Answer engine optimization
How to get your business recommended by ChatGPT.
ChatGPT answers local questions from its web search, and a BrightLocal study found that search mostly runs on Bing's index, not Google's. You get named by putting the same facts about you everywhere the engines look: finished Google, Bing, and Apple listings that match each other, real reviews, schema on your site, and pages that answer customer questions in plain words. There is no form to fill out and no shortcut, but most of the work is free.
How ChatGPT decides who to name
When someone asks ChatGPT for a plumber in Logan or a salon near them, it can search the web and answer from what it finds. OpenAI says its OAI-SearchBot crawler is what surfaces websites in those search results. In BrightLocal's study of 800 local searches, business websites made up 58% of the sources ChatGPT cited, mentions of the business on other sites 27%, and directories 15%.
Your own website does most of the talking, then. If it lists one phone number and a listing lists another, you've handed the engine two versions of you. That makes this less about clever wording and more about bookkeeping. Every step below either adds a source that confirms who you are, or makes an existing source easier for a machine to read. None of them is hard on its own.
Where each AI assistant gets local business data
Each assistant reads a different set of sources, so the profiles to fix first depend on the engine. ChatGPT's search leans on Bing, Google's AI answers come out of Google Search, and Perplexity reads the pages it visits while it answers.
| Engine | Where it looks | Profiles to fix first |
|---|---|---|
| ChatGPT | Mostly Bing's index, per BrightLocal's 800-search study. Business websites were 58% of the sources it cited. Yelp, Facebook, and Google Maps never appeared as directory sources, though it does use Google review information. | Your website, Bing Places, and robots.txt access for OAI-SearchBot |
| Google AI Overviews | Google Search. A page has to be indexed and eligible for a snippet to show as a supporting link. | Google Business Profile, which Google says to keep up to date, and your indexed site |
| Perplexity | The web pages it visits while answering, with a link to each one it uses. | Your website and robots.txt access for PerplexityBot |
Who supplies the business listings on ChatGPT's map is less settled. Published reports disagree, so we don't bet a client's visibility on any one directory for it. To see which engines name you today, run the checks in how to check if ChatGPT recommends your business.
The checklist
Seven steps to get named in AI answers
- 1
Claim your Google Business Profile, Bing Places, and Apple Business listings
Each engine reads a different map. Google's AI answers come out of Google Search, and Google tells site owners to keep their Business Profile up to date. ChatGPT's search mostly runs on Bing's index, according to a BrightLocal study, so claim your free Bing Places listing too. Apple Business (formerly Apple Business Connect) is how you manage your listing on Apple Maps. On each one, verify the listing, pick the exact category, list the towns you serve, and fill in hours, services, and real photos. A half-empty listing gives a model nothing to repeat.
- 2
Make your name, address, and phone match everywhere
Your website, your Google, Bing, and Apple listings, Yelp, and the local directories should all say the same thing, formatted the same way. When two listings disagree, you've given every engine two versions of your business to choose between. We'd rather it only had one.
- 3
Collect reviews steadily and answer them
Reviews are the third-party proof that you exist and do good work, and the same BrightLocal study found ChatGPT uses review information from Google and Google Maps when it answers local searches. Ask every happy customer, reply to every review, and keep them coming in month after month rather than in one burst.
- 4
Add structured data to your site
LocalBusiness schema states your name, phone, service area, and hours in a format machines read without guessing, and FAQPage schema does the same for your common questions. It isn't a ticket in. Google says there's no special schema you need to add for its AI features, and that structured data should match the visible text on the page. We add it anyway because it's cheap and leaves no room to misread the facts already on the page.
- 5
Write pages that answer the question in the first sentence
Say what you do, where, and for whom in plain words at the top of the page, then back it up. A page that opens with "We are passionate about quality" gives a model nothing. A page that opens with "We clean carpets in Logan and North Logan, same week" does.
- 6
Let the AI crawlers in and publish an llms.txt
Check that your robots.txt doesn't block the bots AI search uses. OpenAI says sites opted out of its OAI-SearchBot won't be shown in ChatGPT search answers, and Perplexity recommends allowing PerplexityBot if you want to appear in its results. Then add an llms.txt file: a short plain-text summary of your business and your key pages. It's optional. Google says you don't need AI text files to show up in its AI features.
- 7
Track it every month
Ask ChatGPT, Perplexity, and Google the questions your customers ask, in the towns you serve, and write down who gets named. Watch Search Console alongside it, since Google counts AI Overview appearances in its Performance report. Without tracking you are guessing.
How we do it
What we handle for our clients
Every site we build starts with part of this list done: basic on-page SEO with schema, a sitemap, and pages that lead with the answer, plus guidance on your Google Business Profile. That comes with every plan, starting at $50 a month on Starter.
The off-site half is the ongoing part. On Managed SEO (+$300 a month) we do the rest: Google Business Profile work, consistent listings, fresh content, the schema and llms.txt answer engines read, and a check every month on whether ChatGPT, Perplexity, and Google's AI actually name you for the questions your customers ask. You see the answers we got, not a vanity score.
We run the same playbook on vient.org. This page, the llms.txt at the root of the site, and the FAQ schema you can't see are all part of it.
Frequently asked questions
How do I get my business recommended by ChatGPT?
Is getting recommended by ChatGPT different from SEO?
Does ChatGPT use my Google Business Profile?
How long does it take to show up in AI answers?
What is llms.txt, and do I need one?
Can I do this myself?
Want us to check what ChatGPT says about you?
Tell us your business and the towns you serve. Caden asks ChatGPT, Perplexity, and Google AI Overviews what your customers would ask, checks your Google listing and site, and emails you where you stand within 2 business days. It's free, and there's no obligation.