A NEW digital toolkit will be a game-changer for small businesses in rural Wales as AI-driven search reshapes how customers discover local services online.
Developed in Ceredigion by Antur Cymru Enterprise, the SMART Busnes programme is giving Welsh SMEs an early advantage in Answer Engine Optimisation (AEO) – the emerging discipline behind appearing inside AI-generated answers.
As artificial intelligence transforms how people find information, SMART Busnes – supported through the UK Shared Prosperity Fund – has launched one of Wales’s first practical AEO toolkits.
Spearheaded by Digital Business Advisor Lynne Rees, its new insight framework, known as Agentic AEO, equips rural and micro-businesses with the skills, structures and understanding needed to stay visible in an internet landscape increasingly dominated by instant, AI-written responses rather than traditional search results.
Kevin Harrington, Project Manager for SMART Busnes, said: “AI search is here to stay, and our Agentic AEO insight series isn’t a tweak – it’s a reset.
“It’s about helping Welsh SMEs show up wherever customers search: on Google, on social media, even within AI answers. This work gives our rural businesses the same digital advantage that large brands pay thousands for.”
Traditional SEO is already being overtaken by AI-driven tools such as Google’s Search Generative Experience and ChatGPT.
Instead of scrolling through long lists of links, users now receive direct, conversational answers.
For SMEs, this shift creates a big challenge: if their online content is not structured for AI interpretation, they risk slipping beneath the point where customers ever see them.
Agentic AEO focuses on clarity, structure and user intent across a business’s website, social media and Google Business Profile. By presenting information in ways AI tools can easily digest, small firms significantly boost their visibility and credibility within automated responses.
The SMART Busnes AEO Insight Series provides a clear, practical starting point. The toolkit includes step-by-step guides on restructuring web pages, examples of best-practice layouts, and exclusive AI prompts that help time-pressed owners create optimised content quickly and affordably. Even a simple website review, light-touch advice session or targeted content update can influence how a business is surfaced throughout the year ahead.
Antur Cymru CEO Bronwen Raine added: “SMART Busnes was built to help small businesses adapt to change, not chase it.
“The Agentic AEO insight series shows how Shared Prosperity Fund investment is driving genuine innovation, building confidence, skills and sustainability across local economies.”
With many Welsh SEO providers still focused on older methods, SMART Busnes is positioning Ceredigion at the forefront of AEO adoption.
By turning emerging theory into accessible support, the programme is strengthening digital resilience across Mid and West Wales and ensuring small enterprises remain visible, trusted and competitive in an AI-led future.