Thryv® (NASDAQ: THRY), Australia and New Zealand’s leading AI-enabled SaaS platform for local service businesses, says small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) are entering one of the biggest shifts in customer discovery since the rise of Google™ Search, as AI changes how consumers find, compare and choose local businesses.

For years, small businesses have competed to be seen. Print advertising, directories, search rankings, Google Ads and social media all helped businesses appear where customers were looking. With AI-powered search, being seen isn’t enough, being recommended becomes the key.
That shift is giving rise to Answer Engine Optimisation (AEO), which focuses on helping AI systems understand, cite and recommend a business when customers ask specific, decision-ready questions.

Australian and New Zealand customers are increasingly asking AI assistants deeper, more specific questions. Instead of searching through pages of business links, a customer may ask for a trusted electrician who is available this week, services their suburb, has strong recent reviews, offers online booking and appears reliable enough to contact.

That changes the strategic focus, as SMBs are no longer only competing to be found. They are competing to be accessible, understood, and recommended.

Thryv’s 2025 Business Index and Consumer Report found 59 per cent of Australian SMBs and 56 per cent of New Zealand SMBs are using AI, including AI-enabled software. The same report identified a digital visibility gap, with more than 72 per cent of Australian SMBs and 75 per cent of New Zealand SMBs believing they have a strong digital profile, compared with only 49 per cent and 52 per cent of consumers who agree.

Rob Hayden, Global Manager, AI Innovation, Thryv, said AI is changing where SMB discovery happens and businesses need to position themselves as problem-solvers to stand out to AI engines and customers.

“For SMBs, the biggest change is not AI itself. It is where and how discovery happens,” Rob said.

“The old journey was relatively simple. A customer searched, saw a list of links and clicked through to a website. The new journey is vastly different. A customer asks an AI tool a complete question, the tool synthesises information and may recommend only one or two options.”

From search intent to decision intent

A traditional search such as “dentist in Wellington” gives a business a chance to appear among options. An AI-led query, such as “find me a highly rated dentist near Wellington that offers Saturday appointments and is good with nervous patients”, carries far more commercial intent.

The customer is not simply looking for links – they are asking AI to narrow the field by outlining their specific needs.
This is the distinction between traditional Search Engine Optimisation and Answer Engine Optimisation. SEO helps a business compete for visibility in a list of results. AEO helps a business become the answer an AI system can confidently surface, by making the who, what, why, how and when of that business clear across its digital footprint.

According to Rob, this raises the standard for SMB visibility.

“Search taught businesses to think about keywords. AEO asks businesses to think about answers. AI tools are looking for the business that best fits the customer’s exact need with the least uncertainty. That means clear service descriptions, accurate locations, current reviews, consistent listings, relevant proof points and simple booking or enquiry pathways all matter.”

Why clarity now does more of the selling

AI-led discovery means a business’s digital footprint now plays a much more sophisticated role in how it is found, interpreted and recommended.

That includes its website, Google Business Profile™, reviews, service descriptions, location data, opening hours, booking options, customer communication systems and third-party mentions.

From an AEO perspective, these elements need to answer the practical questions customers already ask, such as who the service is for, what is included, why the business is credible, how customers can take the next step and when they can expect a response.

Rob said many SMBs still treat these elements separately, when they increasingly need to work together.

“A business is no longer advertising only through the campaign it runs,” Rob said.

“It is advertising through the clarity and consistency of every place it shows up online. If the website says one thing, the listing says another and the opening hours are outdated somewhere else, that creates uncertainty.”

“In the AI era, uncertainty is expensive. It can be the difference between being recommended and being left out of the answer. The better you describe your product or service offering, the more likely AI engines are to surface your business in targeted results, and you’ll spend less time following up irrelevant leads that don’t match what your business offers.”

Reviews are becoming recommendation signals

AI can detect patterns across reviews, including whether customers repeatedly mention fast response times, specialist expertise, reliability, clear communication, transparent pricing or care.

“Reviews have always helped build trust, however in an AI-led customer journey, they become part of the evidence layer,” Rob said.
“AI can read the language beneath the rating. It can see what customers praise you for, who you appear to serve best and when people are most likely to recommend you.”

“SMBs should not be asking for generic reviews. They should be encouraging customers to mention what was done, what problem was solved and what made the experience valuable.”

Websites need to answer common questions

Business websites must evolve from digital brochures into practical evidence layers that help customers and AI tools understand who the business serves, what it does and when it should be recommended.

Rather than relying on broad claims such as ‘customer-first solutions’ or ‘quality service you can trust’, businesses need clear descriptions that make their offering easy to interpret.

Practical AEO also means structuring website content around the questions customers are likely to ask. That can include clear headings, concise answers, service-area information, FAQs, pricing guidance where appropriate, response times, booking pathways and proof that supports the business’s claims.

Rob said AI favours clarity over cleverness.

“If AI cannot confidently summarise what a business does, who it helps and when it should be recommended, the business has a visibility problem,” Rob said.

“SMBs do not need to sound bigger than they are. They need to be unambiguous. The goal is for a customer, a search engine and an AI tool to all understand the same thing.”

The next era belongs to the recommendable business

Rob said AI-led discovery could create an advantage for focused, well-run SMBs, particularly when customers are looking for local expertise, specialist services and trusted providers.

“AI can be very good news for focused SMBs,” Rob said.

“A specialist local business with clear services, strong reviews, accurate listings and a smooth enquiry process can be a better fit for a customer than a larger brand with a bigger budget. AEO is about making a business’s real strengths easier to recognise, verify and recommend.

“The next era of advertising will not only be shaped by who spends the most, but also by who can position themselves as the answer to the natural language questions that customers will be asking of their AI tools.”

For SMBs, the question is no longer ‘How do I rank?’, but how easy am I making it for AI tools to recommend me as the solution.

ENDS

About Thryv
Thryv (NASDAQ: THRY) is an AI-enabled global marketing platform that helps small businesses (SMBs) get found online faster, win more customers, and drive repeat business. Thryv software offers SMBs AI-driven lead insights, automated customer follow‑up and an AI-enabled contact list. Thryv is making growth‑focused AI tools accessible to the plumber, salon owner, contractor, lawyer, accountant and more. Over 200K+ businesses globally use Thryv to market, sell, and grow. For more information, visit https://www.thryv.com.au/.
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