Guide

How to get your business recommended by ChatGPT (and why it isn't now)

Short answer: ChatGPT and other AI tools recommend businesses they can find, understand and verify. Let AI search crawlers read your site, say plainly what you do and where, keep your details consistent, and earn mentions on sites the engines cite. Then test the prompts your buyers ask. There's no way to pay for a spot, and nobody can guarantee one.

Run the free AI visibility check

Step 1: find out where you stand

Ask ChatGPT, Perplexity and Google the questions your buyers ask, such as "best [service] in [city]." Use a logged-out or fresh session and write down who gets named. Our 15-minute test walks through it.

Step 2: let AI crawlers read your site

If your robots.txt blocks search crawlers like OAI-SearchBot or PerplexityBot, those tools can't read your pages. The free checker shows your crawler rules, llms.txt and schema in seconds.

Step 3: say plainly what you do, for whom and where

Each service needs its own page that names the service and the area you serve. Add structured data that matches the page. See LocalBusiness schema for AI search and llms.txt explained.

Step 4: make your details agree everywhere

Your name, address, phone, hours and services should match across your site, your Google Business Profile and the directories in your field. Conflicting details make it harder for an engine to trust any of them.

Step 5: earn mentions on sites AI engines cite

AI answers often cite review sites, directories, local news and "best of" lists. Find out which ones show up for your prompts and earn a genuine place there. Don't buy links or fake reviews.

Step 6: re-test and keep going

AI answers change often. Re-run the same prompts every few weeks and note what moved.

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Want us to check for you?

The $49 Snapshot runs 10 buyer-intent prompts across ChatGPT, Perplexity and Google AI Overviews and sends your top 5 fixes within 48 hours. See all plans and prices, our audits for local businesses, or compare audit vs DIY vs agency.

FAQ

Can I pay to be recommended by ChatGPT?

No. We don't know of any way to buy a place in ChatGPT's answers. What you can do is make your business easy to find, read and verify.

Why isn't my business showing up in ChatGPT?

Common reasons: AI crawlers are blocked on your site, your pages don't say plainly what you do and where, your details disagree across listings, or few trusted third-party sites mention you.

How long does it take?

It varies, and AI answers change often. Re-test the same prompts every few weeks rather than expecting a fixed date.

Is this different from SEO?

There's overlap. AI engines lean on clear facts about who you are, structured data, and third-party pages they trust.

No ranking guarantees. Nobody can honestly promise them. Audits use public data only.