Ask ChatGPT "who does CCTV installation in Auckland?" and it will name a few businesses. Ask Perplexity for a digital marketing agency in New Zealand and it will list some, with links. Google now puts an AI Overview above the normal results for a lot of searches. If your business is not in those answers, you are invisible to a growing group of customers who never scroll past them.
The industry calls this AEO (Answer Engine Optimisation) or GEO (Generative Engine Optimisation). The names do not matter. What matters is how these tools decide who to mention, and what you can do about it.
How AI tools pick who to recommend
AI search tools do two things. They read the web (either live, or from a stored copy), and they decide what to trust. They tend to mention a business when:
- The same facts about it (name, location, services, phone) appear consistently across several sites, not just its own.
- Its website answers real questions directly, in short clear passages the tool can lift out and quote.
- It is reviewed, listed and talked about on sources the tool already trusts: Google Business Profile, directories, industry bodies, news, LinkedIn.
- Its site is technically readable: fast, plain HTML, not hidden behind scripts, and not blocking the AI crawlers.
Notice that most of this is the same work that has always mattered for Google. AI search rewards clear, consistent, well-referenced businesses. It punishes vague, thin, self-promotional sites.
Seven things to do this month
1. Let the AI crawlers in
Check your robots.txt. If it blocks GPTBot, ClaudeBot, PerplexityBot or Google-Extended, those tools cannot read you. Most small business sites block them by accident because a plugin added the rule.
2. Write answers, not slogans
For every service, add a short paragraph that directly answers the question a customer would type: what it costs, how long it takes, what is included, where you do it. Put the answer in the first two sentences. AI tools quote passages, not pages.
3. Add FAQ sections with structured data
A real FAQ (questions people actually ask, with honest answers) marked up with FAQPage schema gives both Google and AI tools clean question-and-answer pairs to reuse.
4. Get your facts identical everywhere
Business name, address or service area, phone number and hours should match exactly on your website, Google Business Profile, Facebook, LinkedIn, Yellow, Finda and any other listing. Inconsistency reads as unreliability.
5. Collect real reviews
Google reviews are one of the strongest trust signals AI tools have for local businesses. Ask every happy customer. Reply to every review. Show them on your site with the reviewer's name.
6. Publish an llms.txt file
It is a plain text summary of your business for AI tools, sitting at yoursite.co.nz/llms.txt. Ours is here if you want to see the format.
7. Get mentioned off your own site
A LinkedIn company page, a supplier's partner directory, a local business association, a guest article on an NZ industry site. Every independent mention is a vote that you exist and are legitimate.
What not to do
Do not stuff pages with "best in Auckland" and "number one". AI tools weigh evidence, not adjectives. Do not generate fifty thin pages with an AI writer; the tools are good at spotting content with nothing in it. Do not buy fake reviews; that risks your Google profile, which is worth far more than a short-term bump.
How we measure it
Once a month we ask ChatGPT, Gemini, Perplexity and Google (with AI Overviews) the ten questions your customers would ask, record which businesses are named, and track whether you appear and what the tool says about you. It is a simple report, and it shows movement within two to three months when the work above is done properly.
If you would like to know where your business stands in AI search today, ask for a free AI visibility check or call 027 611 1114. We run this as part of our SEO service in Auckland.
Frequently asked questions
Is AI search replacing Google?
Not yet. Google is still where most New Zealanders start, but AI Overviews now sit at the top of many Google results and tools like ChatGPT and Perplexity are growing fast. The work that gets you cited in AI answers also helps you rank on Google, so there is no trade-off.
Do I need to block AI bots from my website?
If you want to be recommended by AI tools, no. Blocking GPTBot, ClaudeBot or PerplexityBot means those tools cannot read your site and are less likely to mention you. Publishers with paywalled content have a different decision to make.
What is llms.txt?
A simple text file at yoursite.co.nz/llms.txt that summarises who you are, what you do and where your key pages are, written for AI tools to read. It is new and not every tool uses it yet, but it costs nothing to add.