AI search optimisation for a small business is mostly good SEO, done clearly. Tools like ChatGPT, Perplexity and Google's AI answers pull from what they can find and understand on the web, so the businesses they mention tend to have websites that state plainly who they are, what they do, where they work and what it costs, backed up by reviews and listings elsewhere.
There's no secret switch, and nobody can guarantee an AI tool will recommend you. But there's a lot you can do to make your business easy to understand and easy to quote. Here's where I'd start.
How AI search finds businesses
When someone asks an AI tool "who's a good physio in Noosa?" or "how much does a small business website cost in Australia?", the tool usually looks for pages that answer that question directly. Some tools search the web live, and some lean on what they learned from public websites.
Either way, the same things help: clear answers, consistent facts and a website that's easy for a machine to read. Google says its AI features draw on the same foundations as regular search, and its guide to AI features and your website recommends following the same SEO best practices.
Write answers, not slogans
AI tools quote sentences that make sense on their own. A homepage that says "Passion. Precision. Possibility." gives them nothing to work with. A homepage that says "We're a physiotherapy clinic in Buderim offering sports and pelvic health physio, with HICAPS on the spot" gives them everything.
Go through your main pages and check:
- Your first paragraph says what you do and where, in plain words
- Each service has its own page, starting with a short, direct description
- Your prices, or at least a starting price, are written as text
- Common questions are answered on the page, not just over the phone
- Nothing important is baked into an image, where tools can't read it
Publishing prices helps more than people expect. I publish all of mine, partly so you know where you stand, and partly because a clear "Starter websites from $1,000 + GST" is exactly the kind of fact an AI answer can repeat.
Add an FAQ section to your key pages
Questions and answers are the format AI tools love most, because people ask them questions. A good FAQ section answers the real questions your customers search for, in one to three sentences each.
For a clinic, that might be "Do you offer HICAPS?" or "Do I need a referral?". For a celebrant, "How far in advance do I need to lodge the NOIM?". My pages on websites for physiotherapists and websites for wedding celebrants show how I build answers like these into a site, so they're useful to people and machines alike.
See how I build websites for search →
Make your website easy for machines to read
Under the hood, a few technical things make a real difference:
- Structured data. A bit of code that tells search engines your business type, location, contact details and FAQs in a format they can't misread.
- One clear heading per page, with a logical order of subheadings.
- Fast, mobile-friendly pages, because slow, broken pages are less likely to be read properly.
- Text as real text, not inside images or sliders.
- An llms.txt file. This is a newer, optional idea: a plain-text summary of your business and key pages, written for AI tools. I have one on my own site. Not every tool uses it yet, but it's quick to add.
Every custom website I build comes with proper page titles, descriptions, headings and structured data. My ready-made websites come with the Google basics set up too.
Be consistent everywhere else
AI tools don't only read your website. They also look at what the rest of the web says about you, so the details need to line up:
- Your Google Business Profile, complete and accurate
- Reviews, on Google and wherever your customers leave them
- Directories and industry listings with the same name, address and phone number
- Social profiles that describe you the same way your website does
If your website says you're in Maroochydore, your Google profile says Mooloolaba and an old directory lists a number you stopped using years ago, you're giving every search tool mixed messages.
Keep it honest and up to date
Old information is worse than no information, because an AI tool might repeat it. Check your site for outdated prices, old opening hours, services you no longer offer and staff who've moved on.
And write like a person. When I wrote the copy for Calltime's website, I drafted with AI but kept keyword research and fact-checking in charge, which I explain in the Calltime case study. AI is a useful drafting tool. It shouldn't be the one deciding what's true about your business.
Frequently asked questions
Can I pay to be recommended by ChatGPT?
Not in the way you can pay for Google Ads. The reliable approach is making sure your website and listings clearly answer the questions your customers ask, so AI tools have good information to draw on.
Is AI search optimisation different from SEO?
Mostly no. Clear content, good structure, structured data, fast pages and consistent listings help both. The main shift is writing direct answers that make sense when quoted on their own.
What is an llms.txt file?
It's an optional plain-text file on your website that summarises your business and links to your key pages, written for AI tools. It's a newer idea and not every tool reads it yet, but it's simple to add.
Do I need a new website to show up in AI search?
Not always. Sometimes rewriting your key pages and adding FAQs is enough. If your site is slow, hard to update or hides everything in images, a rebuild is often quicker. A one-page Starter website starts from $1,000 + GST.
Will a landing page help with AI search?
A landing page is built to turn ad clicks into enquiries for one offer, so it's not usually the page AI tools quote. Your main website is where the clear, detailed answers should live.
The bottom line
The businesses AI tools recommend are usually the ones that are easiest to understand. Say plainly what you do, where and for how much, answer real questions, and keep your details consistent across the web. If you'd like to know how your current site stacks up, or whether to hire a freelancer or an agency to fix it, tell me about your business and I'll give you an honest view.
Get my free website plan →Personal reply within 24 hours, always from me.
Chloe, Coco Creatives. Sunshine Coast web designer with 8 years in web design and branding. I design and build every site myself, from our first chat through to handover.
