How to appear in ChatGPT: 7 reasons you are not mentioned, and what to do

You ask ChatGPT which company to hire in your industry, and the answer names three competitors but not you. It is more common than you might think, and it is rarely down to one thing. Usually the AI cannot find, does not understand or does not trust the information about you enough. Here are the most common reasons and what you can do about them.

How ChatGPT chooses which companies to mention

An AI assistant has two basic sources:

• What the model has learned. During training it read large amounts of text from the web. Businesses mentioned often and clearly in that text are more likely to be remembered. Read more in How AI chooses which companies to recommend.
• What it finds when it searches. ChatGPT search, Perplexity and Google's AI features can search the web in real time and summarise what they find, often with links to the sources (OpenAI).

For the second part, the services use their own crawlers. OpenAI says sites that want to appear in ChatGPT's search results should allow OAI-SearchBot, while GPTBot is the crawler that collects content for training models (OpenAI). Perplexity uses PerplexityBot to find and link websites in its answers (Perplexity).

For Google's AI Overviews and AI Mode, Google's ordinary index applies. Google says there are no extra requirements to appear there beyond those for normal search (Google Search Central). Read Google AI Overviews.

Seven common reasons you don't appear

1. The AI's crawlers are blocked

Many sites block AI crawlers in robots.txt, sometimes deliberately and sometimes by accident through a security service or plugin. If you block OAI-SearchBot or PerplexityBot, your site cannot appear in their search-based answers. You can allow the search crawlers but refuse training, like this (about robots.txt):

User-agent: OAI-SearchBot
Allow: /

User-agent: PerplexityBot
Allow: /

User-agent: GPTBot
Disallow: /

2. You are weak in ordinary search

AI search relies heavily on the web's search indexes. A site that is hard to find on Google and other search engines is often hard for AI to find too. The basics of SEO are still the first step.

3. Your site does not say clearly what you do

If your homepage says "we create value for our clients", neither people nor AI know what you sell. Say plainly what you do, for whom and where, for example "roofer in Leeds who replaces and repairs roofs for homeowners".

4. Few others mention you

AI assistants weigh what others write. Businesses that appear in industry lists, local articles, reviews and comparisons are more likely to be recommended than businesses that only talk about themselves on their own site.

5. Your information is inconsistent

Different company names, old addresses or services described differently in different places make it harder for an AI to be sure who you are. Make sure your name, address, phone and services are the same everywhere, including Companies House, Yell, Google Business Profile and industry directories.

6. Your content does not answer customers' questions

Customers ask things like "how much does a new roof cost" or "which accountant is best for small businesses". If you have pages that answer those questions concretely, the AI has something to cite. If you only have a list of services, it does not.

7. Technical barriers

Content that only loads with JavaScript, pages behind a login or very slow pages can be hard for crawlers to read. Structured data describing your organisation helps search engines understand who you are (Google on Organization schema).

How to test it yourself

1. Write down five questions your customers actually ask, in their words. For example "which electrician should I use in Bristol".
2. Ask the questions in ChatGPT, Gemini and Perplexity.
3. Ask each question several times. AI answers differently each time, so a single answer does not say much.
4. Note which companies are mentioned, how often, and whether you are among them.

That is how we test for our clients: fixed questions, several models and several rounds per question, so chance evens out.

How to rank in ChatGPT

• Let the right crawlers in. Check robots.txt and any security services.
• Write clearly. Say what you do, for whom and where, on the homepage and every service page.
• Answer the questions. Create pages and articles that answer what customers actually wonder.
• Get mentioned. Reviews, industry directories, partnerships and articles that feature you. Start with Google reviews.
• Keep information consistent across your site, Google Business Profile and directories.
• Measure over time. Ask the same questions regularly and track whether you are mentioned more often.

SEO or GEO?

The work of appearing in AI answers is often called GEO, generative engine optimisation. The foundation is the same as SEO: a site that can be found, understood and trusted (Google Search Central). The difference is that being clear, answering concrete questions and being mentioned by others become even more important. Ranking well on Google does not automatically mean AI assistants mention you. Read more about our work on generative engine optimization.