I asked ChatGPT: "Recommend a web designer in Amsterdam for a small business."
It gave me five names. I checked their websites. Some of them were tiny one-page sites with barely any content. Others were big agencies. The thing they had in common? Their websites made it very easy to understand exactly what they do, for whom, and where.
The businesses that weren't mentioned? Mostly sites with vague copy, no clear location, or content hidden behind animations and JavaScript that AI tools can't read.
Here's the thing most people don't realise: AI search works fundamentally differently from Google. Understanding that difference is the key to showing up.
How AI search is different from Google
Google ranks pages. It shows you a list of ten links and lets you decide which one to click. The whole game is getting your page to the top of that list.
AI doesn't give you a list. It gives you an answer. It reads dozens of sources, combines the information, and presents one recommendation. You're either in the answer, or you don't exist.
This changes what matters. With Google, you optimise for keywords and backlinks. With AI, you optimise for being the most clear, credible, and citable source on a topic.
Try this right now
Open ChatGPT, Perplexity, or Google Gemini and ask: "Tell me about [your business name]" or "Recommend a [your service] in [your city]." What comes back might surprise you. If the AI gets your business wrong or doesn't mention you at all, that's your starting point.
What AI actually reads about your business
AI doesn't just look at your website. It pulls from everywhere:
Your website
Homepage, about page, services, blog posts
Google Business
Your profile, reviews, Q&A, photos
Social profiles
LinkedIn, Instagram bios, post history
Third-party mentions
Directories, articles, reviews, forums
If your website says "digital marketing agency" but your LinkedIn says "creative consultancy" and your Google Business listing says "advertising", the AI has three conflicting stories. It will either pick the wrong one or skip you entirely.
Consistency is everything. Use the exact same description of your business everywhere. Same name, same service description, same location. This sounds obvious, but almost nobody does it.
What AI can read vs. what it can't
Most websites have content that looks great to humans but is invisible to AI. Toggle between these two versions:
Hard for AI to parse
"We craft transformative digital experiences that empower brands to thrive in the modern landscape."
What's wrong:
- No mention of what the business actually does
- No location, no industry, no service names
- AI can't determine when to recommend this business
Five things you can do this week
1. Google yourself through AI
Ask ChatGPT, Perplexity, and Gemini about your business by name. Then ask them to recommend businesses like yours in your area. Screenshot the results. This is your baseline.
2. Rewrite your homepage intro
Your first paragraph should contain your business name, what you do, who you serve, and where you are. Not as a list, just as a clear sentence. That single paragraph might be the most important text on your entire site.
3. Add an FAQ section
Write down the five questions customers ask you most. Answer each one in 2-3 sentences on your website. When someone asks an AI that same question, your answer becomes a source it can cite.
4. Sync your profiles
Open your website, LinkedIn, Google Business, and any directories you're listed in. Make sure the business name, description, and services match everywhere. This takes 20 minutes and makes a real difference.
5. Add structured data
This is a small piece of code that tells AI tools your business name, type, location, and contact details in a standardized format. If you're not technical, ask your web developer to add "LocalBusiness schema" to your site. It takes five minutes to implement.
Bonus: the file most businesses don't know about
There's a new standard emerging called llms.txt. It's a simple text file you put on your website (like robots.txt, but for AI) that gives AI tools a clean summary of your business.
It's not widely adopted yet, but early movers get an edge. The file tells AI tools: here's who we are, what we do, and what pages matter most. Think of it as a cheat sheet for ChatGPT.
If you want to be ahead of 99% of businesses, this is the kind of thing that helps.
How AI-ready is your website?
7 questions. Takes one minute.
This is still early. Most businesses haven't thought about AI search at all. That's the opportunity. The ones who get this right now will have a serious advantage when AI becomes the default way people find services. And that shift is happening faster than most people expect.
Want to know how AI sees your business?
I'll run your website through the major AI tools, show you exactly what they say (and miss), and give you a plan to fix it.
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