AI Marketing • March 29, 2026

Only 3% of Marketers Are AI Experts — Here's Why That's Great News for Your Business

A new survey of 911 marketing professionals reveals a massive AI expertise gap. For local business owners who act now, it's the opportunity of a lifetime.

The Number That Should Stop You Mid-Scroll

CoSchedule just surveyed 911 marketing professionals this month and found something shocking: only 3% consider themselves AI experts.

The rest? 14% are beginners, 38% are still "growing," and 32% are stuck at intermediate. These are the people running marketing for businesses just like yours.

Meanwhile, 54% of small business owners are already using AI tools, with another 27% planning to start soon. The demand is there. The expertise isn't.

What This Means for Your Business

If your marketing person — or you, doing it yourself at midnight — falls into that 97% who aren't AI experts, you're not alone. But you are at a disadvantage.

Here's what's happening right now:

• Google's March 2026 core update is actively rolling out, reshuffling who shows up in search results
• AI Overviews now surface only 32% as many businesses as traditional search results
• Review recency now matters more than review volume for local rankings
• AI search engines like ChatGPT, Perplexity, and Gemini are sending real customers to businesses they can verify and trust

The businesses that understand how to show up in AI-powered search aren't just getting more clicks. They're getting the only clicks.

The FTC Is Watching Too

Just last week, the FTC banned an AI company called Air AI for misleading small businesses — $18 million in losses. Some owners lost up to $250,000 on false promises.

This is the other side of the AI gold rush. There are plenty of tools and "gurus" happy to take your money. What's harder to find is someone who actually knows how to make AI work for a local business — not a tech startup, not a Fortune 500, but a dentist's office, a restaurant, a salon.

Why We Built AiBizit

That 3% statistic? That's exactly why AiBizit exists. We stay on top of trends so you don't have to.

We're not selling you an AI tool and wishing you luck. We're the team that reads the Google updates, watches the FTC rulings, tracks what's working in AI search, and turns all of that into content, SEO, and visibility for your business — every single day.

While 97% of marketers are still figuring out AI, your business is already showing up where it matters.

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