For two years, people have argued about whether optimising for AI search is a real thing. This month, Google ended the argument in its own words.
Here’s what happened. Over the last few weeks Google quietly updated its official help documents, the ones it expects every SEO and every business owner to read. In a new guide on optimising for generative AI features, Google used the actual terms the industry has been throwing around: AEO, which stands for answer engine optimisation, and GEO, which stands for generative engine optimisation. Then it said something that settled a long fight. From Google’s point of view, optimising for AI search is just optimising for search. It’s still SEO.
That sounds small. It isn’t. For the first time, the company that runs the search results, the AI Overviews, and the new AI Mode has told us in plain language what works and what’s a waste of time. If you run a business and you’ve been confused about whether to pay for some new “AI visibility” package, this is the clearest signal you’re going to get.
What Google actually said this week
The clearest summary came straight from the source. Google Search Central published a new resource on optimising for generative AI, and the headline message was reassuring: the best practices for SEO still apply, because AI Overviews and AI Mode are built on the same ranking and quality systems as normal search. You don’t need to write in a weird new way for the robots. You don’t need a separate version of every page.
Then Google got specific about what to skip. According to its official AI optimisation guide, you can ignore tactics like chopping your content into tiny “chunks” for AI, building special text files like llms.txt to feed the models, and chasing fake mentions of your brand around the web. A few days later Google added a fresh page on using third-party SEO tools and advice, and a warning that its spam policies apply to AI search too. Translation: buying your way into AI answers will get you the same treatment as buying links always did.
The industry noticed fast. Semrush broke down the guide and landed on the same takeaway we did: the fundamentals didn’t change, Google just confirmed them. Search Engine Journal put it bluntly in its headline, that Google’s new guide calls AEO and GEO “still SEO.” And the data backs the “it’s still SEO” line. Ahrefs has reported that roughly three quarters of the pages cited in AI Overviews already rank in the top ten for that search. If you rank well, you get pulled into the AI answer. If you don’t, you don’t. Ranking is still the engine.
There was one more piece worth knowing about. In early June, Google started rolling out new AI performance reports inside Search Console, the free tool most business owners already have. For the first time you can see how your pages show up inside AI Overviews and AI Mode, not just in the blue links. That matters because you can finally measure the thing everyone’s been guessing about.
What this means if you run a business in South Africa
Here’s where it gets practical, and a little uncomfortable. Over the past year a lot of South African business owners have been pitched expensive new “AEO” or “GEO” packages, sold as a separate, mysterious service that only a specialist can do. Some of those pitches lean on exactly the tactics Google just told you to ignore. If someone wants to charge you a premium to add llms.txt files, chop your site into AI chunks, or buy you mentions on random websites, you now have Google’s own documentation telling you that’s the wrong spend.
The good news is that the work that actually moves the needle is the work a solid agency was already doing. Clear content that answers real questions. A site that’s fast and easy for Google to read. Genuine reviews and mentions from real local sources. Strong rankings on the searches your customers actually make. That’s what gets you into the AI answer, and it’s the same thing that got you onto page one. For a business in Ballito or anywhere in KZN, that means you don’t need a second budget for AI search. You need your SEO done properly, with AI search kept in mind from the start. We’ve been saying this all year on our explainer on SEO, AEO and GEO, and it’s good to have Google say it out loud.
There’s a real opportunity hiding in here too. Most small businesses in South Africa still haven’t sorted out the basics, so the bar to get cited in AI answers is lower than it looks. While bigger competitors chase gimmicks, a local business that simply ranks well and answers questions clearly can end up being the one ChatGPT and Google’s AI recommend. That’s a genuine edge, and it costs sense rather than money.
So is AEO and GEO a scam?
No, and this is the part worth getting right. The work behind AEO and GEO is real and it matters more every month, because more of your customers are asking AI tools for recommendations instead of scrolling a list of links. What Google killed this week wasn’t the discipline. It killed the idea that it’s some separate dark art with its own secret tactics. The honest version of AEO and GEO is good SEO done with AI search in mind, and that’s exactly the service worth paying for. The dishonest version is a new label on old gimmicks. Now you can tell the two apart.
Three things to do this week
You don’t need to overhaul anything. You need to point your effort at what Google just confirmed works.
1. Open Search Console and look for the AI reports. If you’ve got Google Search Console set up, check whether the new AI performance view has reached your account yet. It shows how your pages turn up in AI Overviews and AI Mode. If you’ve never set up Search Console at all, that’s the first job, because you’re currently flying blind on half of Google. It’s free.
2. Audit who you’re paying, and for what. If you’ve got an agency or freelancer charging you for a separate “AI search” package, ask them a simple question: what exactly are you doing for that fee? If the answer is llms.txt files, content chunking, or buying brand mentions, that’s money Google just told you to redirect. The real work is content, site health, and rankings. Our SEO, AEO and GEO page lays out what should actually be on that invoice, and you can see the full picture of what we do on our services page.
3. Pick your top three questions and answer them properly. Think about the three things your customers always ask before they buy: price, turnaround, whether you cover their area. Write a clear, honest answer to each one on your site, in plain language. That’s the exact kind of content AI tools pull from, and most of your competitors haven’t bothered. It’s the cheapest win available right now.
The real story this week is quietly reassuring. There’s no new secret to learn and no special tool to buy. Google just confirmed that getting found in AI search is the same job it always was: be useful, be findable, and earn your rankings. The businesses that win in AI search in 2026 are the ones doing the unglamorous basics while everyone else chases the latest trick.
If you want to know whether your site is actually showing up in AI answers, or just sitting there hoping, book a free visibility audit and we’ll show you exactly where you stand.
Quick questions people are asking
What’s the difference between SEO, AEO and GEO? SEO is optimising to rank in normal search results. AEO, answer engine optimisation, is about showing up when a tool gives a direct answer instead of a list. GEO, generative engine optimisation, is about getting cited inside AI-generated answers like Google’s AI Overviews or ChatGPT. As of this month, Google says all three are really the same job: good SEO with AI search in mind.
Do I need to pay extra for AEO or GEO services? Not as a separate, premium add-on. Google’s own guidance this month says optimising for AI search uses the same fundamentals as normal SEO. If a provider is charging you a premium for AI-only gimmicks like llms.txt files or bought mentions, that’s a spend worth questioning. Good SEO done with AI search in mind is what you actually want.
How do I know if my business shows up in AI search? Start with Google Search Console, which now includes AI performance reports showing how your pages appear in AI Overviews and AI Mode. Beyond that, search for your own products and services in Google’s AI Mode and in ChatGPT and see whether you get mentioned. If you don’t, that’s the gap to close.