AI search is evolving fast, and South African businesses have an opportunity to lead by becoming the source—not just chasing the click. By building local authority, using structured data, and aligning your content with what AI engines are trained to trust, you’ll future-proof your visibility and stay ahead of your competitors by appearing in AI results.
Here are seven suggestions that will help you site in getting noticed by the bots that power tomorrow’s searches.
Be a Credible, Local Source
AI tools favour trusted, authoritative content. In a South African context, this means:
- Publishing useful, expert-driven local content (e.g., “How to register a business in SA” or “Best schools in Sandton”).
- Keeping your blog or website updated with relevant advice, case studies, or insights tied to your sector.
- Linking to credible SA sources like News24, Bizcommunity, or MyBroadband.
Get Listed on Local and Global Trusted Platforms
AI models often pull from structured data and trusted platforms. Make sure your business is represented on:
- Wikipedia and Wikidata (or mentioned on pages that are)
- Local news websites (e.g., Daily Maverick, TimesLive, Moneyweb)
- Business directories like Brabys, and Yellow Pages
- LinkedIn and Google Business Profile
Add Schema Markup to Your Site
Google and AI engines use structured data (schema) to understand your content. This is especially important for local business pages.
Use schema types like:
- LocalBusiness, Organization, Product
- FAQ, HowTo, Event
- Review, Service
Optimise for “Zero-Click” and Featured AI Summaries
AI often pulls content from:
- Google’s featured snippets
- FAQs
- Tables, bullet lists, and how-to sections
Make your website easy to summarise by:
- Writing clear answers to common SA questions (e.g., “What is UIF?” or “How does load shedding affect SMEs?”)
- Structuring content with headings, bullet points, and short paragraphs
Strengthen Your Local Entity Online
AI models understand entities like people, places, and businesses.
For South African businesses:
- Claim and optimise your Google Business Profile
- Get listed in local directories with accurate contact details
- Link your business across platforms (your site, LinkedIn, company listings)
Get Cited and Shared
AI search engines pick up on content that’s referenced elsewhere—especially on high-authority or local sites.
Ways to build mentions in SA:
- Partner with local influencers or micro-influencers
- Collaborate with industry bodies or chambers of commerce
- Write thought leadership articles for platforms like Bizcommunity, ITWeb, or Entrepreneur SA
- AI models increasingly pull content from Reddit and Quora—answering localised questions there can pay off too.
Make Your Website AI-Friendly
Make sure your site is:
- Mobile-friendly (critical in SA where mobile traffic dominates)
- Fast-loading, especially on slower data connections
- Easy to crawl (no blocked resources or JavaScript obstructions)
- Secure (use HTTPS)
If you want assistance in getting your site to Appear on AI Search Results in South Africa reach out to IMS today on info@imsolutions.co.za or 087 822 1488.
