Short answer: to get recommended by AI tools like ChatGPT and Gemini, your business needs a clear, fast, well-structured website and strong local signals — so the AI can understand who you are, what you do, and where, then confidently suggest you. Here's a real North Shore example of it working.
Something has quietly changed in how people find local businesses. Instead of Googling "personal trainer near me," more and more people now ask ChatGPT, Gemini, or Claude: "Can you recommend a good personal trainer in Salem?" And the AI just... answers, with a short list of names.
So the new question for any local business is simple: are you on that list?
What is AEO (and why it suddenly matters)?
AEO stands for Answer Engine Optimization — basically, making sure AI tools can find, understand, and recommend your business when someone asks them a question. It's the next-door neighbor of regular SEO (getting found on Google), and it's becoming just as important.
The reason it matters now: when AI gives someone three gym recommendations, there's no "page two." If you're not in that short answer, you're invisible for that question — even more so than on Google.
A real North Shore example
Crossroads Strength & Conditioning is a personalized training studio in downtown Salem, led by Coach Jane Petrosino. Before we rebuilt their site, they essentially weren't showing up online — not ranking for their local searches, and not appearing in AI recommendations at all.
We rebuilt and modernized the website and optimized it for both Google and AI search. After that work:
- They started appearing in Google's local results for searches like "personal trainer Salem MA" and "gyms in Salem MA" — climbing from nowhere, and still improving.
- More notably, when we asked ChatGPT, Gemini, and Claude — separately — to recommend a gym or a personal trainer in Salem, Crossroads showed up in the answers.
That second part is the new frontier. A small Salem studio became one of the names the major AI tools will mention when a real person asks for help.
How AI decides who to recommend
AI tools don't pull names out of thin air. They lean on the same kinds of signals that make a business credible online — just read by a machine. In plain terms, you're more likely to be recommended when:
- Your website is clear and well-organized — so the AI can actually understand what you offer and where.
- Your services and location are stated plainly, in the words real people use, not vague slogans.
- Your business looks trustworthy and consistent across your site, your Google Business Profile, and the web.
- The technical structure is sound, so machines can read your pages, not just humans.
This is the same "get found, earn trust" foundation we describe on our why your website isn't getting leads page — it just now pays off in AI answers too, not only Google. If you want the deeper version, our SEO and AI search optimization work is built around exactly this.
The honest part
Nobody can guarantee a spot in an AI's recommendations, and you can't control what these tools say — their answers shift over time and vary by how a question is asked. What you can do is build the strong, clear, trustworthy foundation that makes you a likely pick. That's not a trick; it's the same thing that earns trust with a real customer, done so a machine can see it too.
Frequently asked questions
How do I get my business recommended by ChatGPT or Gemini? Give the AI a clear, fast, well-structured website with your services and location stated plainly, plus consistent local signals like a complete Google Business Profile. That's what lets it understand and recommend you.
What is AEO? Answer Engine Optimization — making your business easy for AI tools to find, understand, and recommend when someone asks them a question.
Is showing up in AI answers guaranteed? No. AI answers change over time and can't be controlled. You can only build the foundation that makes you a likely recommendation, the same fundamentals that help you on Google.
Do I still need regular Google SEO too? Yes. Most people still use Google, and the work that helps you get found there is closely tied to the work that gets you mentioned by AI. They reinforce each other.
Want to find out if AI tools recommend your business — or your competitors? Book a quick call — no pressure, no obligation.
