The Silent Crisis Nobody's Talking About
While you've been perfecting your Google SEO, something fundamental has shifted in how people search for businesses.
They're not googling anymore. Or at least, not as much.
Recent data shows that around 40% of searches now happen in AI chatbots like ChatGPT, Claude, and Perplexity instead of traditional search engines. And that percentage is climbing every month.
Think about your own behavior. When's the last time you:
- Asked ChatGPT for a restaurant recommendation?
- Used Claude to find a tool or service?
- Checked Perplexity instead of Google for product research?
Yeah. Exactly.
Your potential customers are doing the same thing. And if you're not showing up in those AI responses, you're slowly becoming invisible.
The Experiment That Changed Everything
I needed to know how bad this problem actually was, so I ran a test.
I took 50 small businesses across different industries - consultants, agencies, local services, B2B companies. All of them had decent Google rankings. Many were on the first page for their main keywords.
Then I asked ChatGPT variations of questions their potential customers might ask:
- "What's the best [service] in [city]?"
- "Recommend a good [profession] for [specific need]"
- "Who should I hire for [job]?"
Results: 3 out of 50 businesses appeared in ChatGPT's recommendations.
Three.
The other 47? Completely invisible. Even the ones ranking #1 on Google.
One business I tested ranks #2 on Google for "SEO consultant Berlin." ChatGPT has never mentioned them once across dozens of queries. Not even in the "other options" list.
Meanwhile, a competitor ranking #8 on Google gets recommended by ChatGPT constantly.
What's going on?
Why Your Google SEO Strategy Is Failing You in AI Search
Here's what most business owners don't realize: ChatGPT and Google are completely different animals.
They look at different signals. They prioritize different things. They respond to different optimization strategies.
What works on Google often does nothing for LLM visibility. Sometimes it actively hurts you.
Think of it this way: You wouldn't use the same strategy to succeed on Instagram and LinkedIn, right? Different platforms, different rules.
Same deal here. Google and ChatGPT are different platforms with different algorithms.
The 5 Critical Differences Between Google SEO and LLM Optimization
1. Keyword Stuffing
Google: Still kind of works if you're subtle about it. Google tolerates a certain amount of keyword repetition.
ChatGPT: Actively hurts you. LLMs detect over-optimized content and deprioritize it. The more your content sounds like it was written for an algorithm, the less likely ChatGPT is to recommend you.
Real example: A consultant had "SEO expert London" appearing 47 times on their homepage. Google ranked them well. ChatGPT never mentioned them. They reduced it to 3 natural mentions, focused on clarity instead - started appearing in AI recommendations within two weeks.
2. Backlinks
Google: Still the gold standard. More quality backlinks generally mean better rankings.
ChatGPT: Less important. LLMs care more about how authoritative you sound than who links to you. They're reading your content directly, not just counting votes from other sites.
3. Content Structure
Google: Headers and structure help, but you can get away with wall-of-text content if you have strong backlinks.
ChatGPT: Structure is everything. Clear sections, logical hierarchy, scannable format - these dramatically affect whether an LLM can extract and cite your information.
Think of it like this: ChatGPT is actually reading your content to understand it, not just pattern-matching keywords. If a human would struggle to extract key info from your page, ChatGPT will too.
4. Brand Voice
Google: Doesn't care how you sound. Generic, unique, formal, casual - makes no difference to rankings.
ChatGPT: Distinctive voice helps significantly. Generic AI-generated content blends into the background. Authentic, specific, opinionated content stands out.
Why? Because LLMs are trained to recognize and value expertise and authenticity. If your content sounds like it could be anyone, it gets treated like it's no one.
5. Content Freshness
Google: Loves new content. Recently updated pages get a ranking boost.
ChatGPT: Comprehensive beats recent. LLMs prioritize depth and completeness over publication date. A thorough 2-year-old guide often outperforms a surface-level new one.
What This Means for Your Business
Let's be honest about what's happening:
Search is splitting into two separate channels. Traditional search (Google, Bing) and AI search (ChatGPT, Claude, Perplexity).
Right now, most small businesses are optimized for one or the other. Usually Google, because that's what everyone's been doing for 20 years.
But your potential customers are using both. And the percentage using AI search is growing fast.
If you're only visible in one channel, you're losing customers to competitors who are visible in both.
The Test You Should Run Right Now
Here's a 2-minute exercise that'll tell you exactly where you stand:
- Open ChatGPT (free version works fine)
- Ask it: "What are the best [your type of business] in [your city]?"
- Check if you appear in the response
- Try a few variations:
- "Recommend a good [your service]"
- "Who should I hire for [what you do]"
- "Best [your industry] for [specific need]"
Be honest with yourself about the results.
If you're not showing up, you're invisible to a huge (and growing) chunk of potential customers.
What Small Businesses Should Do Now
The good news: LLM optimization isn't rocket science. It's just different from what you're used to.
Here's where to start:
1. Audit Your Content Structure
Can someone quickly scan your homepage and understand what you do, who you serve, and why you're good at it? If not, ChatGPT can't either.
2. Remove Obvious Over-Optimization
If your content sounds like it was written for an algorithm, rewrite it for humans. Natural language wins in LLM optimization.
3. Add Clear Expertise Signals
Case studies, specific methodologies, detailed processes, real results - these help LLMs identify you as authoritative.
4. Make Your About/Services Pages Actually Informative
Generic descriptions don't cut it anymore. Be specific. Be detailed. Be useful.
5. Stop Sounding Like Everyone Else
If you're using generic AI-generated content that could describe any business in your field, you're invisible by default. Your unique perspective is your advantage.
The Opportunity Window Is Closing
Here's the part that should get your attention:
Most of your competitors haven't figured this out yet.
Right now, in early 2025, LLM optimization is still new. The businesses that adapt now are going to dominate their local AI search results for years.
The ones that wait? They'll eventually figure it out. But they'll be playing catch-up, trying to displace the businesses that got there first.
Think about early SEO adopters. The businesses that invested in Google optimization in 2005-2008 built advantages that lasted for over a decade. Many still dominate their niches today.
Same opportunity exists right now with LLM optimization. Just in a different channel.
Where to Go From Here
We built Wordvic specifically to solve this problem for small businesses.
It handles both traditional SEO and LLM optimization in one place, so you don't have to choose between Google and ChatGPT visibility. Plus it keeps your brand voice intact - no generic AI content that sounds like everyone else.
Everything's GDPR-compliant because we built it in Europe with European businesses in mind, and the pricing actually makes sense for smaller teams.
But honestly, whether you use our tool or not, the important thing is this:
Don't wait until you're invisible.
AI search isn't going away. It's growing. Every month, more of your potential customers are asking AI chatbots for recommendations instead of googling.
The businesses showing up in those conversations are getting customers.
The ones that aren't? They're slowly fading from view.
Which side of that divide do you want to be on?
Want to see if you're visible in AI search? Try the test mentioned above and let me know what you find. And if you want to fix the problem, check out Wordvic - we built it specifically for small businesses dealing with this exact challenge.
Want more practical tips on LLM optimization and AI search visibility? Follow us on LinkedIn for regular updates on what's working (and what isn't).