What are the four pillars of AI SEO?

Be readable (let AI crawlers in, fast pages), be clear (say what you do, for whom and where), be quotable (answer customers' questions, add structured data) and be talked about (mentions on other sites).

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Infographic4 October 2026 · 2 min read

AI SEO at a glance: how businesses get recommended by AI

A one-page visual guide: how ChatGPT, Claude and Gemini choose which businesses to recommend, and the four things you can do about it.

SEO JoePart of My-AI-Crew.com

How an AI answer is made

1. A customer asks

“Best bakery on Södermalm?”

2. The AI searches

Google, its own crawler, search partners

3. It reads a few pages

Your site, reviews, lists, directories

4. It names 2–3 businesses

With links to its sources

Not one of the names? You never see the customer. ➜ That's what AI SEO fixes.

Where each assistant looks

Gemini

Answers with Google Search. Classic SEO and your Google Business Profile matter directly.

ChatGPT

Searches with OAI-SearchBot and partners. Don't block it; be on sites it trusts.

Claude

Runs its own web search and cites pages. Clear, factual pages get quoted.

The four pillars

1. Be readable

Allow AI crawlers in robots.txt
Fast pages that work on phones
Text in the HTML — not only in images

2. Be clear

What you do, for whom, where — in one sentence
Same name, address and phone everywhere
Unique titles and descriptions

3. Be quotable

Answer customers' questions on your site
FAQ + structured data (JSON-LD)
An llms.txt summary

4. Be talked about

Directories and “best of” lists
Reviews on the sites customers use
Partners, press and associations

Start here: effort vs. impact

Allow AI crawlersMinutesHigh

Fix titles & descriptionsAn hourHigh

One clear “what we do” paragraphAn hourHigh

FAQ + structured dataHalf a dayMedium–high

llms.txt10 minutesLow–medium

Get mentioned on other sitesOngoingHighest over time

Real numbers: SEO Joe on its own website

73 → 88

Website score after one day of fixes

Customer questions asked

0 / 26

Times ChatGPT & Claude named us

Months

To be named — mentions elsewhere take time

Ask the AIs→See who they name→Fix what's missing→Get mentioned→Ask again next month

Questions and answers

What are the four pillars of AI SEO?: Be readable (let AI crawlers in, fast pages), be clear (say what you do, for whom and where), be quotable (answer customers' questions, add structured data) and be talked about (mentions on other sites).

Does ChatGPT recommend your business?

Joe checks your website, asks ChatGPT, Claude and Gemini your customers' questions, and gives you a short list of what to fix first.

Check my business