive local strategy where every signal supports the same goal. That is how modern local marketing optimization works.
AI is changing the rules quickly. If you want to stay current on what matters and what’s coming next, subscribe to the channel for more episodes of AI on the Fly.