Someone asked AI about your business this week. Do you know what it said?

I want to talk about something that has been on my mind a lot lately, and I would genuinely love to know what you think about it.

More and more people are not Googling businesses any more. They are asking ChatGPT, Perplexity or whatever AI tool lives on their phone. And instead of getting ten links to sift through, they get one answer. One recommendation. A couple of names the AI has decided to trust.

Which raises a question that should make every business owner sit up a bit.

When someone asks AI who to use in your industry, does your name come up? And if it does, what does it actually say about you?

Here is what I find fascinating about this shift. The AI tools are not choosing who to recommend based on who has the glossiest website or the biggest ad budget. They are pulling from real conversations, genuine reviews, people talking about their actual experiences and content made by real humans with real opinions.

In other words, the polished corporate stuff we have all been told to produce for years carries less weight than a customer honestly explaining why they rate you.

I will be honest, I think that is brilliant.

For years the businesses with the deepest pockets could simply buy visibility. Now the machines deciding who gets recommended are looking for something money cannot fake: proof that real people trust you.

It means your reputation is no longer just what shows up on page one of Google. It is everything the internet knows about you, pulled together and summarised in seconds by a tool you have no control over.

That sounds scary, but I actually think it is an opportunity, especially for smaller businesses.

Because the answer is not another rebrand or a bigger ad spend. It is being visibly, credibly, consistently yourself. Sharing what you actually know. Having opinions. Letting your customers talk about you. Showing your face and sounding like a human, not a brochure.

The businesses that have been doing that all along, often the smaller ones without big marketing departments, are quietly becoming the ones AI trusts most. Meanwhile some very big brands with very expensive websites are invisible in these answers, because there is no genuine human trail behind the polish.

Substance is finally beating shine. About time, frankly.

Here is where I will put my cards on the table.

I think a lot of businesses have spent the last few years making content that looks the part but says nothing. Pretty posts, safe messaging, no opinions, no people. And that approach was already struggling, but this shift might be what finally kills it.

Have you ever actually asked an AI tool about your own business? Typed in "who is the best [what you do] near me" and seen what comes back?

If you have, what did it say? Were you in the answer at all?

And if you have not, what is stopping you?

I would love to hear what you find. Drop me a message or comment wherever you have found this post, because I think the answers are going to surprise a lot of people, and I do not think enough business owners are asking the question yet.

Let's start the conversation.

Stephanie Smith is Managing Director and Marketing Strategist at We Are JJM, a bold creative marketing agency based in Greater Manchester. We help brands get noticed, remembered and chosen.

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