Small retailers are appearing in AI shopping citations nearly as often as national chains, but they are losing ground when assistants recommend where to buy. A September 29 study conducted for Lightspeed Commerce found that both groups accounted for roughly 38% of cited retailer sources. Large chains, however, received about 2.5 times as many leading recommendations.
The findings gained fresh relevance in October, when a separate UBS analysis found that shopping assistants frequently recommended Walmart and Costco. For independent online stores investing in AI visibility, appearing among an assistant's sources may be easier than becoming its preferred retailer.
The Lightspeed-sponsored research, conducted by Vaer AI, examined approximately 460,000 responses to 20,000 shopping prompts across 10 categories and four North American cities. It tested ChatGPT and Google's AI experiences with and without live web search. The full methodology is available on request.
How AI finds stores without recommending them
AI shopping assistants can retrieve a retailer's information and cite its website without naming that business as the best place to purchase. The distinction becomes apparent when shoppers move from researching a product to choosing a seller.
In one New York office-supply example, ChatGPT cited three small retailers among six sources but recommended Staples first. The independent stores appeared in supporting links, while the national chain received the most prominent placement.
Why big retailers receive more recommendations
The preference for large chains persisted across the research's testing conditions. Without live web search, the models selected national retailers in 63% to 70% of responses. With search enabled, major chains still received 46% to 58% of leading recommendations, depending on the model.
More specific shopping questions widened the gap. Small stores received roughly one-third of first-place recommendations for general toy-shopping queries, but only about one in 10 when shoppers asked for a named product.
The October UBS analysis also found established retailers prominently featured in shopping recommendations. Its researchers tested 12 prompts across ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini and Muse in three states, making the findings considerably narrower than the Lightspeed study.
Neither investigation establishes that AI systems deliberately disadvantage independent merchants. Inventory, pricing, fulfillment capabilities and retailer familiarity could influence recommendations, but the studies did not establish how much each factor contributed.
What independent retailers can improve
Accurate product information gives smaller stores a stronger foundation for AI discovery. Google's merchant listing guidance recommends structured product details covering price, availability and purchasing information.
For ChatGPT, merchant selection can consider availability, price, quality and whether a seller manufactures or primarily sells the product. Those factors relate to merchant listings for individual products, not necessarily every recommendation generated in a conversational answer.
Retailers can start by checking product descriptions, inventory accuracy and accessible listings. Fit Small Business's AI search for ecommerce guide covers the broader technical steps without requiring merchants to rebuild their storefronts.
How to measure AI shopping visibility
Citation counts alone provide an incomplete picture. Retailers can track four measures separately:
- Crawlability: Can automated systems access accurate product information?
- Citations: Does the store appear among sources for relevant shopping questions?
- Recommendations: Is the business suggested, especially as the first choice?
- Sales: Are AI referrals generating visits and completed purchases?
Testing the same shopping questions across multiple assistants can expose differences in recommendations. Fit Small Business's AI visibility metrics guide offers additional methods for distinguishing citations from brand mentions.
What this means for small retailers
AI shopping platforms are creating additional ways for merchants to reach prospective customers. Shopify also offers eligible merchants product distribution through supported AI shopping channels, although eligibility does not guarantee that their products will appear in recommendations.
For independent retailers, the priority is to make products easy to find while giving shoppers compelling reasons to buy. Appearing in an AI citation may open the door, but recommendations, referrals and completed orders will determine whether that visibility is worth the investment.