Getting Found on Google and AI: A Plain-English Guide

The “brains” behind AI chat tools like ChatGPT, Claude and Google Gemini.

An LLM is a computer program that has read a huge amount of text from the internet, books and other sources. From all that reading it has learned how words fit together, so it can answer questions in normal sentences. When someone types “Where can I charter a boat in the BVI?” into ChatGPT, an LLM writes the reply. It builds that reply from what it has read about the BVI, and sometimes from websites it looks up on the spot. If your business is not written about clearly online, the LLM has nothing to say about you.

Why it matters: Many of your customers now ask AI before they ask Google. You want the AI to know who you are and recommend you.

Making your website easy for Google to find, understand and show near the top.

When someone searches Google, it shows a list of websites. SEO is the work of helping your site appear high on that list for the searches that matter to you. It covers the words on your pages, how fast your site loads, whether it works well on a phone, and whether other trusted websites link to you. Think of Google as a librarian: SEO is making sure your book has a clear title, sits on the right shelf, and is recommended by other readers.

Example: a dive shop on Virgin Gorda wants to show up when people search “scuba diving Virgin Gorda”.

Why it matters: SEO is still the foundation. AI tools often look at the same websites Google ranks well, so good SEO helps with everything below.

Writing your website so it gives clear, direct answers to the questions people ask.

An “answer engine” is anything that replies with an answer rather than a list of links: Google’s answer boxes, voice assistants like Siri and Alexa, and AI chat tools. AEO means shaping your content so these tools can lift a clean answer straight from your site. In practice, that means writing out the real questions customers ask (“Do I need a licence to rent a boat in the BVI?”) and answering each one in a short, plain sentence or two, right at the start.

Why it matters: If your site holds the clearest answer, you are the one that gets quoted.

Helping AI tools mention and recommend your business when they write an answer.

“Generative” AI is AI that writes new text, like ChatGPT. GEO is the work of making your business show up inside those written answers. It overlaps a lot with SEO and AEO, but it also looks further afield: are you mentioned in local news, travel guides, directories, reviews and on social media? AI tools build their picture of you from all these places, not just your own website. The more places that describe you clearly and consistently, the more confident the AI is to name you.

Example: someone asks ChatGPT “What are the best marinas on Tortola?” GEO is about your marina being in that list.

Why it matters: Being left out of an AI answer is the new version of being on page two of Google. Nobody sees you.

When an AI tool names or links to your website as the place it got its answer from.

Many AI tools, such as Perplexity, ChatGPT search and Google’s AI Overviews, show small links or source cards next to their answers. That is a citation. It is like being quoted in a newspaper with your name printed next to the quote. There are two levels: a mention is when the AI says your business name; a citation is when it also links to your website as proof. Citations are the most valuable, because readers can click through to you.

Why it matters: A citation is a free recommendation from a source people trust, with a direct path to your door.

When someone gets their answer on the search page and never clicks through to any website.

Search “What time does the Road Town ferry leave?” and Google may simply show the answer at the top. The person reads it and leaves. No website gets a visit. This now happens for a large share of searches, and AI answers make it even more common. It means fewer visits to websites overall, even when you are doing everything right. The goal shifts from “get the click” to “be the name they see and remember”, so that when they are ready to book or buy, they come to you.

Why it matters: Website visits alone no longer tell the full story. Being seen in the answer counts too, and that is what AEO and GEO aim for.

Put the most important point first. Explain after.

BLUF is a writing habit borrowed from the military. Instead of building up to your point, you start with it. So rather than three paragraphs of history before mentioning your prices, you open with “Day sails start at $120 per person, lunch included.” Then you add the detail. People skim, and AI tools often grab just the first sentence or two of a section. If your answer is buried at the bottom, both will miss it.

Why it matters: BLUF helps customers find what they need fast, and makes your content much easier for AI to quote.

People who are ready to buy, book or get in touch now.

Marketers picture the customer journey as a funnel. At the wide top are people just starting to look around (“things to do in the BVI”). In the middle are people comparing options (“best snorkelling tours Tortola”). At the narrow bottom are people ready to act (“book snorkel tour Cane Garden Bay Saturday”). There are fewer of them, but they are the ones who spend money. Bottom-of-funnel content includes clear prices, booking pages, opening hours, “how to get here”, and a simple way to call or email you.

Why it matters: These visitors turn into paying customers. Make it easy for them to say yes.

A set of emails, messages and web pages that guide a new contact towards buying, without you doing it by hand each time.

An automated funnel takes someone from “just interested” to “booked” in planned steps that run on their own. For example: a visitor downloads your price list, and that triggers a welcome email the same day. Three days later they get an email with customer reviews. A week later, a short reminder with a “book now” button. If they book, the reminders stop. You set it up once, and it keeps working day and night, including when you are out on the water. Tools like Mailchimp can run this for you.

Example: a charter company sends every enquiry a friendly follow-up series, so no lead is forgotten in a busy week.

Why it matters: Most people do not buy on their first visit. An automated funnel keeps you in touch until they are ready, and saves your team hours of follow-up.

A hidden label on your web pages that tells Google and AI exactly what the page is about.

People read your website with their eyes. Computers need things spelled out. Structured data is a small block of code, invisible to visitors, that says in a format machines understand: “This is a business. Its name is X. It is in Road Town. It opens at 8am. Here is its phone number.” JSON-LD is simply the most common way of writing that code, and “schema” refers to the agreed list of labels everyone uses (from a site called schema.org). It is like filling in a form for Google instead of making it guess.

"@type": "LocalBusiness",
"name": "Example Dive Shop",
"address": "Spanish Town, Virgin Gorda, BVI",
"openingHours": "Mo-Su 08:00-17:00"

Why it matters: It removes guesswork, can earn you extra details in Google results (like star ratings or FAQs), and helps AI state your facts correctly.