Target sample: 15 to 30 businesses
Roofing
- “best roofer near Coeur d'Alene”
- “who should I call for hail damage roof repair in Post Falls”
- “metal roof installer Hayden Idaho”
Original research / 2026 edition
The North Idaho AI Search Visibility Report 2026
In short
An original, measured study of how often local businesses in Kootenai County, Idaho are named by AI answer engines when residents ask real buying questions. We score each business with the AI Visibility Score, report distributions by vertical, and publish the full method. Fieldwork is under way. No figures are shown until the scans are complete.
By Andrew Eastlick and Josh Rekittke
[ 01 ]Definition
What is AI search visibility?
AI search visibility is how often, and how prominently, a business is named inside answers produced by AI engines such as ChatGPT, Google AI Mode, Google AI Overviews, Gemini and Perplexity when a person asks a buying question in plain language. It is separate from a Google ranking: a business can rank on page one and still never be mentioned in an AI answer.
- Region
- Kootenai County, Idaho
- Verticals
- 6 local verticals
- Engines
- ChatGPT, Perplexity, Google AI Overviews, Gemini
- Target sample
- 100 or more businesses across six verticals
Coeur d'Alene and the surrounding North Idaho area: Coeur d'Alene, Post Falls, Hayden, Rathdrum and nearby communities in Kootenai County.
We will email the PDF edition the day it goes out, plus the headline findings. No other list, no drip sequence.
[ 02 ]Findings
What did the data show?
Findings appear here once the scans are complete. We publish nothing before it is measured.
Status: in field
The scans are running now. This section stays empty on purpose. A benchmark built on a handful of businesses is a testimonial set, not research, so no number appears here until the full sample is measured and exported.
Fieldwork in progress. Publication date will be stated on this page. If you want it in your inbox the day it lands, use the form above.
[ 03 ]Scope
Which verticals and prompts are covered?
Every vertical is scanned with a fixed set of prompts written the way a local resident would ask. The full prompt list publishes with the findings.
Target sample: 15 to 30 businesses
HVAC and home services
- “emergency AC repair Coeur d'Alene”
- “furnace replacement cost Kootenai County”
- “best HVAC company near Rathdrum”
Target sample: 15 to 30 businesses
General construction and custom homes
- “custom home builder Coeur d'Alene”
- “who builds shops and barndominiums in North Idaho”
- “general contractor for a remodel in Hayden”
Target sample: 15 to 30 agents and teams
Real estate
- “best realtor in Coeur d'Alene”
- “who should I use to sell a house in Post Falls”
- “real estate agent for waterfront property North Idaho”
Target sample: 15 to 30 lenders and loan officers
Home lending
- “who should I use for a home loan in Coeur d'Alene”
- “best mortgage lender North Idaho”
- “first time home buyer loan Kootenai County”
Target sample: 15 to 30 businesses
Retail and specialty
- “archery shop near Coeur d'Alene”
- “where to buy outdoor gear in Hayden”
- “best local specialty store Post Falls”
[ 04 ]Methodology
How is the report measured?
Published in full, because a study you cannot check is not a study.
[ 01 ]
Define the frame
Fix the region, the six verticals and the business list before any scan runs. The list mixes our own clients, their benchmarked competitors and other local businesses so the sample is not a client roster.
[ 02 ]
Write the prompt sets
A consistent set of real buyer prompts per vertical, written in the words a resident would actually use. The full prompt list is published with the report.
[ 03 ]
Run every prompt on every engine
Each prompt is run multiple times on ChatGPT, Google AI Mode, Google AI Overviews, Gemini and Perplexity, with the date and surface recorded. AI answers vary between runs, so frequency matters more than any single result.
[ 04 ]
Score and record
Each business gets an AI Visibility Score, a mention rate and an average position, stored with the run dates.
[ 05 ]
Aggregate, never rank publicly
We report distributions, medians and ranges. We do not publish a list of low-scoring businesses. Named examples appear only when the business is a leader and has given permission.
[ 06 ]
Publish limits with the findings
Sample size per vertical, dates, engines and known limits are printed next to the numbers, not buried in a footnote.
AI Visibility Score
0 to 100 roll-up, as defined on our methodology page. Combined across engines in this edition.
Mention rate
Share of prompt runs in which the business is named at all.
Average position
Where the business tends to sit among the businesses named in an answer.
This edition reports a single combined AI Visibility Score per business. Our tool does not yet export a per-engine breakdown, so the by-engine section is held for a later edition rather than estimated. The score itself is defined on our AI Visibility Score methodology page.
[ 05 ]Contents
What is in the report?
[ 01 ]
Executive summary
The single headline finding, stated plainly with its sample size.
[ 02 ]
Why AI search matters now
What changes when a neighbor asks an assistant instead of scrolling results.
[ 03 ]
Overall findings
Median AI Visibility Score across the sample, the share that are effectively invisible, and the gap between the top performers and the middle.
[ 04 ]
By vertical
Median and range per vertical, with the count for each, and which verticals are ahead.
[ 05 ]
By engine
Which engines surface local businesses most and least. Held until per-engine export is available.
[ 06 ]
What the leaders do differently
Patterns shared by high-scoring businesses: reviews, a complete Google Business Profile, structured and readable content.
[ 07 ]
What to do about it
A short, usable playbook you can run without hiring anyone.
[ 08 ]
Methodology and how to get your own score
Full method, prompt sets, dates, limits, and a link to the free audit.
[ 06 ]Integrity
What rules does this report follow?
- Only real, measured data. Nothing extrapolated from a small sample and labeled a benchmark.
- Aggregated and anonymized. Distributions and averages, never a name-and-shame ranking.
- Businesses are named only positively, and only with permission.
- Sample sizes and limits stated per vertical. If a vertical has 12 businesses, the report says 12.
- No guarantees, no round-number claims, no invented scores.
[ 07 ]FAQ
Questions about the report
What is AI search visibility for a local business?
It is how often, and how prominently, a business is named inside answers produced by AI engines such as ChatGPT, Google AI Mode, Google AI Overviews, Gemini and Perplexity when a person asks a buying question in plain language. A business can rank well on Google and still never be mentioned in an AI answer.
What does this report measure?
It measures how visible local businesses in Kootenai County, Idaho are across four AI answer engines, using a fixed set of real buyer prompts per vertical. Each business receives an AI Visibility Score, a mention rate and an average position, and results are reported as distributions by vertical.
How many businesses are in the sample?
The target is 100 or more businesses across six verticals, roughly 15 to 30 per vertical. The exact count per vertical is published with the findings, and any vertical with a thin sample is labeled as such.
Are individual businesses named?
Only positively, and only with permission. Low scores are reported in aggregate. We do not publish a ranked list of businesses that scored poorly.
Is the report free?
Yes. The full findings are published on this page, and the PDF edition is available in exchange for your name, business and email.
How often is it updated?
It is a recurring report. Each edition states its own fieldwork dates so editions can be compared honestly rather than blurred together.
Part of the Mxdify family
Same studio standards as Mxdify, scoped and priced for businesses that serve a town.