52% of Consumers Now Use AI to Find Local Businesses, but 81% Check Before They Call

Think about a call that comes in at 7pm. A homeowner's water heater is leaking, so they ask ChatGPT for a plumber nearby, and it names three companies. But they don't call any of them yet. They open Google, read the reviews for each one, and check who's open tonight. Then they call.

New survey data says that's how most people now pick a local business. AI helps them build a short list, and then they check each name on their own before they call. So the reviews, the listing, and the website that customers check matter as much as getting named.

What does the new data say?

About half of consumers now use AI to find local businesses. SOCi, a local marketing software company, surveys more than 1,000 US consumers every year for its Local Discovery Index. In this year's survey, 52% said they had used an AI tool to find a local business in the last 30 days. A year earlier, that number was 9%.^[1]

That's close to a sixfold jump in one year. AI still trails regular search, though. In the same survey, 83% use search to find local businesses, 55% use social media, and 52% use AI.

A second survey points the same way. BrightLocal, a local search research firm, published its 2026 survey of 1,002 US consumers in February. Use of ChatGPT and other AI tools for local recommendations rose from 6% the year before to 45%.^[2]

The two surveys asked slightly different questions, so the numbers don't match exactly. But both show AI going from a rare habit to a common one in about a year.

Who is using AI to find local businesses?

Millennials and higher earners lead, but plenty of other people use it too. In the SOCi survey, 63% of Millennials use AI regularly, along with 49% of Gen Z and 48% of Gen X. Baby Boomers are far behind at 11%. Regular use also rises with income, from 47% of people earning under $50,000 a year to 76% of those earning $100,000 or more.^[1]

ChatGPT is the most common tool, used by 57%, followed by Gemini at 51%. And 51% have seen an AI answer at the top of Google's results. So even people who never open ChatGPT are reading AI summaries about local businesses.

The survey also looked at where people start their search. Healthcare had the highest share of searches that started with AI, at 21%. So if you run a dental, medical, or veterinary practice, a new patient is more likely to find you through an AI answer than in most other categories.

Why do 81% of people double-check what AI tells them?

Because AI is often wrong about local businesses. Among consumers who use AI tools, 67% say they've been given wrong information about a local business at least once. And 30% say that bad information caused them a real inconvenience.^[1]

People have noticed. Only 27% say their trust in AI grew over the past year, and 23% say it went down. So when AI names a business, 81% of consumers take some kind of step to check it before they reach out.

In other words, getting named by AI is the first step, not the last one. It works a lot like a referral from someone you don't know well. It gets you considered, but the customer still wants proof.

What do people check before they call?

Reviews come first. Here's how the 81% who check break down in SOCi's survey:

1. 33% check the business's reviews.
2. 20% check the business's social media.
3. 16% search again to confirm the details on their own.
4. 12% check several sources.

Only 19% go straight from an AI recommendation to calling or booking.^[1]

Reviews matter outside of AI too. In the same survey, 99% of consumers read reviews before a first visit at least some of the time, and 68% do it always or most of the time.

People also read reviews on more sites than they used to. BrightLocal found the share of consumers who use Google for reviews fell from 83% in 2025 to 71% this year. Google is still far ahead, but it's no longer the only place people look.^[2]

So a customer who hears about you from ChatGPT may check Google, Facebook, and Yelp before they pick up the phone.

Why do 72% favor businesses that reply to reviews?

Because a reply shows someone is paying attention. In SOCi's survey, 72% said they're more likely to choose a business that responds to its reviews, up from 65% in 2025.^[1]

Replies help most with bad reviews. 65% said they'd be more likely to come back after a helpful response to a negative review. And 87% said they'd be more likely to change a negative review to a positive one if the business responded helpfully.

Think about a roofer who gets a two-star review about a crew that showed up late. A short reply that says what happened and how it was fixed tells the next reader you take problems seriously. And the next reader is often someone who just got your name from an AI tool.

5 things to do this month

Each of these covers something a customer checks after AI gives them your name.

1. Ask ChatGPT and Gemini about your business

Type your service and your town, like "best HVAC company in Plano," and see who gets named. Then ask about your business by name. Write down anything that's wrong, like your hours, services, service area, or phone number.

What to do: Fix wrong details where they came from. That usually means your Google Business Profile, your website, and the big directories. AI tools pull from those, so a wrong number in one place can end up in an answer. BrightLocal gives the same advice: check the sources AI tools reference, and ask for a correction when something is wrong.^[2]

2. Reply to every new review this week

Start with the most recent ones, because those are what people read first. Keep replies short, thank the customer by name, and mention the job when you can.

Pro tip: Set a simple rule, like replying within two business days, and stick to it. If replies keep slipping, review management for local businesses can draft them so you only have to read and approve.

3. Make your website answer what people check

16% of people search again to confirm the details. Your website is one of the places they land. Your AI local business website should state your hours, service area, services, and how pricing works in plain sentences, on pages that load fast on a phone. When something changes, update the site the same day, so the facts people find match what's true.

4. Add live chat so visitors can ask questions

SOCi found that 63% of consumers have walked away from a business that couldn't answer a question they needed answered.^[1]

A customer who checks you out after an AI recommendation often lands on your website with one more question. Do you cover their town? Do you work Saturdays? Can you come out this week? If the answer isn't on the page they're reading, it's easy to go back to the list and try the next name.

Live chat gives them a way to ask right there, in their own words, without picking up the phone. That matters most at night and on weekends, when nobody is in the office to take a call.

What to do: List the questions your office answers most often, and make sure your site answers each one. Then add chat for everything else. If no one can watch it after hours, an AI website chat for local businesses can answer from your own pages and take down the visitor's details so you can follow up.

5. Post real work on social media once a week

20% check a business's social media after an AI recommendation. Among people who use social media to find local businesses, Facebook (73%) and YouTube (69%) lead.^[1]

A photo of a finished job with the town name is enough. It shows the business is active and that the name on the AI's list is a real company doing real work.

What doesn't this survey tell you?

A few limits are worth knowing. SOCi sells local marketing software, so it has a stake in these findings. It didn't publish the dates it ran the survey. And its published results break out categories like restaurants, grocery, and healthcare, but not home services.

So use the exact percentages as a rough guide for your market. The direction is clear, though, and it matches BrightLocal's survey. More customers start with AI, and almost all of them still check reviews before they choose.

What should you do next?

Start with one search. Ask ChatGPT about your service and your town, and see whether you're named and whether the details are right. Then read your last ten reviews the way a stranger would.

If you'd like help keeping up with all of this, it's what we built Pantora to do. We track what AI tools say about your business, draft replies to your reviews, keep your website up to date, and answer visitors' questions in chat so a customer who already checked you out doesn't leave for the next name. You approve the work from one inbox in a few minutes a week.