Suppose you search via ChatGPT for the best supplier in your industry. Your competitor appears. You don't. That's not a hypothetical scenario, but the daily reality for thousands of Dutch entrepreneurs. Three SMEs from different sectors decided enough was enough. Within one quarter, they tripled their AI visibility.
Their secret? No expensive advertising campaigns or lengthy trajectories. But a targeted approach to Generative Engine Optimization (GEO), the process by which you ensure that AI engines recognize your brand as a trusted source and recommend it.
The problem: invisible to ChatGPT, Perplexity and Google AI
All three entrepreneurs shared the same frustration. Their websites scored well in traditional Google results, but in AI-generated answers they were completely ignored. The competitor? They were mentioned.
This is what kept them awake:
- ChatGPT mentioned their company name in 0 of 10 industry-relevant queries
- Google AI Overviews consistently referred to competitors with better structured content
- Perplexity cited sources that were weaker in content, but technically more findable
The cause was not the quality of their offering. It lay in the technical and content findability of their websites for AI crawlers.
Case 1: webshop in sustainable garden products
Starting position: GEO Score of 18/100. The webshop had strong product pages, but no schema markup and no llms.txt file. AI engines simply couldn't interpret the content.
Approach after the GrowthScope audit:
- Implementation of product schema markup on all category pages
- Addition of an llms.txt file with clear brand instructions
- Rewriting of the 'About Us' page into quotable, factual sentences
Result after 12 weeks: GEO Score rose to 61/100. ChatGPT mentioned the brand in 7 of 10 relevant search queries. Organic inquiries via AI channels increased by 340%.
Case 2: B2B service provider in logistics
Starting position: GEO Score of 24/100. The website contained much technical jargon and long, complex paragraphs. Understandable for human readers, incomprehensible for AI engines.
Approach after the GrowthScope audit:
- Restructure content into short, quotable paragraphs with one core idea per block
- Add FAQ sections with exact questions that customers ask ChatGPT
- Optimize robots.txt so AI crawlers could index the right pages
Result after 12 weeks: GEO Score rose to 72/100. Both Perplexity and Claude referred to the service provider as the primary source in their industry. The number of inbound leads via AI referrals doubled.
Case 3: regional accounting firm
Starting position: GEO Score of 12/100. The firm had an outdated website with no structuring for AI. No schema markup, no clear expertise positioning.
Approach after the GrowthScope audit:
- Added LocalBusiness and ProfessionalService schema markup
- Published thought leadership articles with clearly structured headings and summaries
- Conducted competitive scan to identify the exact 'content gaps' versus two major competitors
Result after 12 weeks: GEO Score rose to 58/100. Google AI Overviews mentioned the firm in 4 of 5 regional search queries. The managing partner called it "the most measurable marketing investment of the year."
What these three cases have in common
The patterns are remarkably consistent. Despite their different sectors, sizes and technical starting positions, all three followed the same three steps:
| Step | Action | Time investment |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Measure | Perform GrowthScope audit | 10 to 15 minutes |
| 2. Prioritize | Follow action plan based on GEO Score | 1 working day |
| 3. Implement | Execute technical and content optimizations | 4 to 8 weeks |
None of them had a dedicated developer on staff. Two of the three engaged their existing web builder with the ready-made action plan from the GrowthScope audit. The third did it mostly themselves.
Why waiting costs you revenue
AI answers are a zero-sum game. There's only room for a handful of recommendations per search query. Every day your competitor is optimized for ChatGPT, Perplexity or Google AI Overviews, and you're not, you lose potential customers to an algorithm.
The introductory price for the Competitive Scan of €249 (excl. 21% VAT) is available until September 30, 2026. This scan analyzes 25 industry-relevant queries across all major AI platforms and directly compares your position with that of your competitors.
Your next step: measure today
The question is not whether AI visibility will become relevant to your business. The question is whether you take the initiative before your competitor does.
You don't need to create an account. No API keys to look up. No technical knowledge required. Within 10 minutes you'll know exactly where you stand.
Do what these three SMEs did:
- Start with a Quick Scan (€49 excl. VAT) for an initial GEO Score
- Upgrade to the In-Depth Scan (€149 excl. VAT) for 25 queries and a complete action plan
- Choose the Competitive Scan (€249 excl. VAT) if you want to know why AI mentions your competitor
Start your audit today
Do you have questions about your specific situation? Get in touch directly via support@growthscope.io.
