When someone asks ChatGPT, Claude or Gemini to recommend an expert in your field, does your name come up?

The way people search for businesses, services and experts is changing. Google still matters, but increasingly, people are turning to AI platforms for specific recommendations.

So what does this mean for your business, personal brand and online visibility?

My guest on this episode of Leading You is Grant Ferguson, General Manager of award-winning search agency Caliber9, which specialises in SEO and the emerging field of GEO (Generative Engine Optimisation).

Grant explains why traditional SEO remains important, but also why AI search is placing greater emphasis on credible information, brand mentions, third-party authority and evidence of genuine expertise.

We explore what it takes to become more discoverable in an AI-driven world and why being excellent at what you do isn’t necessarily enough if nobody knows about it.

In this episode, we discuss:

• What Generative Engine Optimisation (GEO) is and why it matters
• How ChatGPT, Gemini and other AI platforms are changing online search
• Why traditional SEO is still important
• The growing value of brand mentions, PR, podcasts and third-party credibility
• How to create website and blog content that demonstrates genuine expertise
• Why authorship, personal branding and online visibility matter
• The risks of trying to manipulate AI search results
• Three practical steps to improve your AI discoverability

One of the biggest takeaways from this conversation is that you don’t need to chase the latest AI search hack.

Grant’s advice is to focus on being genuinely useful, making your expertise clear, building credibility beyond your own website and showing up consistently.

Because being good at what you do is one thing. Making sure people, and increasingly AI, know about it is another.

Timestamps

00:00 Brand Mentions Matter
00:22 Meet Grant Ferguson
02:18 What Is GEO
05:24 How AI Picks Experts
08:47 Award Winning Feed Strategy
12:50 Content That AI Understands
16:25 Social Proof Personal Brand
17:56 Avoid GEO Shortcuts
22:00 Niche Down To Win
23:57 Top Three GEO Actions
25:47 Wrap Up And Next Steps