7 simple ways to improve your visibility through AI search engines
AI search tools like ChatGPT, Perplexity, and Google’s Search Generative Experience are changing how people find businesses online. Instead of just typing questions into Google, people are now asking AI to recommend service providers, compare offerings, and summarise reviews.
It’s still early days, and things are changing fast, but there are some super simple steps you can take right away to help AI understand your business – and start recommending you to the right people.
One of my favourite things about this shift is that the focus is finally moving away from social media (yas!)
AI doesn’t care how many likes your last Instagram post got. Instead, it’s paying attention to what’s on your website (among other things) – the helpful, well-written pages and blog posts that answer real questions and reflect your expertise.
So if you’ve ever felt like you had to be on social media just to stay visible… take a breath.
This is your permission slip to slow down and return to the good old days of writing and sharing in a way that excites you, is sustainable and supports your business visibility long term — rather than having to spend hours creating a Reel or a perfectly branded graphic that disappears into the ether after 24 hours.
To me, this is a huge relief (and a massive time saver). And I know many of my clients feel the same.
Even better? Most of the steps that support AI visibility are grounded in solid SEO fundamentals — so you’re strengthening how you show up in traditional search engines too.
Here are seven simple ways to improve AI search visibility for your business.
Table of Contents
1. Ask AI what it already knows about your business
A great first step is to ask AI what it already knows about you. This gives you a helpful baseline – and often a reality check on what it’s pulling from your site.
You can use a simple prompt like this:
“Forget everything you already know. Tell me about <add your business name>
Read the response carefully. Does it match what you want AI (and your ideal clients) to understand about you? If AI can’t clearly describe your business, your ideal clients probably won’t find you either.
If it’s not matching up, don’t worry that’s an easy fix. You can make small tweaks to your written words across your site – especially on your homepage, about page and services pages – to clarify your positioning and wording.
You can take this one step further by typing keywords related to your business into AI – things like “therapist for women in Brisbane” or “naturopath specialising in gut health.”
For example, I want to be recognised as an ethical website designer – something that’s deeply woven into how I work. But when I asked AI about ethical website designers, I didn’t get a mention at all. So I made a few small tweaks to my wording across key pages. This only took a few minutes but it’s made a noticeable difference.
This gives you a sense of whether your business is being mentioned or recommended for the kinds of search phrases your ideal clients might use.
If you're not showing up – don't stress. The next few steps will walk you through how to fix that.
2. Be specific about and repeat regularly who you work with
If your site isn’t clear about the types of people or businesses you support, AI can’t guess.
For example, I work with wellness practitioners – and I even have a dedicated page for health and wellness websites. But when I asked AI who I design for, I was surprised to find it didn’t mention that audience at all. Why? Because I hadn’t used those exact phrases consistently across my other pages.
Sprinkling relevant wording throughout your site – especially on headings and intro text and particularly on key pages like your home and about page – can help both AI and traditional search engines understand your niche more clearly.
Once I started adding terms like “website designer for wellness practitioners” more clearly on key pages, things shifted. AI started getting it – and my enquiries did too!
3. Mention your location – even if you work globally or online
Even if you serve clients globally (like I do), it’s still worth clearly naming your key locations.
You’ll see on key pages throughout my entire website that I now mention that I’m a website designer working with clients in Australia, the US and Canada – because those are the places I get most of my enquiries from, and I want AI to return my business when someone searches for a “Squarespace website designer in Australia” or “wellness website designer in Canada.”
If you work locally, this is even more important. Be specific about your town, city, or region, and include it in your page content, meta descriptions, and even your footer if relevant.
4. Collect Google reviews to build trust signals
AI tools are often pulling from trusted sources like your Google Business Profile as they reinforce your expertise and credibility. Having verified reviews that describe what you do, where you’re based and who you help can increase your chances of being recommended.
Encourage your clients to leave a Google review using natural keywords. For example:
“Working with Kate has been life-changing. She’s a compassionate, trauma-informed therapist in Brisbane who truly understands women’s mental health.”
A few tips when collecting reviews:
Reach out to past clients gradually. Asking for too many reviews at once can trigger spam filters in Google, so it’s best to space them out over time.
Build it into your offboarding process. A simple reminder and direct link at the end of your project helps make it easy (and timely) for your clients to leave feedback.
5. Sprinkle testimonials on key pages throughout your website
Take the reviews that people have left on your Google Business Profile and sprinkle them through your website, too.
AI tools that scan your site often reference visible content to understand what you do, who you help and how people experience working with you. And that includes testimonials.
If your testimonials are buried on one standalone page, they might be missed (by AI and humans!). So you want to sprinkle these in strategic spots – like your home page and services pages.
These snippets help reinforce your niche, show proof of results and add credibility, which are all things AI tools use to decide whether or not to recommend you.
6. Add a short business description to your website footer
This is a small but powerful tweak. You could do this right now – it will take just a couple of minutes!
Adding a one-sentence description of your business in the footer of your site helps reinforce key details across every page. This is helpful for both search engines and AI tools that scan your site to summarise it.
Be sure to include what you do, who you are, who you work with and your location.
For example:
Alana Jade Studio is a Brisbane-based web design studio, offering calm, ethical Squarespace websites and SEO support for wellness practitioners, therapists, coaches and creatives across Australia, the US, and Canada.
This improves context for both AI and Google – and creates a consistent message from page to page.
7. Blog about topics your audience is searching for
Blogging is quietly making a comeback – and I couldn’t be happier.
While social media content is short-lived, blog posts live on your website, where they can continue working for you for months (or even years) to come. That’s good for SEO, great for discoverability and so much gentler on your nervous system.
Even just one well-written blog post per month (which is what I aim for) can make a real difference. It’s about consistency not intensity.
Both traditional search engines and AI tools prioritise helpful, relevant, original content.
If your site includes clear, easy-to-read blog posts that answer real questions your clients are asking — like “how to choose a trauma-informed therapist in Brisbane” or “what to eat for gut health during menopause” – you’re more likely to be recommended.
Blog content also gives AI something meaningful to work with – it’s another way, beyond just your key pages, for AI to understand your expertise and the type of people you help so be sure to write about topics in your niche and speciality area.
Improving your visibility through AI search is really about being clear, consistent and intentional. Small updates like these can go a long way in helping the right people find you when they need you…
Who would have thought that AI could help us with slow, sustainable marketing — but done right it works quietly for you in the background while you focus on your clients, creativity and enjoying life!
Want to know how your website is showing up?
If you’re not sure whether your site is sending the right signals – to AI, Google or your dream clients – a Website Audit is a great place to start.
My audits are designed specifically for wellness practitioners, creatives and coaches. I review your website with fresh eyes and give you a clear, actionable report on what’s working, what could be improved and how to strengthen your SEO, structure, and messaging.
You’ll get a personalised video walkthrough, an easy-to-follow action plan and suggestions to help your site work better for you.
