Is Your SEO Ready for AI Search? What Small Businesses Need to Know in 2025

AI is changing the rules of SEO and fast. Tools like Google's Search Generative Experience (SGE) and Microsoft’s AI-powered Bing are already rewriting how people search, how results appear, and who gets seen online.

For small business owners in Brisbane, this isn't a distant trend. It’s happening now, and it’s reshaping how your customers find you.

If your SEO strategy still looks like it did three years ago (focused on rankings, keywords, and backlinks) you might well be losing ground to your competitors already. In this article, we’ll explain what AI search is, why it matters to your business, and the specific steps you can take to stay visible in 2025 and beyond.

Are you adapting your SEO strategy for AI search?

1. What Is AI Search and Why Should You Care?

AI search refers to search engine features powered by artificial intelligence, particularly large language models (LLMs). Instead of showing a list of links, AI search tools aim to understand your query and provide a conversational, summarised answer right in the results.

With Google’s SGE, for example, users might ask 'how do I find a reliable accountant in Brisbane?' and get a full AI-generated answer with recommendations, reviews, and summaries, before they even scroll to the traditional search results. If your business isn’t feeding into those answers, you might have just missed out on a client.

2. The End of Keyword Stuffing: Why Context Now Matters More

Traditional SEO rewarded pages optimised around a single keyword. Think 'Brisbane tax accountant' repeated five times in a 300-word page. But AI models read content more like a human would, looking for natural language, real answers, and helpful detail.

✅ Fix it: Focus on writing comprehensive, context-rich content. Think FAQs, how-to guides, local case studies, and service explainers. Your website should help solve real problems, because that’s the content AI will use to generate answers.

3. Your Google Business Profile Is Your New Homepage

Google is increasingly pulling data from your Google Business Profile (GBP) to populate AI answers. This includes your services, reviews, operating hours, and Q&A responses, all of which shape how your business is represented in AI-powered search.

For local service businesses, your GBP is often the first (and sometimes only) place a customer interacts with you. AI search is amplifying this trend by treating your profile as a trusted source of data.

✅ Fix it: Fully complete your profile, post updates, answer questions, and encourage customer reviews. Each update improves your visibility and trust in the eyes of AI search engines.

4. From Backlinks to Topical Authority: Depth Is the New Domain Rank

In the past, SEO success often came down to how many other sites linked to you. But AI search is shifting focus to sites that demonstrate deep expertise in specific topics. This is called 'topical authority'.

If your website offers real depth — like detailed guides, common questions, real-world examples, and clear service breakdowns — AI tools are more likely to use your content in their answers.

This is especially true in service-based niches like healthcare, finance, legal, or trade services.

✅ Fix it: Build out a hub of related content for each major service you offer. Link the articles together. Show that you’re not just offering a service — you’re an expert in your field.

AI search will value 'topical authority' over simple backlinks

5. Structured Data and Schema: Helping AI Understand Your Site

AI models rely heavily on structured data to understand your site’s content. Schema markup helps search engines know that your page is about a service, a review, an FAQ, or a business location, not just a blob of text.

✅ Fix it: Use schema markup (like LocalBusiness, Service, Review, and FAQ schemas) on every relevant page. Many website platforms (like Wix and WordPress) allow you to add schema using plugins or built-in tools (no coding required).

6. Zero-Click Search Is Here: Plan for Fewer Visits, More Visibility

With AI search, users often get the answers they need without clicking through to your website. That means your traditional web traffic numbers might drop, but your brand visibility could rise. The goal isn’t just to get clicks, it’s to get seen and trusted.

✅ Fix it: Treat visibility in AI answers like a new SEO goal. Focus on owning key informational spaces with helpful, high-quality content. You’re building familiarity, and that leads to conversions later, even if the user doesn’t click right away.

The Bottom Line: Adapt or Fade

AI search is changing how people find small businesses, and fast. You can’t afford to wait.

At Substrate Media, we help service-based businesses in Brisbane adjust their SEO strategies for the age of AI: building content that gets found, read, and trusted by both people and algorithms.

Want to know if your site is ready for the AI-driven future of search? Get in touch and we'll help you find out.