How to Get Your Business Recommended by ChatGPT
ChatGPT tends to recommend businesses it can find, understand and verify: a clear website that answers the exact question, strong and consistent reviews, and other trusted sites that mention you. Nobody can guarantee a recommendation, but you can make one far more likely — and measure whether it happens.
How ChatGPT decides which businesses to recommend
When someone asks ChatGPT for a recommendation — “best mortgage broker on the Gold Coast”, “good family dentist near me” — it usually searches the web, reads a handful of sources and summarises what they agree on. Without search, it falls back on what it learned in training, which may be out of date.
Either way, it is looking for the same things a careful person would: who clearly offers this service, in this place, and who other people vouch for. The businesses it names are the ones with the clearest, most consistent evidence.
Six steps to get your business recommended
1. Check what ChatGPT says today
Ask ChatGPT the questions your customers actually ask, including your suburb or city. Note who it names, and whether you appear at all. Then ask “What do you know about [your business name]?” — if the description is vague or wrong, that is your first fix.
2. Make your website answer the question directly
- Give each main service its own page, and say where you offer it.
- Name the suburbs and regions you serve in plain words.
- Answer real customer questions on the page — price ranges, timeframes, who it is for.
- Add structured data (LocalBusiness, Service and FAQ schema) so engines can read the facts reliably.
3. Strengthen your Google Business Profile and reviews
Complete every field: categories, services, service areas, hours, photos and Q&A. Ask every happy customer for a review, and reply to them. Review volume, recency and what reviewers actually say are some of the signals AI repeats most often.
4. Get mentioned on sites AI trusts
AI puts more weight on what others say about you than on what you say about yourself. Industry directories, association listings, local media, community sites and “best of” lists are all sources engines read when choosing who to recommend.
5. Keep your details identical everywhere
Use the same business name, address, phone number and description of your services across your website, Google, Bing Places, social profiles and directories. Inconsistent details make it harder for AI to connect them to one business.
6. Re-test every month
AI answers change as engines update and competitors move. Re-run the same questions monthly, across ChatGPT and the other major engines, and track whether you are named. Here is how we measure AI visibility.
What not to do
- Don't buy fake reviews or listings — they can damage trust with customers and platforms.
- Don't stuff pages with keywords or city names; write for a real customer.
- Don't pay for “guaranteed” AI placements. No one can promise what an AI engine will say.
Related: Why isn't ChatGPT recommending my business? · How AI search chooses sources · AEO vs SEO
Doing it yourself or getting help
Every step above can be done in-house. Where businesses usually get stuck is the measurement: knowing which questions to test, re-running them across engines, and telling real movement from normal variation. That is the part we do for clients, alongside the fixes.
| Option | What it involves | Cost |
|---|---|---|
| Do it yourself | The six steps above, re-tested monthly | Your time |
| Free AI visibility check | A 2-minute indicative score and the biggest gap | Free |
| Free AI Visibility Audit | Where you’re named, who is named instead, and what to fix first. Report within 3–5 business days | Free |
| Ongoing AI visibility service | Baseline, fixes, authority work and monthly reporting across six engines | From $290 a month |
Guides for your situation: mortgage brokers, builders, buyer’s agents, dentists and clinics. By region: Gold Coast, Byron Bay and the Northern Rivers, Brisbane, Sydney. Want to see the reporting format? Read our first case study.
Frequently asked questions
Can I pay ChatGPT to recommend my business?
No. There is no way to buy a place in ChatGPT's organic recommendations. Be wary of anyone selling guaranteed AI placements — no agency controls what an AI engine says.
Does normal SEO help me get recommended by ChatGPT?
Yes, it helps. When ChatGPT searches the web it relies on pages that can be found and read, so solid SEO foundations matter. But AI recommendations also lean on reviews, third-party mentions and how clearly your site answers a specific question — things classic SEO often skips.
Does this work for small local businesses?
Often it works best for them. Local questions like “best plumber in Ballina” have a small pool of candidates, so clear pages, strong reviews and a few good local mentions can make a real difference.
How long does it take?
There is no fixed timeframe. It depends on your starting point, your competitors and how often engines refresh what they know. Some changes can show up once pages are re-read; lasting gains depend on competition and on what other sources say about you.
How do I check what ChatGPT says about my business?
Ask it the questions your customers ask, in the suburbs you serve, and note who it names. Then ask “What do you know about [your business]?” to see if it describes you accurately. Our free AI visibility checker walks you through this.
Want us to look for you?
Our free AI Visibility Audit runs your business through the major answer engines and shows where you're named, where you're missed and the fastest wins. Report within 3–5 business days.
Book a free audit