Chris Ransley
SEO Manager
Making sure that your practice shows up when people ask this question is going to become more and more important.
Since ChatGPT first opened the AI floodgates in 2022 we have seen a meteoric rise in the use of generative AI for searching, and with that a need to be visible on this new type of search engine.
Increasingly, we have seen the use of AI search engines to compare vet practices in the local area, so pet owners don’t have to. If you’re not being referenced by these engines, then you won’t be in the conversation.
Google search vs AI
Firstly, it would be helpful if we distinguish between what makes a website shine on normal, Google-like search engines and generative search. The answer is: much of it is the same. What constitutes good SEO (Search Engine Optimisation) also crosses over to good GEO (Generative Engine Optimisation). Danny Sullivan from Google sums it up succinctly: ‘Good SEO is good GEO’.
What are the key differences between ‘old’ search and AI search?
One of the key differences we need to optimise for is how people search differently on each of the platforms. On Google, search terms are generally small phrases or keywords, such as ‘best vet near me’, . This is changing with the AI overview present on Google search, however, on average the AI overview is only triggered on 20.5% of searches.
On platforms such as ChatGPT users are asking questions, such as: ‘What are the best local vets in my area?’ and so the content that each of these engines need is slightly different.
But how are these AI search engines searching for this data?
There is a difference in how the AI search engines gather that data. ChatGPT uses Bing as its search index, whereas Gemini uses Google. Perplexity, on the other hand, uses its own search index to pull data from. Because of this it’s worth taking a wide view on traditional SEO and how it’s going to help with AI search.
How do we optimise for both SEO and generative search?
There’s a lot of similarity between SEO and GEO, and some differences, so how do you optimise for both? Many of the optimisations to be made are centred around the content on your website and how to leverage it to increase visibility on generative search engines.
With all of that in mind, here are our top five tips on how to optimise your website for generative search engines.
Tip1: Write content that answers users’ questions
The way people interact with AI search is different from normal search. People ask questions with natural language and so having content that answers these questions clearly and directly is key to winning visibility.
Users are asking questions and they expect longer, more complete, answers back. The content that wins visibility is the content which answers those questions for the user.
Something to keep in mind is, if you were asked this question how would you answer it concisely and completely?
Tip 2: Structure your content so it is easily digestible – by humans and AI
Having a well thought out structure to your content will really help both users and AI to understand what you are saying.
This means setting out your content using headings, bullet points, numbered lists, FAQs. With well-structured content it will be easy for readers and AI to pick out the information they need and improve visibility and mentions on AI search engines.
Tip 3: Use structured data on your pages
Using structured data, or schema markup, allows search engines and AI to understand the content and context of your page easily. Things like FAQPage schema makes it easier for AI to understand where your content is and how it fits in to answering queries.
Tip 4: Ensure your website is accessible and crawlable
What’s the use in having wonderful, structured content that answers users’ questions in a clear and direct way if the content can’t be found? Or if it loads so slow that the AI crawler gives up and goes elsewhere?
Fundamental, technical SEO on your website to ensure all your pages are crawlable and accessible is a necessity. You can check this using free tools such as Google Search Console and Google Pagespeed Insights.
You also need to ensure that AI crawlers haven’t been blocked from visiting your website. This is usually done through the robots.txt that gives directives to crawlers on what can and can’t be crawled on the website. Ensure there aren’t any disallow statements blocking crawlers such as GPTBot, ChatGPT-User or the like.
Tip 5: Include reliable and trustworthy citations
As with any content, if it isn’t trustworthy it isn’t going to be repeated, and AI references are no different. Having clear and concise citations, if needed, increases credibility with people and allows AI bots to reaffirm the information in your content.
There are a few best practices to follow in using citations:
- If possible, use primary sources.
- Use descriptive anchor text when linking citations.
- Add structured data to help AI understand your sources
As with links, citations increase credibility and increases the likelihood that your content is going to be cited by generative search engines.
Generative AI is rapidly changing how pet owners search and it’s becoming a major new channel for practices to attract and convert new clients. While the technology is still evolving, the opportunity is clear: practices that are visible in AI results will win more enquiries.
Don’t want to handle this yourself? Digital Practice websites include AI optimisation as standard, and in 2026 our SEO packages evolve into SEO + AIO, making generative AI search the priority we think it deserves to be. Contact chris.ransley@digitalpractice.vet for more information.