To make your business more visible online, you need to be easy to find in three places: Google's normal search results, Google Maps, and the new AI tools that answer questions directly, such as Google AI Overviews, ChatGPT and Perplexity. The good news is that all three rely on the same handful of foundations: accurate business information, a clear and helpful website, genuine reviews, and mentions of your business elsewhere online.
You do not need a separate strategy for each one. If you get the foundations right, you improve your chances everywhere at once. What differs is how each surface picks its answers, and where you should put your effort first.
This guide is the big picture. I will explain how each surface works in plain English, what they have in common, and give you a prioritised checklist you can work through. Where a topic deserves more detail, I link to a separate article rather than repeating it here. Results vary from business to business, and nobody can promise a particular position, but you can make steady, sensible progress.
The three places customers find you
When someone needs what you sell, they might type into Google, tap a pin on a map, or ask an AI assistant. Each one behaves differently, so it helps to understand them separately.
1. Google's organic results
Organic results are the standard blue links below any adverts. Google looks at your web pages and decides which best answer the search. This is what people mean by SEO, or search engine optimisation: making your website easy for Google to understand and worth recommending.
The things that matter most are clear pages about each service, content that genuinely helps, a site that loads quickly on a phone, and signs that other trustworthy sites and people mention you. If your site is missing from results altogether, start with why your business may not be showing on Google, which walks through the common causes. For ongoing work, my SEO service covers the lot.
2. Google Maps and the map pack
When someone searches for something local, such as a dentist or a gym in Tunbridge Wells, Google often shows a map with three businesses beneath it. That is called the map pack. It is powered mainly by your Google Business Profile (GBP), the free listing that shows your opening hours, reviews, photos and location.
Google weighs three broad things here: how relevant your profile is to the search, how close you are to the person searching, and how well known and trusted you appear, which is where reviews play a big part. You cannot change your distance from the searcher, but you can improve the other two. The detailed steps are in how to rank higher on Google Maps, and you can see how I help with this on my Google Business Profile management page.
3. AI answers
AI tools work differently. Instead of a list of links, they write an answer. Google AI Overviews appear at the top of some searches. ChatGPT and Perplexity are separate tools people use like a very well-read assistant. They build their answers from what they have learned and, in many cases, from live web pages they look up and summarise.
That means they tend to recommend businesses that are described clearly and consistently across many places, and that appear trustworthy. If you are curious whether you are being mentioned already, try the simple tests in how to check if AI knows your business.
What is GEO, in plain English?
GEO stands for generative engine optimisation. It simply means making your business easy for AI tools to understand, trust and mention when they answer a question. Think of it as SEO's younger cousin.
The overlap is large. Clear pages, honest information and a good reputation help with both. The difference is that AI tools often pull a short answer from several sources, so being described in the same plain way everywhere matters even more. If your website says you are a family-run plumber covering Tunbridge Wells and Sevenoaks, but your online listings say something different, an AI tool has a harder time being confident about you.
Nobody can control what an AI says, and nobody can guarantee a mention. What you can do is make it easy and sensible for it to include you.
The shared foundations
These five things support your visibility on every surface. Get these in order before you chase anything fancier.
1. Accurate business information
Your business name, address, phone number, opening hours and services should be identical wherever they appear: your website, Google Business Profile, social profiles and directories. Small differences, such as an old phone number or a former address, create doubt for Google and for AI tools.
Also be specific about what you do and where. "Mobile dog groomer covering Tunbridge Wells, Tonbridge and Southborough" is far more useful than "pet services in Kent".
2. A clear, helpful website
Your website is the main source everything else leans on. Each important service should have its own page that says, in ordinary language:
- what you offer and who it is for
- where you work
- roughly what it costs, or what affects the price
- how to get in touch or book
- answers to the questions customers usually ask
Helpful pages written for people tend to work for search engines and AI tools too. It is also worth thinking about the many different ways people phrase a search. I have listed plenty in 30 ways customers search for your business, which is a good prompt for what your pages should cover.
3. Genuine reviews
Reviews tell Google, AI tools and customers that real people have used you and been happy. Aim for a steady trickle rather than a burst, and reply to each one politely. Asking at the right moment, such as straight after a job well done, makes a huge difference. My guide to how to get more Google reviews has practical wording you can borrow.
