Google just handed every website owner two new tools for AI search, and most small businesses haven’t noticed yet. As of August 31, 2026, every site worldwide can see how it performs in AI Overviews and AI Mode inside Search Console, and every site can choose, site-wide, whether its content appears in those AI features at all.
If you run a local service business, this is good news. AI search is no longer a black box. Here’s what changed, what it means for AI search for small business owners, what we recommend, and the short list of website fixes that matter most.
What Google changed on August 31
1. A generative AI performance report in Search Console
Search Console now has a dedicated Generative AI performance report. It shows how often links to your site appeared in AI Overviews and AI Mode, which pages showed up, and which countries and devices those impressions came from. Google first announced the report in June and rolled it out to all websites on August 31.
One honest caveat: the report shows impressions, not clicks. It tells you whether AI search is seeing your pages. That alone is useful, because it shows which pages AI search already trusts.
2. A site-wide AI Overviews and AI Mode control
The new Search generative AI control lets you include or exclude your entire site from AI Overviews, AI Mode, and AI features in Discover. Include is the default. According to Google’s announcement, opting out does not affect your regular search rankings, but you also won’t get any traffic or impressions from those AI features.
3. The September spam update is still rolling out
At the same time, Google’s spam update that began in September is still working its way through results. Google’s spam policies specifically call out scaled, low-value content, the mass-produced pages some businesses are now pumping out with AI tools.
Should a small business opt out of AI Overviews?
For almost every local service business, our answer is no. Large publishers sell their content, so they have a real reason to protect it. You sell a service. When someone asks Google “who does web design near Clermont?” or “how much does roof repair cost in Lake County?”, you want your business to be part of that answer. Excluding your site removes you from the conversation and gives that space to a competitor.
The better move is to stay included and make your site the clearest, most trustworthy answer. That’s what AEO (answer engine optimization) means. We covered the basics in Google AI Overviews aren’t a separate game and how Google and AI search both use your website.
A 30-minute AI search check for your website
- Connect Search Console. If you haven’t verified your site, start there. Then open the generative AI report and note which pages already earn AI impressions.
- Confirm your AI setting. Under Settings, make sure your property is set to Include unless you have a specific reason not to.
- Give every service its own page. One page per service, written in the words customers actually search, with your town named where it matters. Our Clermont web design page is a simple example of local intent done plainly.
- Answer real questions. Use headings that match customer questions (cost, timeline, process) and answer them in the first sentence or two. That follows Google’s guidance on helpful, people-first content.
- Show proof. Reviews, real project photos, credentials, and a visible address and phone number build the trust AI features look for.
- Skip the AI page factory. Ten thin, near-duplicate pages is exactly what the spam update targets. Five strong pages beat fifty weak ones.
- Keep it maintained. Outdated plugins, broken links, and slow pages quietly undercut everything else. Google’s AI features documentation is clear that the same technical basics apply to AI search as to regular search.
AI can build a page. Keeping it found is the job.
Anyone can generate a website now. What wins in Google and AI search is a site that stays accurate, fast, secure, and clearly organized month after month. That’s the part we handle for small businesses across Clermont and Central Florida through our hosting and maintenance and online marketing services.
Get a site built for AI search, with no upfront fees
Our Starter Web Design Package has no upfront fees. We build and launch your site, then it’s just $149/month for hosting and maintenance (was $199). Use coupon code RISEUP for 15% off.
Not sure where your site stands in AI search? Book a quick call with our team and we’ll walk through it with you.