Guide
AI search optimization: how to show up in AI answers
AI search optimization means making your brand easy for AI search tools to find, understand and recommend. Here is how each kind of AI search works and a checklist you can work through.
The AI search surfaces that matter
| Surface | How it answers | What helps |
|---|---|---|
| Google AI Overviews and AI Mode | Summarises pages from Google’s index above or instead of the usual results | Normal Google SEO, clear answer-style sections, structured data |
| ChatGPT | Answers from training data, and searches the web for many questions | Being well covered on the open web; crawlable pages; third-party mentions |
| Gemini | Answers from training data, with Google Search grounding in some products | Consistent entity information; presence in sources Google trusts |
| Perplexity and Copilot | Searches first, then writes an answer with citations | Pages that answer the exact question, kept current and easy to quote |
Checklist
- Your category and audience are stated in plain words on the homepage and in Organization structured data.
- Each core buyer question has a page that answers it directly.
- Pricing, locations and who you are for are public; AI cannot recommend what it cannot verify.
- You are listed, with accurate details, on the review sites and directories AI cites for your category.
- robots.txt does not block the AI crawlers you want; pages render without JavaScript.
- You track a fixed set of buyer questions over time, across engines, instead of spot-checking.
Where to start
Start with the questions, not the tactics. Find out which questions you already appear in and which go to competitors. That tells you whether the gap is awareness (AI doesn’t know you), sources (it knows you but trusts others more) or positioning (it files you under a different category). Each gap has a different fix.
Related: our GEO guide and AEO vs GEO.
Questions
What is the difference between AI search optimization and GEO?
They describe the same goal. “AI search optimization” is the plainer phrase; “generative engine optimization” is the term from research and agencies.
Can I see what AI says about my brand?
Yes. Run the free check on this site, or ask the assistants yourself with the questions your buyers would use, ideally several times because answers vary.
See where you stand before you change anything
Run the free 5-question check to see whether AI names your brand, or a competitor, when buyers in your country ask. If you want the full picture, the €99 audit covers 25 buyer questions, the competitors AI picks instead, the sources it leans on and a prioritised fix list.
Run the free check Get the €99 audit
Checks run on Google Gemini today (ChatGPT and Perplexity are planned, with no date promised). AI answers vary between runs; nobody can guarantee a recommendation.
Written by the SupaDesign team behind Would AI Recommend. Last reviewed 24 October 2026.