In the last two months, something surprisingly wonderful has happened in my business. And yes, it has to do with AI.
Two new clients came to me after asking an AI tool to recommend a business coach. They didn’t come through Google Ads, LinkedIn, or referrals from my network. They literally typed a question into AI and lo and behold, my name came up. Not once, but twice.
One asked Perplexity to find a “legitimate business coach for creative businesses.”
The other asked for “a female business coach for online businesses.”
Both ended up on my website, booked a call, and are now clients.
I don’t know about you, but I find that fascinating. Especially since in my Nail It & Scale It® container I teach 21 lead generation strategies and tactics, and I’m going to have to add number 22 to the list. So this is the start of figuring out why I’m getting recommended by AI, understanding that to turn it into a repeatable framework and then double down on it.
Of course there is a lot of chatter around AI online, mostly people cursing the em dash and complaining how every social media post and all the comments are AI generated. But, AI is here and let’s leave the whining and moaning and figure out how to turn this into a unique advantage point.
Back to my wonderful new clients (who also by the way are absolute dream clients). I haven’t been secretly optimising for AI, in fact I’m ashamed to admit it hadn’t yet occurred to me to use it for lead generation. Most of my focus has been on running Google Ads, keeping my website updated and banging my head against a wall trying to get Meta ads working for my business again (that’s a long story which requires a stiff, tall drink). But clearly there’s something I’ve done or I’m doing that is sending the right signals to these AI tools.
Why AI Recommended Me As a Business Coach
Here’s what I think is working and ChatGPT backed me up on these points too.
A clear, credible website
I do get compliments from human users that my website makes it clear what I do, who I help and what results client can expect. AI agents need structured data to interpret what your business does or what your services are. If your website is well built as well as being jargon free, clutter free and full of clarity that’s a great starting point.
Reviews that show legitimacy
It’s evident that social proof matters just as much to AI as it does to humans. I have a page full of coaching client testimonials on my website which include written and video testimonials. As well as 20 positive Google reviews for business coaching. I am active on LinkedIn more so than Facebook and Instagram but my online presence is fairly regularly updated.
Niche positioning
A lot of my content talks about coaching for agencies, creative businesses, and established service-based business owners. So when someone asked for a “business coach for creatives,” the AI had an easy connection to make. It doesn’t hurt that some of my blog content might be written in a question format.
Consistent digital footprint
Even though I don’t post daily to Instagram, Facebook or LinkedIn for that matter, I do have a fairly consistent presence across the platforms. This all adds legitimacy to your profile and that’s a good thing in the eyes of the algorithms.
If you look at this Entrepreneur article, it highlights the same points: authority, visibility, and trust signals are what AI leans on when recommending businesses.
What I’m Going to Do Next
If this is already happening for me which I’m stoked about, then I’m trying to imagine what could happen if I double down and nail this as a referral strategy.
The way people search is changing. More and more, instead of Googling, they’re asking AI tools for answers. And if those tools start recommending me consistently, that’s a huge growth lever. Not just for me, but for my clients. I absolutely love geeking out and sharing the stuff that I learn.
So over the next few weeks, I’m going to work on the following:
Start looking at copy that includes more of the exact phrases people would use when asking AI (things like “legitimate business coach,” “female business coach UK,” “business coach for creative businesses”).
Create Q&A style blog posts and content that mirror how people ask these questions (I might even ask you to help me out by asking a question via my GMB page!)
Keep building reviews and asking clients for testimonials that I can share across my website and Google reviews.
Explore structured data and SEO tweaks so it’s easier for AI to categorise me correctly.
Once I have more, I’ll share a detailed “AI search optimisation plan” privately with my clients and email subscribers. Think of it as the next layer down with the step-by-step version of how to show up more when people ask AI tools for recommendations. If you’re curious about how to get your own business recommended by AI, make sure you’re on my email list as that’s where I’ll share the behind-the-scenes playbook.
You can do that below by clicking the “sign me up” button in the footer. Or feel free to head over to https://sian-ai.carrd.co/ to meet the Sian AI GPT that I built to help diagnose bottlenecks in your business.
Why Share This Publicly?
Because I think it’s exciting. Too often, conversations about AI are either hype or negative nelly bashing it. But this is a very real, very practical example of how small business owners can benefit from the shift in how people search for answers.
And if it’s working for me, there’s no reason it can’t work for other legitimate, high-quality businesses too.
Watch this space. I’ll keep sharing what I learn.
