The numbers behind the noise.
We read the industry reports so you don't have to. Plain-English takeaways on social media, AI visibility, SEO and LinkedIn, with every number linked to its original source.
AI is answering your customers' questions. Here's how to be in the answer
AI summaries are taking clicks from normal search results. What the latest research from Pew, Ahrefs and Ofcom means for your business, and what to do about it.
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45% of people now ask AI for local recommendations. Is your business on the list?
BrightLocal's 2026 survey found AI tools jumped from 6% to 45% as a source of local business recommendations. What it means for local businesses in Dorset and Hampshire.
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Why LinkedIn thought leadership beats another sales brochure
Edelman and LinkedIn's research shows 73% of B2B buyers trust thought leadership more than marketing materials. Here's how to use that on LinkedIn.
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Social media is now your AI reputation
Why social media and content now feed AI recommendations, with data from Pew Research, Semrush and DataReportal.
Read itIndustry numbers worth knowing.
The stats we use on this site, where they come from and when they were published. Check them yourself: we'd encourage it.
| Stat | What it means | Source |
|---|---|---|
| 45% | of consumers now use AI tools like ChatGPT to find local business recommendations, up from 6% a year earlier. | BrightLocal, Local Consumer Review Survey 2026 (1,002 US adults, Feb 2026) |
| 58% | fewer clicks go to the number one Google result when an AI Overview appears above it. | Ahrefs, 300,000-keyword study, Feb 2026 |
| 8% | of Google searches with an AI summary led to a click on a normal result, versus 15% without one. Clicks on links inside the summary: 1%. | Pew Research Center, July 2025 (US adults, March 2025 browsing data) |
| 53% | of UK adults say they often see AI summaries in their search results. Around 30% of searches now show one. | Ofcom, Online Nation 2025 (Dec 2025) |
| 2bn+ | people a month see Google's AI Overviews, across more than 200 countries. | Alphabet Q2 2025 earnings call, reported by TechCrunch (Jul 2025) |
| 800m | people use ChatGPT every week. | OpenAI DevDay, Oct 2025, reported by TechCrunch |
| 4.4x | more valuable: the average visitor from AI search, compared with a traditional organic search visitor (based on conversion rate). | Semrush AI search study, Jul 2025 |
| 15% | of sources cited in Google's AI summaries came from just three sites: Wikipedia, YouTube and Reddit. | Pew Research Center, July 2025 |
| 55.5m | social media user identities in the UK, equal to 79.7% of the population. | DataReportal, Digital 2026: United Kingdom |
| 68.9% | of the UK population is the equivalent size of LinkedIn's UK audience. | DataReportal, Digital 2026: United Kingdom |
| 73% | of B2B buyers say thought leadership is a more trustworthy way to judge a company than its marketing materials. | Edelman & LinkedIn, 2024 B2B Thought Leadership Impact Report |
| 95% | of business buyers are not actively looking to buy at any given moment. Thought leadership is how you reach them before they are. | Edelman & LinkedIn, 2024 B2B Thought Leadership Impact Report |
| 97% | of consumers read online reviews when choosing a local business. | BrightLocal, Local Consumer Review Survey 2026 |
Some studies cover US consumers only; we say so where that's the case. Figures are checked at the time of writing and we update them as new reports are published.
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