Yext Report: The Rise of AI Search Archetypes

Remember when search just meant Google? Those days are over.

Today, customers are as likely to ask ChatGPT for a trip itinerary, scroll TikTok for skincare tips, or evaluate local restaurants via Google’s AI-organized SERP. In fact, nearly three-quarters (75%) of people say they’re using AI search tools more than they did a year ago*. And 43% use them daily or more.

The impact: AI’s direct answers, customized recommendations, and curated feeds are rapidly replacing links. But while this shift is obvious, the path forward for brands is less so. What does this new search journey actually look like? And what does “discovery” mean in a world that is less about rankings and more about visibility? 

To find out, Yext partnered with Researchscape to survey more than 2,200 people across the U.S., U.K., France, and Germany about how they use both traditional and AI search. What we found has real implications for brands working to stay visible and win customers.

This report breaks down the findings into clear takeaways for marketers. You’ll learn:

• Why AI is now central to everyday search behavior


• What the six “search archetypes” are — and how search habits split by platform, purpose, and persona


• Where AI trust breaks down (and how to build it back)


• What brands need to do now to stay visible, accurate, and in control



Let’s dive in. 

1. AI search has gone mainstream.

Key insight

AI is no longer experimental. For many people, it’s their first stop for questions, research, and recommendations. And our research proves it: 75% of people use AI tools more than they did a year ago, and nearly half use AI search daily or more. 

At the same time, traditional search volume is on the decline. By 2026, search engine volume will drop 25% as search marketing loses market share to AI chatbots and other virtual agents, according to Gartner, Inc.

Why it matters

Search isn’t standing still. As AI tools like ChatGPT and Google’s AI Mode go mainstream, marketers need to understand how deeply embedded they’ve become in daily discovery — and how to stay visible in these moments.  What to do now: As AI accelerates, the first step is to measure your brand’s visibility within AI search. (For example: do you know how — or even if — your brand is appearing in AI-generated answers?) Once you have that knowledge, you can take steps to optimize for better performance.

Yext Scout shows exactly where your brand appears across AI and traditional search — so you can spot gaps and take action. Click here to learn more.

2. Your customers all search differently. Your strategy should acknowledge that.

Key insight

AI tools are gaining popularity across the board, but there’s no such thing as an “average” AI searcher. Our research uncovered six archetypes who search in different ways — and expect brands to meet them where they are. They are:

• The Creator: Uses AI for ideation and content generation.
• The Explorer: Relies on AI to go deep, discover, and expand.
• The Price Shopper: Seeks deals, comparisons, and quick decisions.
• The Social Proof Seeker: Prioritizes reviews and recommendations.
• The Traditionalist: Trusts conventional engines for structured, factual answers.
• The Accidental Searcher: Starts from social or passive browsing, then acts.

Why it matters

Not every customer wants the same thing from search. Understanding these mindsets lets you craft tailored content and data strategies for each type of searcher. This helps brands deliver what each person needs — when and where they want it.

What to do now:

Build a search strategy that meets every customer. From detail-driven Explorers to value-focused Price Shoppers, every searcher has different needs — and meeting those needs requires more than showing up. It requires showing up strategically, with content and data tailored to each searcher's intent and journey.

To illustrate with an example: The Explorer thrives on depth, discovery, and context. To win with this archetype, brands could focus on creating rich, informative content that helps the Explorer go deeper. Think interactive FAQs, detailed guides, explainer videos, or use-case-driven blog posts. 

The Social Proof seeker, on the other hand, relies on reviews, testimonials, and community consensus to make decisions. For this archetype, visibility in the right places isn’t enough; your brand needs to be endorsed by real voices. That means cultivating recent, high-quality reviews across platforms like Google, Yelp, and social media — and making sure those reviews are easy for AI tools to find and interpret. Just as importantly, reviews influence not only people but algorithms: AI models increasingly factor them into rankings and recommendations. 

With Yext, you can deliver the right answers in the right places, tailored to how each archetype searches. Click here to learn more.

