Help me welcome these new members to the AIC community! @Craig Cacciola @Abderrahmane Mehiris @Thapelo Moumakwa @Paweł Maliszewski @Kostas K @Saba Rafaqat @Fiz Zzi @Francesco Ferdinando @Muhammad Fahim @Matthew Leahy @Sai Jayavardhan @Mohammed Saad @Jan Pienaar @Rohan Advani @Ryan Craig @Victoria Morenikeji @Dim Chidera @Sadman Sami @Hither Mann @Anshuman Maurya introduce yourself and get to know your fellow AIC members!

If you run a local service business, you know the game. The businesses at the top of Google Maps get all the calls. Everyone else is fighting for scraps. I just searched "Dental Office Toronto" and the top results have 1,000+ reviews with the owner replying to almost every single one. That's what Google wants to see. Active engagement. Consistent replies. Fresh reviews coming in. Here's the problem: This takes years to build manually. And if you're not replying to reviews, you're falling behind in the algorithm. Here's the solution: AI can do all of this for you now. 🎯 Three ways AI helps you rank higher on Google Maps: 1. AI Follow-Up via SMS When a lead comes in, AI sends them a text automatically. When you complete a service, AI sends them a Google review link via SMS. No manual work. 2. AI Follow-Up via Email Same concept. Lead comes in, AI follows up. Service completed, AI requests a review. All automated. 3. AI Google Review Auto-Reply The top businesses reply to every review. But when you have hundreds of reviews, that's hours of work. AI handles this for you, keeping you active in Google's algorithm without the time investment. The critical mistake most businesses make: They blast their entire customer list asking for reviews all at once. Google flags this and can actually ban you from the Maps pack. You need consistent pacing. Steady review requests over time. That's what looks natural to Google's algorithm. Tools you can use: Go High Level is the best option if you want to set this up yourself. It handles SMS follow-up, email automation, review requests, and even AI chatbots for booking appointments. Fair warning: It's advanced. There's a learning curve. If you're always on-site or don't want to deal with the tech, we handle this at Next World Labs. We help local service businesses rank higher on Google Maps using AI automation. Bottom line: Your competition is either doing this already or about to start. The businesses that win in local markets over the next few years will be the ones using AI to scale what used to take manual effort.

Gemini isn't just another chatbot. It's got some seriously useful tools built in that most people aren't using. I just tested all of them and here's what you can actually do: 1. Image Generation Create AI images directly in Gemini. I generated "an AI robot walking through Toronto Ontario flaunting his stuff" and it actually delivered solid results. 2. Canvas (App Builder) This is where it gets interesting. You can build actual apps and code projects right in the interface. I generated a complete 6-day progressive workout routine in seconds. It can also help you write thank you notes, build interactive generators, whatever you need. 3. Deep Research This is Gemini's version of Perplexity. I asked it "when are the next ONE Championship fights in Thailand?" This is what it did: - Created a research plan - Searched multiple sources (official ONE FC site, Wikipedia, etc.) - Analyzed results in real-time - Generated a full report with confirmed dates Found out ONE Fight Night 38 is happening November 7th, 2025. The tool literally shows you its thinking process as it researches. 4. Video Generation (Veo 3.1) If you subscribe to Gemini Advanced, you get access to video creation. I haven't fully tested this yet, but it's powered by their Veo 3.1 model. 🎯 The deep research feature is the real winner here. If you're doing any kind of research for clients, content, or business decisions, this saves hours. Which Gemini feature are you most interested in trying? Or are you still sleeping on these tools? 👇

Google's NotebookLM has a feature that turns any source into an AI-generated audio conversation. And I'm using it to repurpose my content in ways I never thought possible. 🎯 Here's what it does: You upload your sources (YouTube videos, Google Docs, text, links) and NotebookLM creates an audio file with two AI hosts discussing your content. You can choose different formats: - Deep Dive (lively conversation) - Debate (AI hosts argue different perspectives) - Brief (bite-sized overview) - Critique (AI analyzes and improves your content) Two use cases I'm running with: 1. Content repurposing: I dropped in my YouTube video and had two AI hosts debate it. Now I can use that audio for an AI podcast channel and drive traffic back to my main content. 2. Training materials: I paste in my notes or training docs and get an audio file instead of making people read everything. Way easier to consume. The coolest part? You can change the language and focus topics. Want to reach a different audience? Generate it in Filipino, Spanish, whatever. I'm planning to use this to scale an entire AI YouTube channel that drives traffic to my Skool and main channel. Have you tried NotebookLM yet? What would you use this for? 👇

Here in Canada Tim Hortons is notorious. 🇨🇦 Black coffee is all I drink, for maximum focus and efficiency! 🔥 My body can only handle 1 cup a day. What’s your go to?