AEO and GEO: how to get your business recommended by ChatGPT and Google AI

What has changed

For twenty years, being found online meant ranking on page one of Google. Now a growing number of people skip the list of links. They ask ChatGPT, Gemini, Perplexity or Google's AI Overviews a question and read the answer. If your business isn't in that answer, you're invisible to that customer.

AI tools build their answers from what they can find and trust about you: your website, your profiles, articles that mention you, reviews and directories. AEO and GEO are about shaping that picture.

SEO, AEO and GEO in one table

Seven steps to get recommended by AI

1. Answer the questions your customers actually ask

Write down the twenty questions you hear in sales calls. Give each one a heading on your site, and answer it in the first sentence underneath. AI tools quote short, direct answers far more often than long introductions.

2. Add FAQs and structured data

Schema markup is hidden code that tells search engines and AI what your page is about: your business, your services, your people and your FAQs. It's one of the quickest technical wins, and most small businesses in the region still don't have it.

3. Say the same thing everywhere

Your name, what you do, where you are and how to reach you should match on your website, Google Business Profile, LinkedIn, directories and partner sites. When the facts agree, AI trusts them. When they conflict, it hedges or leaves you out.

4. Show who is behind the business

AI looks for expertise. Add real people with real experience: founder pages, author names on articles and clear credentials. A page about a person, like the one you're reading this on, helps AI connect a name to a topic.

5. Get mentioned by others

Being cited in news articles, industry directories, partner pages, podcasts and reviews tells AI that others vouch for you. One mention in a respected regional publication can be worth more than ten pages on your own site.

6. Publish expert content on a schedule

Pick the topics you want to be known for and write about them regularly, with clear opinions, real numbers and sources. In the Gulf, content in both English and Arabic widens your reach.

7. Measure what AI says about you

Once a month, ask ChatGPT, Gemini and Perplexity the questions your customers ask. Note who gets recommended, what they say about you and what's wrong or missing. Then fix the gaps on your site and profiles.

Common mistakes

• Long introductions before the answer.
• Different phone numbers, addresses or service names on different sites.
• Pages with no named author or no sign of who runs the business.
• Hiding key information inside images or PDFs that AI can't read easily.
• Writing for algorithms instead of people. AI is getting better at telling the difference.

A quick checklist

• Every service page answers "what is it", "who is it for" and "how much does it take".
• FAQ sections with structured data on key pages.
• Google Business Profile complete and matching your website.
• LinkedIn, directories and partner listings consistent.
• At least one expert article a month on your core topics.
• A monthly AI visibility check.

This is the same approach I've used on this website, and it's part of my AI Workflows & CRM service. If you'd like to know what AI says about your business today, book a call and I'll run the check with you.