Someone in your town just opened ChatGPT and typed, “What’s the best roofer near me?” They got back a short list of three names, a sentence about each, and maybe a link. Your business either made that list or it didn’t, and nobody called to tell you which.
That moment now happens in every industry, from dental offices and law firms to accounting practices, restaurants, home services, and B2B software. People ask ChatGPT, Gemini, Perplexity, Claude, and Google’s AI Overviews for recommendations the way they once asked a neighbor. I help businesses find out what those AI platforms say about them, then fix what’s keeping them off the list.
KEY TAKEAWAYS
Getting recommended by ChatGPT depends on three things: whether AI systems can reach and read your website, whether they can tell exactly who you are and what you do, and whether trusted sources across the web confirm it. Reviews on platforms like Google and Yelp, consistent business listings, mentions in industry publications and local roundups, and clear service pages all feed those answers. OpenAI says sites that block its OAI-SearchBot crawler won’t appear in ChatGPT search answers, so access comes first. Answers also shift from week to week, which makes regular checks part of the work.
Search has started to sound like conversation. People type full questions now: “Who’s the most trusted estate lawyer in Queens?” “Which accountant in Austin works with freelancers?” “What’s the best HVAC company for older homes?” An AI platform reads the web, weighs what it finds, and answers with a handful of names.
A short list means fewer winners.
On a traditional search results page, ten businesses could share the first screen. In an AI answer, three or four names usually take the whole conversation, and the customer often acts on the first one that sounds right. The names that show up most are usually the businesses AI can read and verify most easily. I see this pattern in nearly every snapshot I run, across industries that have nothing else in common.
The quiet part is that you’d never know. No ranking report flags it, no alert arrives, and the customer who chose your competitor never tells you they asked ChatGPT first.
Every AI platform works a little differently, but they lean on the same three signals when they decide whether to mention your business. I use these three to score every audit.
AI tools use crawlers to visit and read websites. OpenAI's search crawler is called OAI-SearchBot, and many other AI platforms rely on search indexes like Google's and Bing's to find pages. If your robots.txt file blocks those crawlers, or your key information only appears after heavy scripts load, AI may see a blank page where your services should be. Clear service pages written in plain language give AI something it can quote.
AI platforms try to understand your business as a single, clear entity: one name, one location or service area, and a defined set of services. When your website says one thing, your Google Business Profile says another, and an old directory listing says a third, AI gets less confident and mentions you less. Entity clarity means making those details match everywhere. Accurate structured data (schema) helps here as an accuracy fix, confirming your name, services, and location in a format machines read easily.
AI platforms look for proof from sources other than your own website. Reviews on Google, Yelp, and industry review sites, brand mentions in local news and industry publications, and appearances in comparison content and “best of” roundups all count as citations. When several trusted sources describe your business the same way, AI treats that agreement as a reason to recommend you.
I use the same three-part framework with every client, whatever the industry, because AI platforms read a bakery and a law firm the same way. The work is AI search optimization built on top of good traditional SEO, and the two strengthen each other.
Audit. I run the prompts your customers use across ChatGPT, Perplexity, Gemini, Claude and Grok, and check Google's AI Overviews too. I record who gets recommended, which sources get cited, and what AI gets wrong about your business, from outdated hours to services you stopped offering years ago.
Optimize. I fix what blocks AI from reading and trusting you. That can mean opening access for AI crawlers, cleaning up inconsistent business details, adding accurate structured data, and strengthening your Google Business Profile and review presence.
Create. I write content AI can quote with confidence: service pages that answer real questions, FAQs in your customers' own words, comparison content, and guides that earn mentions from other sites. This is where my background as a ghostwriter matters most, because the words still have to sound like you.
The snapshot is a short, branded report that shows where you stand today. I research every one by hand, and it arrives in your inbox within one business day.
There’s no obligation attached. If you’d like to talk through your results afterward, you can book an optional 10 to 15 minute call.
AI search is new for every business owner, and for every consultant too. What carries over from the old rules is an understanding of how trust gets built in words, and that’s the work I’ve done since founding Content Done Write in 2018.
I’m Antonio Matta, a ghostwriter and content strategist, author of eight books, and host of the podcast Recovery Dialogues and Sober Stories. My GEO work started in behavioral health, one of the most trust-sensitive industries online, where AI platforms are especially careful about what they recommend. The same principles of access, clarity, and verified trust apply to any business that wants to be found. I do every audit myself, so you’ll always know who’s looking at your business.
$400 one-time
A clear plan for organizations that want to see the full picture first. It includes:
$800/month (Most popular)
Ongoing GEO service for organizations ready to build authority month after month. It includes:
Start by checking what ChatGPT says about you today, using the questions your customers ask. Then make sure AI crawlers can read your website, keep your business details consistent across your site, Google Business Profile, and directories, and build trust through reviews and mentions on other trusted sites. Content that answers real customer questions in plain language gives AI something specific to quote.
No one can guarantee placement in an AI answer, and you should be wary of anyone who promises it. AI platforms change how they choose sources, and answers shift between runs and from week to week. What I can do is remove the obstacles that keep AI from reading, understanding, and trusting your business, then track your visibility over time so you can see the change.
Ranking on Google and earning an AI recommendation overlap, and they use different signals. An AI answer usually names only a few businesses, and it favors the ones it can verify across several trusted sources. A business can rank well on Google and still have inconsistent listings, thin reviews, or crawler access blocked for AI tools, any of which can keep it out of ChatGPT's answers.
Some fixes, like opening crawler access or correcting business details, can show results within weeks once AI platforms revisit your site. Building reviews, mentions, and citation-worthy content takes longer, usually a few months of steady work. Because answers vary from week to week, I track the same prompts over time and measure progress across many checks.
Yes. AI platforms answer questions about every kind of business, from local services and healthcare to professional firms, restaurants, nonprofits, and software companies. The signals they rely on stay the same across industries: access, entity clarity, and citation trust. Your snapshot runs the prompts that matter in your market, so the results reflect the people who buy from you.
Start with the free snapshot. Tell me your first name, your website, and where to send the report, and I’ll show you what AI platforms say about your business today.
Written by Antonio Matta · Last updated