Small Business SEO & GEO

What is SEO?

Search Engine Optimization

Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is the process of improving the visibility of a brand (website) on search engines like Google, Bing, Yahoo, DuckDuckGo, and others. Good SEO puts your small business website in front of real people who are searching for your products and services..

Search engines use algorithms to determine placement in search results (rankings). Better rankings lead to more website traffic, leads, and ultimately sales for countless small businesses. But SEO isn’t chasing rankings or gaming algorithms. It’s about building Authority, Relevance, and Trust over time. For most small service-based businesses, this boils down to effectively answering the following two questions in a way Search Engines can understand:

  1. What does my own website say about my business?

  2. What does the rest of the internet say about my business?

Your Squarespace, Wix, or Weebly website must speak to Search Engines in a way they understand. And the rest of the internet must echo the information on your website to validate that it is true. When that happens, your visibility improves and leads begin to flow.

Pete Kleinjan SEO and GEO Expert

What is GEO?

Generative Engine Optimization

Generative Engine Optimization (GEO) is about shaping how AI platforms like ChatGPT, Gemini, and Perplexity talk about your business with customers who need your products and services. The user interface is different, and people interact with these AI systems differently than traditional search engines. GEO is moving from a keyword based mindset to a conversational mindset. Many of the same SEO methods influence AI platforms, and small businesses with good SEO generally perform well with Generative Engines.

Your Squarespace, Wix, or Weebly website must speak to AI systems in a way that demonstrates Authority, Relevance, and Trust to create better context in AI-generated answers. The goal is simple: when someone asks a tool like ChatGPT for recommendations, your business should be part of the conversation (there are no rankings). That means publishing helpful, trustworthy content in the right places—so AI tools have something solid to draw from when they generate a response.

GEO is so new that even marketing professionals aren’t quite sure what to call this marketing strategy. It is sometimes referred to as:

  • AIO (Artificial Intelligence Optimization)

  • AEO (Answer Engine Optimization)

  • LLMO (Large Language Model Optimization)

SEO & GEO For Small Business Owners

Squarespace, Wix, Weebly

Many small businesses have websites built with Squarespace, Wix, or Weebly. They are affordable and hassle-free. Most small service-based businesses don’t need a fancy custom site. What they need is visibility. SEO and GEO can help you get there, even on a drag-and-drop platform.

Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is about getting your website to show up on Google, Bing, Yahoo, and DuckDuckGo when people in your area search for what you do. Whether you’re a pest control company in Omaha or a family law attorney in Sioux Falls, local visibility is what matters. Tools inside Squarespace, Wix, and Weebly make it easy to build a nice-looking site, but they don’t automatically optimize it. That’s where on-site and off-site strategy comes in. Page titles, headings, internal links, image alt tags, and your Google Business Profile all need to work together to help Google understand who you are and who you help. Citations and links add additional Authority, Relevance, and Trust into the algorithms.

Generative Engine Optimization (GEO) takes it one step deeper. Good GEO is showing up in more AI-generated answers. Tools like ChatGPT and Gemini are changing how people find information. Someone might ask, “Who’s the best med spa near me?” and get a list that was written by an AI, not a human. If you want your business to show up in those answers, you need content that’s clear, helpful, and trustworthy—published on your own site and mentioned in places AI tools can access.

Here’s the good news: you don’t need to rebuild your website to start winning in search or AI. You just need a focused strategy that fits your platform. Squarespace, Wix, and Weebly can absolutely support SEO and GEO efforts—as long as you know what levers to pull. That means optimizing pages for local search intent, making your expertise easy to find, and earning trust signals that both Google and AI models can recognize.

SEO and GEO aren’t about trends or hacks—they’re about showing up where your customers are looking and giving them a reason to trust you once they find you. Whether it’s through a search result or an AI-generated answer, visibility leads to action. And action leads to growth.

About Pete Kleinjan

I’m a small business SEO consultant who is dedicated to helping local business owners improve their online presence with affordable Search Engine Optimization and Generative Engine Optimization solutions. Small business owners face unique challenges. I tailor GEO and SEO strategies to meet specific business objectives. I help small business owners improve visibility in search engine results by focusing on on-page optimization, off-page optimization, and local tactics. I’m committed to delivering cost-effective services that empower small businesses to compete in a digital landscape, driving organic traffic and increasing overall profitability.