Clear Before Clever (And Why AI Isn’t Your First Problem)

New technology tends to arrive with urgency. Foundations rarely do.

The Situation

Apparently, if you’re not being “recommended by AI”, your business is invisible.

It is true that more people are beginning their research for surveyors through tools like ChatGPT or Google Gemini. Clients are exploring differently. Questions are being asked in new places.

If visibility and marketing are not your natural territory, that shift can create anxiety - especially when you’re running your own practice and already juggling enough.

Yet, when I look at most local firms’ digital presence, I don’t see an AI problem.

I see unfinished basics:

• Incomplete Google Business profiles
• Outdated accreditation references
• Vague service descriptions
• Missing service areas
• Different phone numbers across platforms

None of these is a deal breaker, but they add up. Most are free to correct.

So before worrying about artificial intelligence assessing “credibility signals”, it may be worth asking whether the fundamentals are clear, consistent and current.

Because AI, for the most part, surfaces what already exists. If the foundations are inconsistent, that inconsistency is what gets amplified.

Three Takeaways

1. Specific beats generic — every time

There may be a time to think about algorithms, but most surveyors don’t need to start there.

It starts with clarity.

If someone, a human or a machine, looks at your online presence for 30 seconds, can they answer:

• What discipline you practise
• What type of property you typically inspect
• Where you operate
• Who you most often help

“General practice” or “residential surveys” might make sense to us, but to the public, it feels vague.

Specific language reduces friction.
It signals confidence.
It lowers uncertainty at the first touchpoint.

That’s what helps someone decide whether to pick up the phone or drop an email.

2. “Trusted platforms” require thought, not just presence

You’ll often hear advice to “get listed on trusted sites”. But trusted by whom? And under what governance?

For example, a listing with your regulatory body carries more weight than a pay-to-appear directory that generates leads, and they attract different types of clients - think quality versus cheap.

Visibility without considering moderation standards, dispute processes, review controls, and professional indemnity alignment isn’t a strategy.

It’s exposure and for surveyors operating within regulated and insured environments, reputation management is never just marketing.

It’s risk management.

3. AI hasn’t replaced the human layer

Most residential instructions still arise through:

• Estate agent conversations
• Broker recommendations
• Repeat clients
• Local reputation

AI may sit at the research stage, but trust is still built relationally.

A clear digital presence supports that trust - it doesn’t replace it.

When firms panic about “AI visibility”, what I often see underneath is something more familiar — the pressure of running a small business. And sometimes it isn’t the technology that’s difficult. It’s that updating profiles, checking consistency and refining wording feels… boring. Our technical work is more interesting.

But adding another layer of urgency rarely helps. Foundations you understand and feel confident about, do.

Where I’d Start

Before investing energy in optimisation strategies, it may be worth asking:

If someone unfamiliar with your firm searched for you today, would they see something accurate, specific and governed?

And, what support - if any - would make the practical side feel manageable rather than burdensome?

Most firms are closer than they think.

The reassuring part is this:

The foundations cost nothing - but they do require attention.

Until next time,
Marion

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