Real estate professionals across the country are increasingly hearing from potential clients, "I found you through ChatGPT," yet many are surprised by these leads and unsure how they appeared in AI recommendations. According to Steve Marcinuk, founder of KeyCrew Media, this trend is growing as everyday buyers and sellers use AI platforms like ChatGPT, Claude, and Perplexity for exploratory conversations about real estate decisions. Agents who appear in these AI-generated responses are gaining a measurable competitive edge, often without understanding the factors driving their visibility.
Marcinuk, who has conducted thousands of interviews with real estate professionals, observes that the current correlation between traditional SEO investment and AI platform visibility is weakening. While agents who dominated Google search results are initially appearing in AI responses, those specifically optimizing for AI search are gaining ground faster than traditional SEO timelines would allow. "We're seeing that companies and real estate professionals who are specifically making efforts to optimize in AI search are able to get the edge," Marcinuk says, "whereas traditional SEO might have taken years and years to achieve." This window for early-mover advantage won't stay open indefinitely, as more professionals recognize the opportunity.
The opportunity is particularly pronounced in secondary and tertiary markets. In major metros with dozens of top-producing agents, establishing AI search presence requires sustained effort. However, in smaller markets where only five or ten agents have meaningful online presence, professionals who understand AI platform visibility can establish positioning before competitors are even aware of the shift. Those who secure strong AI recommendations in these markets over the next one to two years are likely to hold that positioning for years, similar to how early SEO leaders maintained advantages in local markets.
AI platforms function like search engines with an added synthesis layer, gathering information from multiple web sources. The signals that determine which professionals get included are similar to those influencing search rankings, but the weighting differs. Volume of consistent, credible content matters, but the goal is building a body of evidence across platforms that signals genuine expertise. "It's about consistently stacking up more and more pieces of content that signal to the AI platforms that you are the expert," Marcinuk says.
Marcinuk outlines a four-pillar framework for AI visibility. Owned channels such as a website, blog, and active social media form the foundation. Directory profiles on Zillow, Homes.com, and Realtor.com provide the second layer, requiring complete and current information. Announcements and recognition, such as local awards and press releases, add validation. Third-party coverage—when external publications, podcasts, or media outlets feature a professional—carries the most weight, as it signals that outside sources have validated their expertise. This is the hardest signal to earn but the most valuable.
Professionals expecting fast results from AI optimization are often disappointed. Meaningful results typically take six to twelve months to materialize, faster than traditional SEO but requiring sustained effort. "This is not a sprint, this is a marathon," Marcinuk says. "You don't go to the gym once and expect results." The strategic implication is clear: professionals who begin now are positioning for where the market will be in one to two years, while those who wait will find themselves behind.
Common mistakes include using AI to generate large volumes of articles assuming quantity alone will establish expertise. AI platforms are incentivized to surface credible professionals, not those inflating apparent authority. "You're not going to be able to trick them for long into thinking that you're building real value," Marcinuk says. The most durable signal of expertise remains what other sources say about you, not what you publish yourself.
Earning third-party validation—the strongest AI visibility signal—requires getting featured in external media. The landscape is changing as media operations with technology-enabled workflows expand their capacity to feature expert sources at volume. For real estate professionals, the practical strategy is identifying where expertise aligns with publication coverage and being responsive when media opportunities arise. "Getting other brands to talk about you," Marcinuk says, "is perhaps the biggest signal of all."
