AI Engine Optimisation
Be the answer AI recommends
Your customers aren't just Googling anymore. They're asking ChatGPT, Claude, and Perplexity. When someone asks AI for a business like yours, you need to be the answer it gives.
The way people find businesses is changing. For twenty years, the playbook was simple: rank on Google, get clicks, win customers. That playbook still matters, but it's no longer the whole story. Millions of people now ask AI tools like ChatGPT, Claude, Perplexity, and Gemini for recommendations instead of scrolling through search results.
When someone types "best web designer in Croydon" into ChatGPT, the response isn't a list of blue links. It's a specific recommendation, with reasons why that business is worth contacting. AI Engine Optimisation (AIEO) is the practice of making sure that recommendation is you.
AI engines decide which businesses to recommend based on a combination of factors: the quality and clarity of your website content, your authority and reputation across the web, structured data that helps machines understand your services, and consistency across every platform where your business appears. It's similar to SEO in many ways, but the emphasis is different. AI engines care more about depth, expertise, and trustworthiness than keyword density and backlink volume.
Google's E-E-A-T framework (Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, Trustworthiness) is a useful lens here. AI engines are trained on web content and they develop a model of which sources are reliable. Businesses that demonstrate genuine expertise, maintain consistent information, and earn mentions from other trusted sources are far more likely to be recommended.
Traditional SEO and AIEO aren't in competition. They're complementary. Strong SEO foundations give AI engines the structured, authoritative content they need to form accurate recommendations. AIEO extends that foundation to cover the new channels where your customers are making decisions. Ignoring either one leaves gaps in your visibility.
The businesses that act on this now will have a real head start. AI adoption is accelerating, and the patterns these engines form about your business are being shaped right now, whether you're managing them or not. We help you take control of that narrative, so when someone asks AI about your industry, your business is the one it recommends.
How It Works
Our process
Discovery
We research how AI engines currently perceive your business. What do they say when asked about your services? Where do they pull information from? Where are the gaps?
AI Visibility Audit
We test your business across ChatGPT, Claude, Perplexity, and Gemini. We document what each engine recommends, what they get wrong, and what they miss entirely.
Optimisation
We restructure your content, implement structured data, strengthen your authority signals, and ensure AI engines can accurately understand and recommend your business.
Monitoring
AI engines evolve constantly. We track how your business is represented over time, adapt to algorithm changes, and report on your AI visibility alongside traditional search metrics.
Frequently asked questions
What's the difference between SEO and AIEO?
SEO optimises your website for search engines like Google. You're trying to rank in a list of links. AIEO optimises your business for AI engines like ChatGPT, Claude, and Perplexity. You're trying to be the business these tools actually recommend. Both matter, and they complement each other. Strong SEO foundations make AIEO more effective, and vice versa.
Do people actually use AI instead of Google?
More than you'd think. ChatGPT has over 200 million weekly users. Perplexity is growing fast. Google itself is adding AI Overviews to search results. This shift isn't coming; it's already here. Younger customers especially are using AI tools for recommendations, research, and finding local businesses.
Can you guarantee my business will be recommended by AI?
No, and you should be sceptical of anyone who promises that. AI engines don't have a simple ranking algorithm you can game. What we can do is make your business far more likely to be recommended by making sure your online presence is authoritative, well-structured, and clearly relevant to what your customers are asking. The businesses that get ahead of this now will benefit most.
How long until I see results?
AI engines update their knowledge bases at different intervals. Some changes show up within weeks, others take longer. We typically see real improvements in AI visibility within 2 to 4 months, building from there. We track and report on your AI presence monthly so you can see progress clearly.
Do I need to choose between SEO and AIEO?
Not at all. AIEO isn't a replacement for SEO. It's an extension of it. Most of the fundamentals overlap: clear content, strong authority, structured data, genuine expertise. We recommend investing in both, which is why our SEO and AIEO services are designed to work together.
Ready to get started?
Find out how AI engines see your business today. Book a free call and we'll show you exactly where the opportunities are.