How to Get Your Website Recommended by ChatGPT and AI Search (GEO and AEO Explained)
Your next client might not Google you at all. She might just ask ChatGPT or my fav Claude, "Can you recommend a coach who helps with this?" and book whoever it names.
That's not a someday thing. It's happening right now, and it's quietly reshaping how people find businesses like yours. In this post, I'll explain in plain English what AI search is, what those scary acronyms GEO and AEO actually mean, and exactly what you can do to give your website the best shot at being the one ChatGPT, Perplexity, and Google's AI recommend. No hype, no techbro overwhelm, just what actually works.
The short answer? Getting recommended by AI search isn't some mysterious new skill. It's mostly good, clear, trustworthy website fundamentals done well, plus a few specific AI-era steps like making sure AI crawlers can read your site, claiming your local listings, and answering real questions on your pages. If your website clearly says who you help and what you do, you're already most of the way there.
What Is AI Search and Why Does It Matter?
AI search is when people use tools like ChatGPT, Claude, or Google's AI Overviews to get a direct answer instead of scrolling a list of links. It matters because a growing number of potential clients now ask AI to recommend a provider, and the businesses that show up in those answers get the lead.
Here's what's changed. For years, search meant typing words into Google and clicking through a list of blue links. Now, more and more people skip that entirely. They ask a full question to an AI tool and get one answer that names just a few businesses.
This is a big deal for you. At Google I/O in May 2026, Google announced its AI search features now reach over 2.5 billion people monthly, with AI-powered questions more than doubling every quarter. And it's not just Google. ChatGPT alone reported 900 million weekly users as of March 2026.
The shift is subtle but important. The old question was "do I rank on page one of Google?" The new question is "is my business part of the answer the AI gives?" Those aren't the same thing anymore, and the second one is where the opportunity is right now, because most coaches and therapists haven't caught up yet. The field is wide open.
What Do GEO and AEO Actually Mean?
GEO stands for Generative Engine Optimization, and AEO stands for Answer Engine Optimization. Both are just terms for making your website more likely to be cited or recommended by AI tools. Despite the fancy names, they overlap heavily with good old-fashioned SEO done well.
GEO and AEO describe the practice of structuring your content so AI systems can understand it, trust it, and pull it into their answers. But here's the part that makes it juicy: the tactics that actually move the needle (clear writing, demonstrating real expertise, answering questions, citing your sources) are the same things that make a website good for humans and good for regular ol’ fashioned SEO.
Even Google has said as much. Their own guidance is that optimizing for generative AI search is essentially optimizing for the search experience, and thus still SEO. Google specifically noted you don't need special AI text files, you don't need to rewrite your content for AI, and there's no magic schema markup required.
So please don't let the acronyms intimidate you. If anyone tells you GEO is a totally separate, complicated discipline that requires a pricey new package, be a little skeptical. Most of it is just doing the fundamentals well.
How Do I Make Sure AI Can Read My Website?
Make sure AI crawlers aren't blocked from your site. Super simple and a matter of toggling a button on your site. AI tools use their own crawlers to read web content, and if a past developer or host blocked them, your site won't show up in their answers no matter how good it is. On most Squarespace sites, these crawlers are allowed by default but just do a double check just in case.
This is the most technical step, and it's still pretty simple. AI platforms use their own web crawlers to index content. ChatGPT uses one called OAI-SearchBot, and Perplexity uses PerplexityBot, and both respect your website's robots.txt file. If those crawlers were ever blocked, your content is invisible to those tools.
The good news? Most websites allow these crawlers by default, so if you're on Squarespace and haven't made custom robots.txt changes, you're likely fine.
If you want to peek, you can type your website address followed by /robots.txt into your browser (like yoursite.com/robots.txt) and look for anything blocking OAI-SearchBot or PerplexityBot. If that sentence made your eyes glaze over, that's completely okay. This is exactly the kind of behind-the-scenes check I can confirm for you in about a minute through my backend support, so you never have to think about it again. If that’s honestly all you need I have no problem just popping in and helping another business owner out. Just shoot me an email and I would be happy to free of charge!
How Do I Get Recommended for Local Searches?
Claim and complete your local business listings, because for "near me" type searches, AI tools act like a directory and pull from your business profiles. If your Google Business Profile aren't claimed and filled out, you're invisible to those local AI searches.
