Google has published its official guide on AI search optimisation. And their position is noticeably different from much of the marketing around “AEO” (Answer Engine Optimization) and “GEO” (Generative Engine Optimization).
The short version: do the foundational work well. The rest is secondary.
That’s good news for local businesses who’ve been offered “AI SEO packages” or felt worried they need to hire expensive specialists. You probably don’t need a new service. You probably just need to do what you’re already doing — slightly better.
Here’s an interpretation of the guide from a local business perspective.
What Google says in three sentences
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The SEO foundation still applies. AI features in Google Search use the same ranking systems as regular search, supplemented with new techniques like retrieval-augmented generation (RAG) and query fan-out.
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Quality and perspective win. Unique first-hand insights beat commodity content like “10 tips for X”.
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Technically: be indexable, crawlable and snippet-friendly. None of that is AI-specific — it’s regular SEO.
What Google explicitly says you DON’T need
For local businesses considering investing in “AI SEO services”, this is particularly worth reading.
You don’t need llms.txt for Google
Google’s own AI doesn’t use it. It helps for ChatGPT, Perplexity and Claude — which have their own integrations and crawlers — but not for Google AI Overviews.
Practically: if you already have an llms.txt, don’t remove it. It costs nothing and helps third-party models. But don’t invest money in “optimising” it for Google.
You don’t need structured data as a requirement
JSON-LD is valuable — it helps with rich results, with Google Business Profile, with better snippets. But it isn’t a requirement to show up in AI answers.
Many agencies sell schema markup as an “AI feature”. That’s misleading. Schema markup is useful for traditional SEO. The AI benefit is secondary.
You don’t need to write “for AI”
“Don’t write in a specific way just for generative AI search” is verbatim from Google’s guide. Write for readers. AI models are good enough at understanding normal prose.
That goes directly against “AEO copywriting” services promising to write in ways “AI understands better”. Nonsense, according to Google itself.
You don’t need to break content into thin chunks
There’s no magic paragraph length. “AI-optimised chunking” is pseudo-science. Write natural sections with clear headings — that’s enough.
You don’t need to manufacture brand mentions
Invented mentions, fake citations, fake-company-name-dropping — they don’t work. Google’s analysis systems are robust against this.
What Google says you DEFINITELY should do
Write uniquely and from a perspective
First-hand insights beat commodity content. For local businesses, that means:
- Share cases from your own customer projects
- Tell about a specific renovation you did
- Explain why you charge what you charge
- Describe what your area looks like, what customers you work with, what works in Uppsala but not in Stockholm
Generic “10 tips for choosing a hairdresser” lists are worthless. A specific story from your business is valuable.
Be indexable, crawlable, snippet-friendly
Boring but decisive. A lot of basic SEO that local businesses actually miss:
- The page must be indexed in Google (check Search Console)
- robots.txt must not accidentally block Googlebot
- The page must load fast (under 2 seconds LCP on mobile)
- Mobile-friendly design that doesn’t lose visitors
This isn’t AI-specific. It’s the prerequisite for being included in AI answers at all.
Use Google Business Profile
For local AI search, GBP is the single biggest lever. When someone asks Google’s AI about “good hairdresser in Vasastan” or “dentist near me”, it’s GBP data that pulls up the answer.
That means:
- Verified profile with the right category
- 20+ photos showing what you actually do
- Current opening hours, including for holidays
- Regular posts (one per week is a good rhythm)
- Active review work
All of it is free. That’s the whole point.
Allow crawling
Nothing mysterious. Allow Googlebot in robots.txt. And if you also want to show up in ChatGPT, Perplexity and Claude — allow GPTBot, ClaudeBot, PerplexityBot, Google-Extended.
That’s two minutes of work with big upside.
What this means concretely for local businesses
Three practical interpretations.
1. DON’T spend money on “AI SEO services”
If an agency sells “AI optimisation” as a separate service — ask what they do. If the answer is “schema markup, llms.txt, AI-optimised copy and chunking” — that’s the same thing as regular SEO with a new label.
Invest instead in a good website + good GBP + honest content production. That’s what Google says works.
2. Invest in Google Business Profile
For local businesses, GBP is the single biggest lever for visibility in AI answers. It’s also the biggest for traditional local search. Two benefits from one investment.
We go deeper on this in Google Business for small businesses.
3. Keep focus on local signals
Local search is how Google’s AI answers local questions. NAP consistency (Name, Address, Phone), local reviews, local content production. That’s where the lever sits.
We go deeper on this in Visibility on Google in your city.
The difference between Google’s AI and third-party models
An important nuance in Google’s guide: it’s specifically about Google’s own AI (AI Overviews / Gemini). That isn’t the same as ChatGPT, Perplexity or Claude.
| Model | How they find information | What helps |
|---|---|---|
| Google AI Overviews / Gemini | Google’s current search index | Traditional SEO + GBP + local signals |
| ChatGPT | Training data + browsing feature | Own site + llms.txt + allow GPTBot |
| Perplexity | Searches the web for every question | Own site + allow PerplexityBot |
| Claude | Training data + web search in certain contexts | Own site + allow ClaudeBot |
For Google’s AI, traditional SEO + local signals are enough. For third-party models, llms.txt and AI crawler access also help.
Practical conclusion: cover both. The cost is low, the upside of being visible in more places isn’t small.
We’ve written more in-depth about how third-party models work in What is AI SEO and why is it starting to matter?.
What you do — in three time windows
None of this is AI-specific. It’s the same thing as good local SEO. Which is exactly the point Google is trying to make in their guide.
What we take from this
Google’s guide confirms at the core what we’ve said all along at Synlighetsverket: visibility is about craft, not hacks. Clear text, alive website, correct business information, real reviews.
“AEO” and “GEO” as concepts exist. They’re sold as disciplines. But for local businesses in Sweden, they’re not the biggest lever. It’s local search + Google Business Profile + honest content production. And that — as always — can be done well.
The only new thing in the AI era is that the lever for good foundational work has grown larger, not that new levers have appeared.
Questions we get about Google’s AI guide
Do I still need to think about “AI SEO” at all?
Yes — but not as a separate strategy. Think of it as “quality level of your regular SEO”. Good SEO for local businesses = good AI visibility. That’s what Google says.
My agency sells AI optimisation. Are they shady?
Not necessarily — it depends on what they deliver. If they optimise Google Business Profile, help with structured data, improve website speed and content — that’s valuable and helps both regular and AI search. If they just sell “llms.txt + chunking + AEO copy” as separate items — they’re not doing much good.
What do I do about the fact that Google constantly changes things?
Build on fundamentals. Good website, correct GBP, honest content production, reviews. The principles Google itself emphasises in their guide don’t change even if individual algorithms do. That’s why we always talk about craft instead of hacks.
Will AI Overviews replace regular Google search?
No. AI answers are often shown as a complement, not a replacement. For many questions (especially local ones), people still click links to verify, compare and book. Local search will keep being central — but the result format is evolving.
How we work with this
At Synlighetsverket we build websites and digital presence based on the same principles Google itself advocates in their guide. It’s not a coincidence that it matches either — we’ve always worked from the position that good foundational craft beats technical tricks.
No guarantees of showing up in Google AI Overviews. No guarantees of showing up in ChatGPT or Perplexity. Just the conditions for showing up where it actually is possible to show up — using the same methods that build good regular SEO.
Book 15 minutes and we’ll go through how you’re described today, and where the biggest levers sit for you specifically.