For example, when I worked with Gracie Barra Tunbridge Wells, the monthly rate of new Google reviews increased 6x as part of the wider work. You can read the full story in the Gracie Barra case study. Results vary, but it shows that a simple, consistent review habit can change things.
4. Mentions elsewhere online
Google and AI tools both take notice of what others say about you. That can be local press, community websites, supplier or partner pages, industry directories and social media profiles. Even a few good, relevant mentions help, and quality matters far more than quantity. If you want to explore this properly, my page on link building and backlinks explains how it works.
5. Structured data
Structured data, sometimes called schema, is a small piece of hidden code on your website that labels information for machines: this is our business name, this is our address, these are our opening hours, this is a review. It does not change how the page looks to visitors, but it removes guesswork for search engines and AI tools. Most good website platforms can add it, or your web developer can. It is a helpful extra, but it will not rescue a site that is vague or out of date.
A worked example
Imagine a physiotherapy clinic in Tunbridge Wells that is hard to find. Its website has one page called "Services", its Google Business Profile still shows last year's opening hours, it has eleven reviews, and a directory lists a different phone number.
Here is what I would suggest, in this order. First, correct the phone number and hours everywhere, which takes an afternoon. Second, add separate pages for each treatment, such as sports injuries and back pain, each with clear descriptions and a few common questions. Third, start asking every happy patient for a review. Fourth, add the clinic to a couple of genuine local directories and ask a nearby gym or sports club to mention it. None of this is glamorous, but over a few months it gives Google, Maps and AI tools much more to work with. I cannot promise where the clinic would end up, but it would be far better placed than before.
A prioritised checklist
Work through these in order. The early steps are the quickest and most valuable.
- Check your basics. Make sure your name, address, phone number and hours match everywhere.
- Claim and complete your Google Business Profile. Choose the right categories, add services, photos and a clear description.
- Fix your key pages. Give each main service its own page, with location, price guidance and a clear way to enquire.
- Make sure your site works on a phone. Check speed, readability and that your contact button is easy to tap.
- Start a review routine. Ask every satisfied customer, and reply to every review.
- Answer real questions. Add an FAQ section built from what customers actually ask you.
- Build genuine mentions. Local directories, partners, community sites and press.
- Add structured data. Label your business details and reviews for machines.
- Test AI tools. Ask them about your business and your type of service, then note what they say and what is wrong.
- Review every quarter. Look at your enquiries, calls, direction requests and website visits, and adjust.
How to tell if it is working
Do not rely only on rankings. Watch the things that matter to the business: phone calls, form enquiries, direction requests from your Google Business Profile, and where new customers say they found you. Simply asking "how did you hear about us?" is surprisingly revealing, especially as more people use AI tools that do not always show up neatly in your analytics. Expect progress to take weeks or months rather than days, and to vary depending on your area and competition.
Frequently asked questions
How long does it take to become more visible on Google?
Quick fixes such as correcting your business details can help within days or weeks. Building a stronger website, more reviews and wider mentions usually takes a few months. It depends on your competition and where you are starting from, so I never promise a timescale or position.
Do I need to pay for ads to be visible?
No. Organic results, the map pack and AI mentions do not involve paying per click. Ads can bring faster enquiries while the organic work builds up, but they are a separate choice, and any ad spend goes to the platforms rather than to a consultant.
Is GEO replacing SEO?
No. GEO builds on the same foundations as SEO. Google still sends huge numbers of people to businesses, and AI tools often draw on the same web content. It makes sense to treat them as one joined-up effort rather than competing priorities.
Can I make ChatGPT recommend my business?
You cannot force it, and nobody can guarantee a mention. You can make it more likely by having consistent business details, a clear website, real reviews and trustworthy mentions elsewhere. It is worth testing what AI tools currently say about you, then fixing any gaps.
Where should a small business start?
Start with accurate details and a complete Google Business Profile, then improve your main service pages and begin collecting reviews. These steps are low-cost and help on every surface at once.
Want a hand getting found?
If you would like a clear view of where your business stands on Google, Google Maps and AI search, I offer a free digital audit. I will look at what is working, what is holding you back and what to fix first, in plain English.
You can request your free digital audit and we will take it from there. You will work directly with me, and if we grow you, we grow together.
Want help putting this into practice?
