Direct answer
ChatGPT and Google Search serve different search moments. Google excels at active, specific searches with commercial intent — 'emergency plumber Tilburg'. ChatGPT excels at open questions, summaries and conversation-style research — 'which plumber in Tilburg has good reviews and works with heat pumps'.
SMEs need both by 2026. Google is still strong for the bulk of ready-to-buy searches; ChatGPT and similar AI tools are growing fast among a younger, tech-savvy audience that researches before making a purchase decision.
Comparison table
The key differences at a glance:
| Feature | Google Search | ChatGPT |
|---|---|---|
| User base | Roughly 90% of the global search market | Growing, hundreds of millions of weekly users |
| Query type | Short, keyword-based | Long, conversation-based, with follow-up questions |
| Response format | List of links, AI Overview on top | Direct summarised answer in flowing text |
| Citation behaviour | Blue links, click needed for full info | Sometimes a source link, often a summary with no click |
| Indexing model | Continuous crawling, real-time index via Googlebot | Training data plus a real-time browsing agent for current info |
Why SMEs need to invest in both
Google remains dominant by volume — losing ground there is direct revenue loss. At the same time, ChatGPT, Perplexity and similar tools are growing exponentially among a specific, high-purchasing-power audience. Whoever is already visible there now builds a first-mover advantage before the competitive field saturates.
How do you measure AI mentions?
There's no off-the-shelf tool yet that measures AI mentions the way Google Search Console does for organic search results. A workable method: draft ten to twenty relevant prompts a potential customer might ask, put them to ChatGPT, Perplexity and Gemini manually each month, screenshot the answers, and note whether and how your brand is mentioned.
Specialised tracking tools such as Profound, Otterly and Peec.ai are increasingly automating this process, although the market for these tools is still very much in development in 2026.
How do you improve visibility in both?
Most GEO measures simultaneously strengthen your classic SEO:
- Implement an llms.txt with an overview of your core pages.
- Add structured data (Schema.org: Organization, FAQPage, Article).
- Write factual, answer-first content that directly answers a question.
- Build brand mentions on authority sites, trade press and comparison sites.
- Keep your entity data consistent: the same name, description and claims everywhere.
Recommendation: start now
The first-mover advantage in GEO is still available in 2026, because most SME competitors aren't yet actively optimising for AI search engines. Waiting means competitors get cited first, and catching up later costs more than moving with it now.
Want to know if ChatGPT already knows your brand?
Request a GEO scan →