Google Business Profile has been emailing profile owners and managers with the subject line “Update your website for AI search.” If you got it, you might be wondering what you’re supposed to change.
Search has changed. AI Overviews put a summary above the regular results, and AI Mode lets you ask follow-up questions. But Google’s guidance is clear: showing up there is still SEO, because its AI features rely on the same core ranking and quality systems as the rest of Google Search. What you want to do is find where your existing information needs attention.
Key Takeaways
- Updating your website for AI search is still SEO. Google’s AI features rely on the same core ranking and quality systems as regular search. Keep your profile and website accurate and useful for your ideal customers.
- You can skip the AI search tricks. Google Search doesn’t use llms.txt files, and you don’t need special AI markup or tiny chunks of content. Be wary of outside tools that imply they know Google’s AI ranking systems. They don’t.
- Your experience is what makes your website worth mentioning. Google calls it “non-commodity” content: answers and examples from doing the work that go beyond what someone could find on any other website.
Start With Your Google Business Profile
Google specifically names your Business Profile in its guidance as a way to help your services appear in AI responses, along with regular search results. We’ve talked before about your profile being a source for Google’s AI answers, and this email is another reason to check whether it reflects your business today.
Maybe your profile still emphasizes handyman work, but you’ve moved toward larger remodeling projects. Or you changed your hours or the area you serve and never updated it. If you want more kitchen remodeling work, someone looking for that service should be able to tell from your profile that you do it, where you work, and what kind of projects you take on.
Check your categories, services, hours, service area, and website link against what you actually offer now, and fix whatever is out of date.
Answer the Questions That Help Someone Decide
That website link matters, because your profile and your website need to say the same thing. If your profile says kitchen remodeling, the page it sends people to should explain that work.
There’s a big difference between saying “we offer quality kitchen remodeling” and showing how you handle a kitchen in an older home. What might you find behind the walls? What affects the budget? What should someone plan for if they’re living there during the work?
Your experience is what makes those answers useful. You might explain a recent project where the layout looked simple until you discovered a plumbing issue, what you recommended, and why. That gives someone more to work with than a general list of remodeling tips they could find anywhere.
Google calls this “non-commodity” content: information that brings your own experience and expertise beyond common knowledge. It can include photos of your work or a short video explaining a decision. And you’re already having these conversations in your business. Think about the last estimate you gave, a choice you helped a customer make, or something you wish they’d known before they called. Any of those helps the person considering your service understand what to expect, and that’s what helps you get mentioned.
Make Sure Google Can Reach Those Pages
Good answers only help if Google can find them. To appear in Google’s AI features, a page has to be indexed and eligible to show in regular search results. Check that your important service pages are available to Google, and that the site works well on a phone. That last one isn’t specific to AI search, but it’s one of the basics Google has expected for years.
The AI Search Tricks Google Says to Ignore
Once the basics are covered, it’s tempting to look for an edge, and this year has brought plenty of sure-fire tips for getting found in AI search. Google’s guidance addresses several of them directly.
Website Changes You Don’t Need
Google Search doesn’t use llms.txt, the special AI file some people recommend adding to your site, so adding one won’t help your visibility in Google Search. You also don’t need special AI markup or an AI-only version of your content.
Organizing your content structure with headings is good practice, but there’s no requirement to chop your pages into tiny micro pieces. If several questions naturally belong together on your service page, keep them together. And you don’t need to rewrite your pages to cover every way someone might phrase a search, because AI tools are now very good at understanding intent. Clear writing and organization still matter, but reworking a useful page to follow the latest AI search trick is time you could spend answering a real customer question on your site.
Shortcuts That Promise Results
Google says seeking inauthentic mentions across the web isn’t as helpful as it might seem. Its ranking systems focus on quality content, and other systems block spam, so low-quality guest posts, spammy directories, and link farms aren’t worth your money.
Be careful with tools that promise guaranteed AI rankings, too. Google says no outside tool has access to its internal ranking or AI systems, and that you should check what these tools tell you against Google’s official guidance. Because things are changing quickly, get the foundation right before you spend your limited time and budget.
Action Steps This Week
Three things to do this week:
- Open your Google Business Profile and check your categories, services, hours, service area, and website link against what you actually offer today.
- Choose one service you want more of and improve its website page with an answer or example from your own work that helps someone decide.
- Check that Google can access and index your site and that it’s easy to use on a phone.
Google is bringing this advice directly to you because search is changing. Keep your business information current, share what you know from doing the work, and make it easy to find. That helps the right person understand what you offer and take the next step with you.
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Links in this episode: Google: Optimizing your website for generative AI features on Google Search
