Which AI Engines Use Reddit, YouTube and Reviews? What It Means for Your Local Business

I’ve been doing SEO since 2006 and building with AI since 2022, and the most common question I get from West Valley business owners right now is some version of “How do I get ChatGPT or Google’s AI to recommend me?” This study is one of the clearest looks yet at where those answers actually come from. Below I’ll walk through what it found, then what I’d do about it if I ran a business in Glendale, Peoria, Surprise or anywhere in the Phoenix metro.

How much user-posted content did each AI engine use?

Searchable checked sources from October 12 to 25, 2026, across 3.2 million pages. Google AI Overviews used user posts for 8.6% of sources, Google AI Mode 7.0%, Gemini 1.3%, and ChatGPT and Perplexity 1.1% each. The sample is brand questions, not only plumber-near-me searches.

• Google AI Overviews used the most user posts: 8.6% of its sources, about one in twelve.
• Google AI Mode was close behind at 7.0%.
• The chatbots barely use them: 1.3% for Gemini and 1.1% for both ChatGPT and Perplexity.

One thing caught my eye. Gemini is a Google product, but here it behaves like the chatbots, not like Google Search. So “optimizing for Google AI” is really two jobs: the AI answers inside Google Search, and the Gemini app.

A fair caveat: Searchable measured the questions its own customers (brands) track, not local “plumber near me” searches specifically. It also didn’t report review sites like Yelp or Google reviews separately. Local searches may behave differently, so treat these numbers as a direction, not a rule.

Where do those user posts come from?

Google AI Overviews drew user posts from YouTube at 32.9% and Reddit at 28.7%, then Facebook at 14.1% and LinkedIn at 7.5%. Inside ChatGPT's smaller user-post slice, Reddit was 90%, and 82% for Gemini. Perplexity split Reddit at 47.1% and LinkedIn at 31.5%.

• Google AI Overviews spreads it around: YouTube 32.9%, Reddit 28.7%, Facebook 14.1% and LinkedIn 7.5% of its user-generated sources. YouTube and Reddit together made up 62%, and 69% for AI Mode.
• ChatGPT is almost all Reddit: 90% of its user-generated sources. Gemini is similar at 82%.
• Perplexity splits between Reddit (47.1%) and LinkedIn (31.5%), which matters if you sell to other businesses.

There’s one more finding most people will skip, and it shouldn’t be skipped. A YouTube video or Facebook post isn’t automatically “user-generated.” Searchable found that 44% to 50% of the forum and social pages used by Google AI Overviews, AI Mode, Gemini and Perplexity were posted by brands, publishers or the platform itself (24% for ChatGPT). Your company’s own YouTube channel and Facebook page are still worth having, but they count as your content. They don’t replace what customers and local creators say about you.

Where should a local business start with Google AI Overviews?

Start with Google AI Overviews if you only have time for one engine. They sit on the Google results your customers already use, and they used the most user posts in this study. Google says a page must be indexed and eligible for a snippet. There is no extra file that forces a citation.

Here’s how Google itself describes it. In its guide to generative AI features in Search, Google says AI Overviews and AI Mode are built on its core Search ranking and quality systems. The AI pulls relevant pages from Google’s index and often runs several related searches behind the scenes to fill in the answer. And according to Google’s AI features documentation, a page only has to be indexed and eligible to show with a snippet. There’s no secret extra requirement.

In plain English: if Google can’t find and trust your business in regular search, its AI won’t cite you either. That’s why I tell clients that AI SEO and traditional SEO are built on the same foundation. For the local version, start with the Glendale marketing guide and the Glendale and Phoenix metro pages. Distance from our office at 5836 W Thunderbird Rd, Glendale, AZ 85306 does not limit a client's Maps ranking.

