Search engine optimisation
Getting your pages to rank in Google's normal results and on Google Maps, so people click through to you.
AI search optimisation: AEO and GEOBe the answer, not just a link.
More of your customers now ask ChatGPT, Google's AI Overviews, Gemini, Copilot or Perplexity before they search. Our SEO work makes sure those tools can find your business, understand what you do and feel confident recommending you.
- ChatGPT
- Google AI Overviews
- Google AI Mode
- Gemini
- Microsoft Copilot
- Perplexity
- Bing
Three ways to get found.
They overlap a lot, and good SEO is the foundation for all three. That's why we include AEO and GEO in our SEO work rather than selling them separately.
Answer engine optimisation
Making your pages the clearest answer to a question, so Google's AI Overviews, featured snippets and voice assistants pick your answer.
Generative engine optimisation
Making sure tools like ChatGPT, Gemini, Copilot and Perplexity know who you are and are confident enough to mention or recommend you.
why it matters
AI gives one answer, not ten blue links.
When someone asks an AI tool "who's a good plumber near me?" or "which agency should I use?", they usually get a short answer naming a handful of businesses. If you're not one of them, you don't get a look in.
Google is clearly going this way too. Its search results now often open with an AI answer, and in 2026 Google Analytics added AI Assistant as a channel of its own, next to Organic Search and Paid Search. When the biggest search engine starts counting AI visits separately, it's worth being ready.
The good news for small businesses: these tools reward being clear, consistent and well regarded, not being the biggest. That's very winnable.
What your customers are asking.
The questions are the same ones people used to type into Google. The difference is they now get a short list of names back. The aim is for yours to be on it.
Who's a good plumber in Weston-super-Mare for a leaking tap?
Here are a few well-reviewed local options:
- Riverside Plumbing: small jobs, taps and leaks, lots of 5-star reviews
- Coastline Heating & Plumbing: bigger jobs and boilers, covers North Somerset
What's a good coach holiday company for a weekend in Devon?
A few companies people recommend:
- Seaview Coach Tours: short breaks from the South West, hotel included
- Moorland Day Trips: day trips and weekends, good for groups
Where can I buy a refurbished mobility scooter with a warranty?
These UK retailers come up often:
- Maple Mobility: refurbished scooters, 12-month warranty, UK delivery
- Harbour Healthcare: new and used, free home demos
Examples only. The businesses are made up, and real AI answers vary from person to person and day to day.
It's already bringing in enquiries.
We've looked after SEO for Pigeon Solar Panels for over two years and ensured tracking was set up properly from the start. Since Google Analytics began separating out AI visits, we can see ChatGPT sending them people who go on to send an enquiry.
They're people asking AI the questions Pigeon Solar Panels answer every day, and being pointed to them.
- How do I protect my solar panels?
- How do I get the best performance from my solar panels?
- How do I stop pigeons nesting under my solar panels?
- the sort of questions behind their AI enquiries
How we optimise for AI search.
Six things we work on as part of your SEO, in plain English.
Let the AI tools in
We check your robots.txt, hosting and security settings, because some now block AI crawlers by default. We make sure your pages load fast and their content can be read without needing a browser to run them.
Answer first
Each important page opens with a clear, direct answer, then the detail. Headings that match the questions people actually ask, short paragraphs and honest FAQs.
Structured data
Schema markup tells machines exactly who you are, where you work, what you sell and what customers say, instead of leaving them to guess.
The same facts everywhere
Your name, location, services and opening hours matching across your website, Google Business Profile, Bing Places, directories and social profiles. Mixed signals make AI tools less sure about you.
Get talked about
AI tools lean on what other people say about you: reviews, local news, trade bodies, directories and partner sites. We help you earn those mentions.
Bing, IndexNow and checking
Several AI tools draw on Bing as well as Google, so we set up Bing Webmaster Tools and instant indexing. Then we ask the AI tools the questions your customers ask and track whether you come up.
What you get each month.
- AI crawler, robots.txt and security settings checked
- Structured data added and kept up to date
- Answer-first updates to your most important pages
- Bing Webmaster Tools and instant indexing (IndexNow) set up
- Your business details kept consistent across the web
- Customer questions checked across the main AI tools
- AI visits and enquiries reported in your monthly report
Part of your SEO, on a monthly rolling plan with no minimum term.
How we measure it.
AI visits in Google Analytics. GA4's AI Assistant channel shows visits from tools like ChatGPT and Gemini. We set up your tracking so those visits are tied to the calls, forms and sales they lead to, not just counted.
A monthly question check. We ask the main AI tools the questions your customers ask and note whether you're mentioned, how you're described and who else comes up.
Honest about the limits. Many AI answers never send a click, and answers vary between people. So we report trends, alongside your Google rankings and enquiries, rather than promising a spot.
Is AI recommending you, or a competitor?
Tell us what you do and where. We'll ask ChatGPT, Gemini, Perplexity and Google's AI the questions your customers would ask, then email you what came back: whether you're named, who is, and what to fix first. Free, and no obligation.
AI search questions, answered.
Want the full picture? See our SEO service, which this is part of. New to the jargon? Try our AI jargon buster.
Written by Jack EasterbrookFounder of JAE Digital. Jack runs free monthly AI-for-business workshops for North Somerset businesses at the hive in Weston-super-Mare.Last updated October 2026
What are AEO and GEO?
AEO (answer engine optimisation) is about being the answer when someone asks a question, for example in Google's AI Overviews or a voice assistant. GEO (generative engine optimisation) is about being mentioned or recommended inside AI chat tools like ChatGPT, Gemini, Copilot and Perplexity. Both build on good SEO.
Is it a separate service?
No. It's part of our SEO service. When we work on your SEO, we optimise for Google's normal results, for AI answers and for AI chat tools at the same time, because most of the work overlaps.
Can you guarantee ChatGPT will recommend my business?
No, and be wary of anyone who says they can. AI answers change from day to day and differ from person to person. What we can do is make your business easy to find, easy to understand and well talked about, which is what these tools look for.
How do you measure it?
We check a set of questions your customers would ask across the main AI tools each month, note whether you're mentioned and how, and watch for visits that come from AI tools in GA4. We report trends honestly, alongside your normal SEO results.
Do I need an llms.txt file?
It's a proposed standard rather than something the big AI tools have said they rely on. We can add one, as it's small and harmless, but it isn't where results come from. Clear pages, structured data and a good reputation matter far more.
Should I block AI crawlers from my site?
That's your call, and there are fair reasons to. But if AI tools can't read your site, they can't describe or recommend you accurately. For most small businesses that want more enquiries, letting the search and answer crawlers in is the better trade.
Want to show up in AI answers?
Tell us about your business and we'll check how it shows up in Google and the main AI tools before we talk.