Get found on Google & AI search
How UK small businesses get discovered in 2026 — in traditional Google search and the new AI answer engines like ChatGPT, Google AI Overviews and Perplexity. Plain English, no jargon, nothing you can’t do yourself.
For years, “being found online” meant one thing: ranking on Google. That still matters enormously — but it’s no longer the whole picture. A growing share of people now ask ChatGPT, Perplexity or Google’s own AI Overviews for a recommendation and never click a blue link at all. The good news for small businesses: the work that earns those AI mentions is mostly the same work that earns good search rankings. Do it once, get found in both places.
This guide walks through it in the order that actually works: get the foundations right, win traditional search, get cited by the AI engines, then measure what brings you enquiries. None of it requires a big budget — just doing the right things, in the right order, and sticking with it.
The four stages
Get the basics right
Before any clever tactics, the foundations have to be in place. Search engines and AI tools both reward businesses that are easy to understand and easy to use — and customers do too.
- Claim and complete your Google Business Profile — correct name, address, phone, opening hours, categories and photos. It’s free, it’s what powers the map results, and AI tools read it too.
- A fast website that says plainly what you do, where, and for whom. If a stranger can’t tell within five seconds, neither can a search engine.
- One clear call to action on every page — call, book, get a quote — so the people who do find you can act.
Win traditional search (SEO)
Google still sends the largest share of discovery traffic to most UK small businesses. SEO isn’t mysterious — it’s mostly about matching what you publish to what real customers type, and earning local trust.
- Target the words people actually use — “emergency plumber Leeds”, not “bespoke plumbing solutions”. Listen to how customers describe their problem and use their language.
- Answer real questions in your content. Each genuine question you answer well is a page that can rank — and, increasingly, a passage an AI engine can quote.
- Get the local signals right: consistent name/address/phone across directories, relevant categories, and steady, genuine Google reviews.
Get cited by AI answer engines (GEO)
When someone asks ChatGPT or Perplexity to recommend a supplier, or Google shows an AI Overview, the engine pulls from sources it judges clear and trustworthy. Generative engine optimisation (GEO) is simply making your business one of those sources.
- Write clearly and factually. AI engines quote text they can lift cleanly — plain statements, real specifics (what you do, where, prices, how it works), not vague marketing fluff.
- Publish FAQ-style content and add structured data. Question-and-answer formatting and schema markup make your pages easy for a machine to parse and cite.
- Add an
llms.txtfile and be genuinely quotable: consistent facts across the web, named expertise, and a reputation the model can trust.
Measure & keep improving
Visibility isn’t a one-off project — it compounds. The businesses that win are the ones that can see what’s working and put more into it, instead of guessing.
- Track which channel brings each enquiry — ask new customers how they found you, and use basic analytics. You can’t improve what you can’t see.
- Double down on what pays back and quietly drop what doesn’t, rather than spreading effort evenly across everything.
- Keep the content fresh. Both Google and AI engines favour sources that stay current — revisit your top pages a few times a year.
How findable are you right now?
Tick everything that’s genuinely true of your business today. There’s no sign-up and nothing is sent anywhere — it’s a private, instant snapshot of where you stand and what to fix first.
Your visibility checklist
Eight things that move the needle for both Google and AI search. Be honest — the gaps are your to-do list.
Tick the boxes above to see where you stand. Anything unticked is a concrete, do-able next step — most cost nothing but time.
SEO vs AI search — what’s actually different?
They’re not opposites, and you don’t choose between them. Traditional SEO is about ranking a link so a person clicks through to your site. AI search is about being quoted in the answer itself — the engine reads your content, summarises it, and may recommend you by name without the user ever visiting your page.
The big practical difference is the click. With SEO, a good ranking earns a visit. With AI answers, you might win the recommendation but get no visit at all — so it matters more than ever that your name, what you do and how to reach you are stated plainly wherever the engine looks. The reassuring part: clear, honest, well-structured content that answers real questions is exactly what wins in both. Get the fundamentals right and you’re building for both at once.
Traditional search (SEO)
- Goal: rank a link people click.
- Wins with: keywords customers type, local signals, reviews, backlinks, site speed.
- You get: a measurable visit to your site.
- Pace: slow to build, compounds for free over months.
AI search (GEO)
- Goal: be quoted or recommended in the answer.
- Wins with: clear factual writing, FAQ/structured data, llms.txt, consistent trustworthy facts.
- You get: a mention — sometimes without a click.
- Pace: newer and shifting fast, but rewards the same clarity.
Common questions
How do I get my business mentioned in ChatGPT or AI answers?
There’s no button to press — AI engines build their answers from sources they find clear and trustworthy across the web. The most reliable way in is to publish plain, factual content that states exactly what you do, where, for whom and how you compare; use FAQ formatting and structured data so a machine can parse it; keep your facts (name, address, services) consistent everywhere they appear; and earn genuine mentions and reviews elsewhere. An llms.txt file helps the newer engines find and understand your key pages. In short: be genuinely quotable and easy to trust.
How long does SEO take to work?
Longer than most people hope — typically three to six months before you see meaningful movement, and longer in competitive areas. SEO compounds: the content and trust you build keep paying back for free over time, which is what makes it worthwhile. If you need enquiries this week, that’s what paid search ads are for; SEO is the long game that lowers your cost of being found later. The common mistake is quitting at week six, just before the work starts to pay off.
Do I have to pay Google to rank?
No. The organic (unpaid) search results and your Google Business Profile are free, and for most local businesses they bring the bulk of the value. Paid ads are a separate thing — you pay per click to appear at the top instantly, which is useful for speed or competitive terms, but paying for ads does not improve your free rankings. A healthy approach often uses both: free SEO and a strong profile as the foundation, paid ads layered on when you want faster flow.
What’s the single most important thing for being found?
Clarity. A website and Google Business Profile that say plainly what you do, where, and for whom — in the words your customers actually use — is the foundation everything else builds on. It’s what helps a search engine rank you, what an AI engine quotes, and what makes a human pick up the phone. Get that right before chasing tactics; clever tricks can’t rescue a business nobody can quickly understand.
Is AI search going to replace Google?
Not wholesale, and not soon — but it is changing the picture. Google itself now puts AI Overviews above the traditional results, and tools like ChatGPT and Perplexity are taking a real share of the questions people used to type into a search box. The sensible response isn’t to abandon SEO; it’s to make sure the content you’re already creating is clear and well-structured enough to be found and quoted in both. The fundamentals overlap heavily, so you’re not doing double the work.
Tell Bea, our AI assistant, what you do and where you’re stuck — she’ll point you to the quickest wins for getting found, in plain English and free.
