“We saw a fundamental disconnect,” says Ashish Verma, Zoca’s Co-founder and CEO. “These entrepreneurs are selling time, not products. Every empty chair is revenue they’ll never recover. The real challenge isn’t just visibility anymore – it’s everything that comes after it. Being found is one part, but converting leads, filling schedules, and retaining clients is where businesses either grow or stall.”

“What makes this space unique is the business model itself. These service professionals aren’t focused on selling more units – they’re maximising their available time. So the ROI on every lead, every appointment, and every repeat visit directly impacts their bottom line. That’s why we built a system that addresses the entire customer journey, not just one piece of it.”

Zoca fixes this with what it calls hyperlocal intelligence – a proprietary engine that detects neighbourhood level demand patterns for services like “lymphatic drainage massage” or “glycolic facial” that vary dramatically from block to block.

The company’s data shows that demand for “lymphatic drainage massage” can be 3x higher in one part of a city versus another area just miles away, while terms like “glycolic facial” follow entirely different patterns depending on local demographics. Instead of relying on generic keywords or city-wide trends, Zoca builds individualised strategies based on what people are actually searching for within a five-mile radius and then executes it all automatically using its AI agents workforce.

That includes optimising across 50+ local ranking factors, building mobile first websites, responding to leads 24/7 through conversational AI, and sending personalised retention SMS and email campaigns timed to each customer’s history. Zoca has recently launched AI agents for paid ads and social media management taking charge over the entire marketing value chain for a small local business.

Gail Aungst, Co-owner of Ohana Sun Tanning, comments: “Google search is really important and so key words are critical for us. One of them is “tanning near me”. Zoca’s helped us stay on top and win. They are totally helping us with our rankings”.

“Zoca is driving business outcomes for the underserved $750 billion local services market: says Manasi Shah, Partner at Accel. Ashish and the team have the highest customer obsession with a deep understanding of AI in automating a significant number of use cases applicable to the local services market. Growth AI agents are just the beginning, Zoca will create an agent-led OS for every hyperlocal business to achieve full potential.” 

Paul Irving, Partner at GTMfund, adds: “These businesses are the cornerstones of their communities, but most are being left behind in a digital and AI first world. Zoca allows them to focus on what matters most: delivering an exceptional service to their customers. The growth, the customer retention and engagement – all on auto-pilot with Zoca’s AI platform. It’s a total game changer for these local businesses, and we couldn’t be more excited to support the Zoca team on their mission.” 

Zoca plans to expand its agent architecture, deepen its platform integrations, and bring its system to more verticals where professionals face the same time-based growth challenge.

“In the next decade, the top local businesses around us won’t be big chains. Instead, they’ll be local professionals – quietly supercharged by AI that helps them attract more clients, keep them coming back, and grow faster than ever. We are making it possible for independent businesses to thrive without all the tech headaches and focus on delivering exceptional experiences to their customers,” says Verma.

2025 RTIH INNOVATION AWARDS

Startups will be a key focus area at the 2025 RTIH Innovation Awards.

The awards, which are now open for entries, celebrate global tech innovation in a fast moving omnichannel world.

Our 2024 hall of fame entrants were revealed during an event which took place at RIBA’s 66 Portland Place HQ in Central London on 21st November, and consisted of a drinks reception, three course meal, and awards ceremony presided over by comedian Lucy Porter.

In his welcome speech, Scott Thompson, Founder and Editor, RTIH, said: “The event is now into its sixth year and what a journey it has been. The awards started life as an online only affair during the Covid outbreak, before launching as a small scale in real life event and growing year on year to the point where we’re now selling out this fine, historic venue.”

He added: “Congratulations to all of our finalists. Many submissions did not make it through to the final stage, and getting to this point is no mean feat. Checkout-free stores, automated supply chains, immersive experiences, on-demand delivery, next generation loyalty offerings, inclusive retail, green technology. We’ve got all the cool stuff covered this evening.”

“But just importantly we’ve got lots of great examples of companies taking innovative tech and making it usable in everyday operations – resulting in more efficiency and profitability in all areas.”

Congratulations to our 2024 winners, and a big thank you to our sponsors, judging panel, the legend that is Lucy Porter, and all those who attended November’s gathering. 

For further information on the 2025 RTIH Innovation Awards, please fill in the below form and we will get back to you asap.