For a local business, Google’s AI answers can draw on four things you can actually influence:

1. Your Google Business Profile. Google specifically says to keep your Business Profile information up to date for its AI features. Hours, categories, services, photos and service areas all need to be right. Start with our Google Business Profile setup guide.
2. Your own website. A clear page for each service, written in plain language, with real details like pricing ranges, the areas you serve and what happens after someone calls.
3. YouTube. It was the biggest single source of user posts in AI Overviews, so short, real videos about your work matter. Videos from independent local creators count most.
4. Reddit and local discussions. When people in subreddits like r/phoenix ask for recommendations, those threads can end up in Google’s answers.

You can also see how your site performs in Google’s AI features with the Generative AI performance report in Google Search Console, which Google points to in its guide.

What should you publish for ChatGPT, Perplexity, and Gemini?

For the chatbots, about 1 in 90 sources was a user post, so nearly everything else was a page a business, publisher, or reference site wrote. Put the service, the area, and the phone number in text on your own site. When ChatGPT or Gemini does use a user post, it is usually Reddit.

• Your website has to answer the question by itself. If someone asks ChatGPT “Who installs water heaters in Peoria?” the answer is far more likely to come from a page that clearly says what you do and where than from a Reddit comment.
• When ChatGPT and Gemini do use user posts, it’s mostly Reddit. If your industry gets discussed there, it’s worth being part of that conversation, honestly.
• Perplexity also leans on LinkedIn. For B2B services, a real, active LinkedIn presence for you and your team helps.

Our guide to getting your business found in AI search walks through the website side step by step.

What should a Glendale business do in the next 30 days?

Clean up the Google Business Profile, ask real customers for specific reviews, film short answers to the questions you hear on the phone, be useful on Reddit as yourself, put one page per service in text, and check what Google and the chatbots say about you once a month. Do not buy reviews.

1. Clean up your Google Business Profile. Choose the right primary category, list your real services, add recent job photos and keep your hours current. If your Maps visibility has slipped, read our Map Pack guide for Glendale and Peoria.
2. Ask every happy customer for a specific review. A review that mentions the service and the neighborhood (“replaced our AC capacitor in Arrowhead the same day”) tells people and AI exactly what you do. Never buy reviews or offer rewards for them.
3. Film five short videos. Answer the five questions you hear most on the phone. Post them to YouTube and embed them on the matching service pages. Then look for local creators who might review your work for real.
4. Be useful on Reddit, as yourself. Answer questions in local subreddits, say who you are, follow each subreddit’s rules and don’t post fake recommendations. Google says chasing inauthentic mentions isn’t as helpful as it might seem, and Reddit communities spot it fast.
5. Make your website the best answer. One page per service, written in text (not buried in images), with the areas you serve, honest price ranges and an obvious phone number. Make sure any schema matches what’s visible on the page.
6. Check what the AI says about you every month. Ask Google, ChatGPT, Perplexity and Gemini the same questions your customers would ask, and note which pages they cite. Fix whatever is wrong or missing at the source.

What AI SEO tactics should a local business skip?

Google says Search does not use llms.txt or special AI markup, and that chopping pages into tiny chunks is not required. Skip fake Reddit posts and bought reviews. Skip anyone who guarantees a spot in AI Overviews. Indexing and showing a page are never guaranteed.

• llms.txt files and “special AI markup.” Google says Google Search doesn’t use them.
• Chopping your pages into tiny chunks or rewriting everything “for AI.” Google says it isn’t needed.
• Fake Reddit posts and bought reviews. Google says its systems are built to block spam, and fake posts can damage your reputation with real customers.
• Anyone who guarantees you a spot in AI Overviews. Google says indexing and showing a page are never guaranteed.

People Also Ask: Google AI Overviews and AI Search Sources

Sources

• Searchable, “Which AI engines use the most user-generated content?” (October 2026). All percentages in this article come from this study unless noted.
• Google Search Central, “Optimizing your website for generative AI features on Google Search”
• Google Search Central, “AI features and your website”
• Search Console Help, “Search generative AI control”
• Search Engine Roundtable, Google’s AI Overviews FAQ