This one is huge if you serve clients in a specific area, which many coaches and therapists do. When someone searches locally, AI platforms shift behavior and work more like directory matchmakers, with Google's AI drawing from Google Business Profile data and local directory listings.
So even a beautifully written website can get skipped for local searches if your listings aren't set up. Two things to get right:
Claim and complete your Google Business Profile listing. Make sure your name, address, and phone number match your website exactly.
List your specialties in the services section of those profiles. This is the structured information AI uses to match you with someone searching for your specific kind of help in your area.
And it's worth knowing trust still gets verified by real humans. A 2026 BrightLocal survey found that 45% of consumers have used AI to find local business recommendations, up from just 6% the year before, but 97% of those users still double-check the AI's suggestions against real reviews. So AI might surface you, but your reviews and your actual website close the deal.
What Kind of Website Content Does AI Recommend?
AI tools favor content that is clear, authoritative, well-structured, and backed by evidence. Content written as direct answers to real questions, in plain human language, is the most likely to get pulled into an AI response or featured snippet.
This is where the strategy you already care about pays off twice, for humans and for AI. Here's what actually helps:
Answer real questions directly. Google's featured snippets and AI tools pull directly from Q&A-formatted content, so when you clearly answer the questions your clients are already typing, you become the source those platforms reference. This is why a strong FAQ page and question-based blog posts are gold right now.
Write for humans, not robots. Pages written for real people are more likely to be surfaced by AI-driven results, while long, dense blocks of text are increasingly skipped. Warm, clear, conversational writing wins. Yay for conversational writing because that’s where I thrive haha!
Be specific about who you help and where. In 2026, websites that clearly communicate who they serve and where they operate perform better in both organic and local search. Vague messaging makes you harder for AI to recommend.
Notice that none of this is about gaming a system. It's about being clear, helpful, and credible, which is exactly what makes a website convert anyway. (If you want the deeper dive on building that kind of clear, client-focused site, my post on why a template alone won't solve your website problem walks through the strategy layer that makes all of this work.)
Do I Need to Pay for a Special GEO Service?
Probably not. Most of what helps you show up in AI search overlaps with solid website fundamentals and good SEO. Before paying for a separate, expensive "AI optimization" package, make sure your basics are strong, because that's where the real visibility comes from.
I'm telling you this because I'd rather you spend your money wisely than chase a shiny acronym. The honest truth from the research is that the biggest risk isn't failing to optimize for AI. It's pouring money into AI-specific services while ignoring the fundamentals that actually drive visibility everywhere, AI or not.
So here's the smarter order of operations: get your website clear and strategic, make sure it says exactly who you help and what you do, set up your local listings, answer real questions on your pages, and make sure AI can crawl your site. Do those things first. They cover the most evidence-backed steps available, and most of them you can knock out in an afternoon.
That's also exactly the foundation I build into every website and template I create, because a site that's clear and strategic for humans is already most of the way to being recommended by AI.
Quick Recap: How to Show Up in AI Search
✓ AI search is here now. People ask ChatGPT and Perplexity to recommend providers instead of scrolling links
✓ GEO and AEO are mostly good SEO done well. Don't let the acronyms scare you
✓ Make sure AI can crawl your site (check your robots.txt, or have someone confirm it)
✓ Claim and complete your local listings so you show up for "near me" searches
✓ Write clear, question-based content that answers what your clients actually ask
✓ Be specific about who you help and where, and cite your sources
✓ Nail the fundamentals before paying for any special "GEO" package
You Don't Need to Chase Every Trend. You Need a Clear, Trustworthy Website.
Here's the reassuring takeaway. The rise of AI search sounds overwhelming, but the fix isn't some brand new skill you have to master overnight. It's the same thing that has always worked: a website that clearly communicates who you are, who you help, and what it's like to work with you. Do that well, and you're already positioned to show up, whether someone finds you through Google, ChatGPT, or a friend's referral.
Start with one small step this week. Open ChatGPT or Claude and ask it to recommend someone who does what you do in your area. See what comes up, and whether you're anywhere in the answer. That gives you a real baseline for where you stand right now.
If you'd rather have someone make sure your website is clear, strategic, and set up to be found, take a look at the ways we can work together, or book a free 15-minute call. No pressure, no pitch. We'll figure out where you stand and the simplest next step.
The way people search is changing. Let's make sure they can still find you.