3. Across archetypes, search is fragmented.

Key insight

Across all six search archetypes, there’s still a main theme: no single platform owns the customer journey anymore. Searchers tend to go back and forth between AI tools, Google, TikTok, and review sites, all depending on what they’re trying to do.  Our research backs this up, showing that people prefer different platforms for different needs: AI for ideas, search for services, and social for recommendations. 

• Conversational AI is favored for summarized answers (46%), creative ideas (39%), product and service details (45%), and how-to guidance (44%).
• Search engines still lead for product/service details (70%) and business info (63%).
• Social media dominates for reviews (48%) — as do traditional search engines through means like Google reviews. 

Why it matters

Today’s customers don’t use just one tool to find what they need. Instead, they move between AI, search engines, and social platforms based on their intent. This fragmentation means brands can’t rely on one SEO playbook. Instead, they need visibility everywhere — with consistent, structured data.

What to do now: Is your brand’s content structured and optimized for AI discovery — everywhere your customers might look for information? If not, you can’t win in the moments that matter. 

Yext’s Knowledge Graph makes sure your data is structured, accurate, and ready for all the platforms that define the modern customer journey, from Gemini to ChatGPT and TikTok.

4. Trust in AI is growing — but accuracy lags.

Key insight

People are increasingly curious about AI. But curiosity doesn’t always mean confidence. Our research shows that frustrations with AI remain, even as customers turn to it more often. Top issues include:

• Struggles with nuanced queries (40%)
• Lack of trustworthy sources (37%)
• Difficulty comparing local options (31%)



Why it matters:

The impact is two-fold. First, customers are turning to AI tools with growing confidence — but that confidence doesn’t always match the accuracy of the answers they find. That gap is where brand trust can be won or lost.

Second, trust isn’t just about your customers. It matters to AI tools, too. If your data is incomplete or inconsistent, AI may misrepresent your brand — or exclude it entirely.

What to do now: Double down on data accuracy. Make sure your brand information is structured, verified, and up-to-date — so AI tools are positioned to pull the right answers, every time. 

Click here for four tips to make your data more AI search-friendly.

5. Local accuracy is a competitive advantage.

Key insight

AI tools shine for fast answers, but stumble when people want precise local details. Our research substantiates this claim. Of the popular AI platforms, 68% of consumers have used ChatGPT to research local products or services. However, only 19% trust AI search tools versus traditional search engine results (45%) when it comes to local search. However, only 19% trust AI search tools versus traditional search engine results (45%) when it comes to local search. (Slide 11)

Why it matters

AI is winning in speed and convenience, but not yet in local accuracy. For multi-location brands, local details drive customer actions. This is where brands can stand out (and win) against local competitors.

What to do now: Don’t just manage your locations; understand how they stack up. Use Scout to uncover competitive insights at the local level: where your brand is showing up, how you’re performing, and where others are pulling ahead.

Then, act on what you see. Update location-level details across platforms, close visibility gaps, and highlight differentiators that influence customer decisions.

Click here to read more about turning insight into action with Scout.

Search is changing fast. Is your brand prepared? 

Search habits are changing fast — and AI is leading that charge.  In other words: this is a moment of major disruption, but also one of significant opportunity. The brands that thrive will be those who adapt quickly, stay visible across new discovery channels, and keep pace as the rules keep changing.

At Yext, we’re uniquely positioned to help brands navigate this shift — helping you remain visible, trusted, and competitive as AI reshapes how customers discover and decide. Yext gives you visibility into how you are performing in AI search, recommendations for how to improve, and a platform to execute those recommendations at scale and via a structure that is optimized to make sure you show up with accurate answers. 

Click here to learn more.

*Survey details: The results in this report are from an online survey of 2,237 adults who made a purchase online within the past three months and used voice search (e.g., Siri, Google Assistant, Alexa) or conversational AI (e.g., ChatGPT, Perplexity, Claude) to find information online. The survey was conducted from March 20 to April 6, 2025, by Researchscape International on behalf of Yext. Results were weighted by country population, age, and gender. Respondents were from four countries: the United States, the United Kingdom, France, and Germany.