AI Search and Your Website: How to Show Up in ChatGPT, Gemini and Google AI Overviews

To show up in ChatGPT, Gemini and Google AI Overviews, your website needs to be easy to crawl, clearly written and genuinely useful. These tools build answers from web pages, so the basics of good SEO still decide who gets cited. Google says plainly that optimising for its generative AI features “is optimizing for the search experience, and thus still SEO” (Google Search Central).

That’s good news for small businesses. You don’t need a new kind of website. You need the one you have to be readable, consistent and worth quoting. This guide sets out what that means in practice.

How do ChatGPT, Gemini and Google AI Overviews find websites?

Each tool works a little differently, but all of them lean on content gathered from the open web.

• Google AI Overviews and AI Mode are built on Google’s core Search ranking and quality systems. They ground answers in pages from the Search index, and can run several related searches to gather results (Google Search Central). To be a supporting link, a page must be indexed and eligible to show in Search with a snippet (Google Search Central).
• ChatGPT search uses a crawler called OAI-SearchBot. OpenAI says sites that opt out of it “will not be shown in ChatGPT search answers” (OpenAI).
• Gemini is Google’s AI assistant. Google offers a separate control, Google-Extended, to manage whether your content is used for training Gemini models and for grounding in Gemini Apps. Google says it does not affect your inclusion or ranking in Google Search (Google Search Central).

Is AI search optimisation different from SEO?

Mostly, no. You’ll see new labels such as “generative engine optimisation” (GEO) and “answer engine optimisation” (AEO). Google’s 2026 guide tackles several popular claims head on (Google Search Central):

• You don’t need new machine-readable files, “AI text files” or Markdown versions of pages to appear in Google Search. That includes llms.txt files.
• There’s no special schema markup for AI features, and structured data isn’t required to appear in them.
• There’s no need to chop content into tiny pieces, and there’s no ideal page length.
• You don’t need to write in a special style for AI.

Google also warns that “No third-party tool has access to our internal ranking or AI systems” (Google Search Central). If someone sells you insider AI rankings, treat it as a red flag.

How do you get your business mentioned in AI answers?

These are the steps we’d take on any small business site. None of them are tricks. They make the site better for people and easier for machines to understand.

1. Make sure the bots can get in

Google lists “Ensuring that crawling is allowed in robots.txt, and by any CDN or hosting infrastructure” as a best practice (Google Search Central). Check your robots.txt file. Also ask your host whether any firewall or “bot blocking” setting stops Googlebot or OAI-SearchBot.

You can block AI training while still appearing in AI search. OpenAI treats its training crawler (GPTBot) and its search crawler (OAI-SearchBot) separately, and each setting is independent (OpenAI).

2. Answer real questions with what only you know

Google says people ask AI search “longer and more specific questions” (Google Search Central Blog). It advises making “unique, non-commodity content” based on your own knowledge.

For a small business, that means your prices or price ranges, your process, your service areas, and the questions customers actually ask you. A generic “10 tips” post adds little. A clear page explaining how you quote a bathroom renovation in Brisbane adds a lot.

3. Structure pages so answers are easy to find

Put the answer first, then the detail. Use clear headings that match the questions people ask. Keep important information in text, not only inside images or PDFs. Google lists “Making sure that important content is available in textual form” among its best practices (Google Search Central).

4. Keep your business details consistent everywhere

AI tools try to work out who you are, what you do and where. Help them by using the same business name, address, phone number and service list on your website, your Google Business Profile and major directories.

Google says Business Profiles can help your products and services be visible in AI responses as well as other results (Google Search Central). Keep yours complete and up to date.

5. Use structured data, accurately

Structured data (schema markup) isn’t required for AI features. It still helps Google show rich results, and it spells out facts such as your business type, location and opening hours. The one rule that matters: it must match what’s visible on the page (Google Search Central). Our guide to schema markup for small business walks through the useful types.

6. Give visitors a good experience when they arrive

Google says clicks from AI Overviews tend to be “higher quality”, with visitors more likely to spend time on the site (Google Search Central Blog). Don’t waste them on a slow page or a confusing layout. Our website speed and improvement work covers loading times, mobile layout and clear calls to action.

7. Measure what’s working

Google includes traffic from AI features in the Performance report in Search Console (Google Search Central). In your analytics, watch for visits referred from AI tools, and judge them on enquiries and sales, not just clicks. Our guide to website analytics for small business shows which numbers to check.

What should you avoid?

• Mass-produced pages. Creating lots of pages to manipulate rankings or AI answers can breach Google’s scaled content abuse policy (Google Search Central).
• Buying fake mentions. Google says seeking inauthentic mentions “isn’t as helpful as it might seem”.
• Blocking crawlers by accident. Security plugins and firewalls sometimes block legitimate bots. Check after any change.
• Chasing every new acronym. If advice contradicts the search engines’ own documentation, trust the documentation.

Where do design and marketing fit in?

AI search rewards businesses that explain themselves clearly. That’s a content and design job as much as a technical one. A well-structured site starts with a good website design brief, so the pages answer what customers really ask.

WMS looks after the hosting, speed and technical health. For the rest, we work with our sister businesses in Next Level Creative. 21 Designs builds and redesigns websites, and has done so for almost 15 years. Next Level Creative handles marketing and content. You can see how it fits together on our page about design and marketing from the Next Level Creative family.

Frequently asked questions

Do I need an llms.txt file to appear in AI search?

Not for Google. Google’s guide says you don’t need new machine-readable files, AI text files or Markdown versions of pages to appear in Google Search, and that Search itself doesn’t use them. Creating one won’t hurt, but it’s not a priority. Crawlable, clear and accurate pages matter far more.

How do I get my business to show up in ChatGPT?

First, make sure your robots.txt and firewall allow OpenAI’s search crawler, OAI-SearchBot. OpenAI says sites that opt out of it won’t be shown in ChatGPT search answers. Then publish clear, original pages about your services, and keep your business details consistent across your website and listings.

Can I block AI training but still appear in AI search?

Largely, yes. OpenAI’s training crawler (GPTBot) and search crawler (OAI-SearchBot) have separate settings. Google’s Google-Extended token manages use for Gemini training and grounding, and Google says it doesn’t affect inclusion or ranking in Google Search. Ask your web developer to set these in robots.txt carefully.

Does schema markup help with Google AI Overviews?

Google says structured data isn’t required for its generative AI features, and there’s no special AI schema. Schema is still worth having, because it helps with rich results and states key facts clearly. The important rule is that the markup must match the visible text on the page.

Are GEO and AEO services worth paying for?

Be careful. Google describes optimising for its AI features as still SEO and suggests caution with third-party AEO or GEO services. Good help looks like better content, structure and site performance. Be wary of anyone claiming special files, secret techniques or access to Google’s internal AI data.

Sources

1. Optimizing your website for generative AI features on Google Search, Google Search Central, announced 15 May 2026, accessed 13 November 2026
2. AI features and your website, Google Search Central, accessed 13 November 2026
3. Top ways to ensure your content performs well in Google’s AI experiences on Search, Google Search Central Blog, 21 May 2025
4. Google’s common crawlers (Google-Extended), Google Search Central, accessed 13 November 2026
5. Overview of OpenAI crawlers, OpenAI, accessed 13 November 2026