Ghostd Releases Guide to Boost Small Business Visibility in AI Searches
News related to:Ghostd · 2 min read
Ghostd, an AI visibility platform, has released a guide aimed at helping small businesses improve their chances of appearing in AI search recommendations.
According to Todd Wandtke, CEO and co-founder of Ghostd, traditional page one rankings on Google are becoming less significant as AI tools increasingly dominate search results.
The guide identifies five key signals that AI tools tend to consider when recommending businesses. These include clarity about what a business does, consistent information across listings, independent validation from reviews and reputable mentions, helpful expertise, and well-structured websites.
The guide provides practical advice for small businesses to improve their visibility in AI searches. It suggests keeping website and listing information consistent, turning common customer questions into online content, encouraging detailed reviews, publishing practical expertise, and asking AI tools the same questions customers ask to see which businesses appear.
Executive Staffing Solutions, a Ghostd customer, adopted the platform as AI search began changing how staffing firms are found.
The guide is available at ghostd.ai/no-bs-guide-ai-search-visibility.
Research from Seer Interactive found that organic click-through rates fell by more than half between mid-2024 and late 2025 on informational Google searches where an AI Overview appeared. McKinsey research from August 2025 found that 44% of AI-powered search users treat it as their primary source of insight, compared with 31% for traditional search. OpenAI reported more than 900 million weekly active ChatGPT users in February 2026.
The guide outlines that AI tools tend to recommend businesses with the strongest public evidence of trust. It identifies five signals Ghostd has observed in AI behavior, which are clarity about what a business does, consistent information across listings, independent validation from reviews and reputable mentions, helpful expertise, and well-structured websites. The guide notes that these are observed patterns, since AI companies do not publish every factor their systems use.
The guide illustrates the point with two HVAC companies whose technicians are equally skilled. One has a thin homepage, mismatched listings, and years-old reviews, while the other explains every service, keeps its details consistent, and publishes seasonal maintenance advice. According to the guide, the second company gives AI far more evidence to support a recommendation.
The guide recommends five starting points that do not require advertising spend. They include keeping website and listing information consistent, turning common customer questions into online content, encouraging detailed reviews, publishing practical expertise, and asking AI tools the same questions customers ask to see which businesses appear. The guide also states that AI answers vary from one query to the next and that no tool, including Ghostd, can guarantee a recommendation.
Executive Staffing Solutions, a Ghostd customer, adopted the platform as AI search began changing how staffing firms are found.
It was the first time she'd seen that, so they knew they were on the right track. They were impressed at how quickly they began to see results.
The No-BS Guide to AI Search Visibility is available at ghostd.ai/no-bs-guide-ai-search-visibility.