More of your customers now ask an AI tool for a recommendation instead of scrolling a list of links. "Who's a good accountant in Wakefield?" "Best SEO agency in Yorkshire for a small business?" The answer names a few businesses. If yours isn't one of them, you don't get a look in.
Our earlier guide on optimising for citations in ChatGPT search covers how to structure a page so AI tools quote it. This one is about something slightly different: getting your business itself named as the answer.
That comes down to two things. The AI has to be able to read about you, and it has to find enough consistent evidence across the web to trust you. Here's how to work on both.
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Start with the basics, because nothing else matters if this is wrong.
ChatGPT. OpenAI uses a crawler called OAI-SearchBot for ChatGPT's search features. OpenAI says sites that block it won't be shown in ChatGPT search answers. Check your robots.txt file and make sure it isn't blocked. Some security plugins and hosting firewalls block unfamiliar bots without telling you, so check those too.
Google. Google says there are no extra technical requirements for AI Overviews or AI Mode. Your page needs to be indexed and eligible to show in normal search with a snippet. If Google can't index you properly, you won't show in its AI features either. Search Console will tell you which pages are indexed.
Google also says you don't need special AI text files or extra markup to appear in its AI features. Be wary of anyone selling a quick fix along those lines.
AI tools build a picture of your business from lots of sources. If those sources disagree, the picture gets blurry and you're less likely to be recommended with confidence.
Go through these and make them match exactly:
Then make your own website the clearest source of all. Your About page should say who you are, where you're based, what you do and who you do it for. Your service pages should each cover one service, not ten at once. If a stranger can't work out what you do in ten seconds, an AI model will struggle too.
Schema is structured data in your site's code that labels key facts, like your business name, address, logo and opening hours. For most small businesses the useful types are Organization or LocalBusiness.
The sameAs property is worth adding. It lists your other official profiles, such as your Google Business Profile, LinkedIn page or Clutch profile, which helps connect them as one business.
Two cautions. Google says your structured data must match what's visible on the page, so don't mark up anything that isn't there. And Google says there's no special schema you need for its AI features. Schema helps search engines understand you. It isn't a switch that gets you recommended on its own.
When an AI tool recommends a local business, reviews are a big part of the evidence it has to go on. Google says more reviews and positive ratings can help your local ranking. It also lists keeping your Business Profile up to date as a best practice for its AI features.
What works:
Ask every happy customer. Google lets you create a review link or QR code. Put it on invoices, follow-up emails and van signage.
Reply to reviews, good and bad. Keep it short and professional.
Get reviews on more than one platform where it fits your sector, such as Trustpilot, Checkatrade for trades or Clutch for B2B services.
What to avoid: offering a discount or freebie for a review. Google treats that as fake engagement and prohibits it. In the UK, fake reviews and hidden incentivised reviews have been a banned practice under consumer law since April 2025, and the CMA can fine businesses directly.
AI answers often lean on trusted third-party sites, because a business saying nice things about itself isn't much evidence. Focus on quality, not volume. Our guide to the UK business directories that actually matter goes through this in more detail, but the short version is:
The big three: Google Business Profile, Bing Places and Apple Business Connect. Complete every field.
Sector review sites: Clutch for agencies and B2B services, Checkatrade or TrustATrader for trades, Tripadvisor for hospitality.
Trade bodies and local organisations: your trade association, the local chamber of commerce and any accreditation bodies. These are hard for competitors to copy.
Press and partner mentions: a write-up in a local paper or a mention on a supplier's site counts as independent evidence.
People ask AI tools full questions, often with a location and a need built in. "Who does emergency boiler repairs in Barnsley on a Sunday?" "Which accountant in Leeds specialises in construction firms?"
Your site should answer those directly. Useful pages include:
Specific beats generic. "We're a friendly, professional team" tells an AI nothing. "Gas Safe registered, covering Barnsley, Penistone and Stocksbridge, same-day call-outs Monday to Saturday" gives it something to work with. Only say it if it's true, of course.
Ask ChatGPT, Google and Perplexity the questions your customers would ask. Note who gets named and what's said about you, if anything. Do this monthly, because answers change from one day to the next.
If you're not mentioned, look at who is. What do they have that you don't? More reviews? A Clutch profile? A page that answers the exact question? That's usually your to-do list.
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