AEO stands for answer engine optimisation: making your business the one an AI assistant names when someone asks it who to hire. It is also called generative engine optimisation, or GEO. For a local business it rests on the same foundations as local SEO, with a few additions. No one can guarantee a position in an AI answer, and anyone who says otherwise should be avoided.
What is the difference between AEO, GEO and SEO?
SEO is ranking in a list of search results. AEO and GEO are about being cited or recommended inside an answer written by an AI, whether that is ChatGPT, Gemini, Copilot, Claude, Perplexity or Google's own AI answers. The two terms describe largely the same work: GEO comes from a 2024 research paper and has more search volume; AEO is the word agencies and buyers tend to use. The work that wins one tends to win the other.
Where do AI assistants get their local recommendations from?
For local questions, largely from the same places Google does: your Google Business Profile, your reviews, your website, and mentions of your business on other sites. Studies of AI citations in 2025 and 2026 point to consistent business details across the web as one of the biggest factors, and to third-party mentions as the source of most citations. A complete profile with recent reviews is already most of the work.
What on my website actually helps?
Pages that answer a question directly in the first lines, under headings written the way people ask. Structured data that states your services, areas, hours and prices as facts. Specific, original detail rather than generic copy. Consistent name, address and phone. Visible dates showing the page is maintained. These are also good for Google, which is why the two come together.
What is hype?
Files like llms.txt, which the evidence says do little and Google's products do not use. Building links specifically for AI, which showed no measurable lift. Keyword density and page length for their own sake. And any promise of a guaranteed position in ChatGPT, because the platforms control their outputs and they vary by person, place and day.
Can AI visibility be tracked?
Not reliably. AI answers are personalised and change between sessions, and there is no equivalent of Google Search Console for them. Trackers exist but produce trends from sampled questions rather than real data. We do not sell tracking for that reason. You can ask any assistant yourself at any time and see what it says, which is the honest test.
So what should a local business do?
The same things that win the map pack, done well: a complete and active Google Business Profile, a steady flow of recent reviews with replies, answer-first service and area pages with structured data, and identical business details everywhere. Then earn mentions on other sites where you can. That is AEO for a local business, and it is work that pays off on Google whether or not the AI names you.
