April Mason, president of Violet PR, penned an article for Area Development magazine on the role that AI is playing in reshaping the site selection process.

In her article, she talks about why earned media—not websites—is becoming the front door to site selection. She speaks on how that shift has clear implications, with eighty-nine percent of AI citations come from earned media articles. Eighty-two percent of enterprise decision-makers now use generative AI weekly. And eighty-four percent of Google searches being influenced by AI-generated overviews. So for business decision-makers searching for their next expansion or headquarters location – earned media drives early conclusions.

The article was published on April 16, 2026 and can be read in full here.