8 min Ask ChatGPT where to find the best gel manicure in Glasgow, and it won’t shrug and say, “Try Google.” It will usually name somewhere. Increasingly, that somewhere is a real local business — not chosen from a traditional search results page, but surfaced by an AI tool that has read the web, compared the options, and made a judgment call.
That judgment call could land on you. Or it could skip straight past you.
You can’t guarantee that your business will get recommended by ChatGPT. But you can make it much easier for AI tools to understand who you are, what you offer, and why you’re worth suggesting. Here’s how.
Key takeaways
- AI tools like ChatGPT are a booming new way people find small businesses.
- ChatGPT isn’t replacing Google; most folks use both. See AI as one more place you need to be visible.
- There’s no magic switch to guarantee ChatGPT recommends you. But you can seriously improve your chances by making your business clear, credible, consistent, and easy to check.
- The heavy hitters: clear service pages, genuinely helpful content, real reviews, simple business info, structured data, and making sure AI crawlers can reach your site.
Why ChatGPT recommendations matter for small businesses
ChatGPT pulls from two places: its training data (a vast crawl of public web content) and its live search, which browses sites in real time. Perplexity and Claude work similarly.
In practice, that means two things need to be true. Your own website has to be clear, and your presence across the wider web — profiles, reviews, directories — has to back you up.
When ChatGPT is weighing whether to recommend your business, it’s effectively asking:
- Is it obvious what this business does, who it helps, and where?
- Do separate service pages exist, or is it all crammed onto one homepage?
- Are there real reviews with specific detail?
- Does the business information match across platforms?
- Does the website actually answer questions customers ask?
- Do credible third-party sites mention this business?
- Can AI crawlers access the site at all?
There’s no “submit to ChatGPT” button. But you can make life much easier for these tools. The clearer and more consistent your digital presence, the more likely AI is to find you and connect your business to the right questions.
So what do you actually need to do? Here are eight practical moves you can make, today.
1. Be clear about what you actually do
AI tools aren’t mind readers—they can only recommend you if they understand you. Way too many business websites get lost in vague slogans or clever headlines that don’t spell out what you actually offer. Get straight to the point on your site’s key pages.
Homepage
This is usually the first thing both potential customers and AI crawlers see. Don’t waste the opening lines—make sure anyone (or any bot) gets what you do, who it’s for, and where you’re based within the first couple of sentences.
We’re a sports massage clinic in Glasgow, working with runners and cyclists recovering from injury.
No interpretation required.
About page
Here’s where your story, your approach, or your values can shine—but don’t get lost in personality at the expense of details. Weave in how long you’ve been in business, relevant accreditations, who your clients are, or what sets you apart. AI reads About pages. The more you spell things out, the better it can match you to searchers.
Service pages
Each main service should get its own section or dedicated page—not just a bullet at the bottom of your homepage. Clear headings. Short, practical descriptions. Include key details like session length, who it’s suitable for, and where it happens. Lay it out so even a rushed visitor (or a bot) can scan and get what’s on offer.
2. Answer the questions your customers ask you
People use AI tools because they’re conversational. They’re not typing “physiotherapist Glasgow.” They’re asking, “How long will it take my shoulder to heal?” or “What’s the difference between sports massage and deep tissue?” Your website should already be answering these.
What questions crop up every week, every consultation, every time someone DMs you? Write those answers as blog posts, FAQs, or service page content. If your website spells out what your real customers want to know, AI tools will pick up your answers and point people your way.
Physiotherapy
- How long does it take to recover from a running injury?
- What’s the difference between physio and osteopathy?
- Do I need a referral?
Beauty salons
- How often should I get a gel manicure?
- What treatment helps damaged nails?
- How long does a lash lift last?
Coaching
- How do I know if I’m ready for business coaching?
- What’s the difference between coaching and mentoring?
- When will I see results?
You don’t have to publish non-stop. One thoughtful, evergreen post a week or even a month is plenty, so long as you keep it up to date.
Want to make your content easier for both Google and AI tools to understand? Learn how to write SEO-friendly blog posts.
3. Keep up with SEO basics
AI doesn’t just copy Google’s results — but what ranks well on Google often feeds the datasets AI draws from. The two aren’t separate worlds.
Clear page titles, location included, logical headings, fast load times on mobile. The basics. They matter for Google, and they matter for getting your business recommended by ChatGPT.
Want to appear in more places your customers are already looking? Read our article on how to use Google new search features.
4. Get your business mentioned on credible sites
The more you show up on trusted, relevant sites, the more AI tools trust you.
Think business directories, local news features, guest posts, or roundup articles that shout out your business.
Beauty salons: Treatwell, Fresha, Booksy, local lifestyle magazines, wedding directories.
Physiotherapy: Doctify, professional associations, sports clubs, partner gyms, health directories.
Coaching: LinkedIn, podcast appearances, guest posts, niche business directories, event listings.
Don’t go quantity over quality. One mention on a respected local news site is way better than twenty junky directories—those could actually backfire if they look spammy.
5. Encourage specific, detailed reviews
Generic 5-star ratings don’t help AI (or people) much. But a specific review with details? That’s pure gold.
After you serve a client, ask for a review and give them a prompt:
- “What problem did we help solve for you?”
- “What specific outcome did you get from working with us?”
I booked a sports massage in Glasgow for my calf pain after running. The therapist explained the cause and gave me stretches to do at home.
That kind of review helps AI (and other customers) really “get” what you offer.
Get into the habit of collecting reviews—don’t just do it once and forget about it. Google Business Profile is a good place to start.
6. Keep your business information consistent and up-to-date
If your business name, address, or phone number is different across platforms, both people and AI will get confused.
Every few months, check your site, Google profile, and any big directories. Details should match everywhere. Even one old phone number can chip away at your credibility.
7. Add structured data to your site
Bit technical, but worth it. Structured data (schema markup) labels information on your site—like your address, hours, customer ratings—in a way AI tools and search engines can instantly pick up.
For most local businesses, the “LocalBusiness” schema is a good start. If you’re on WordPress, plugins like Rank Math or Yoast can help. If you have a web developer, ask them whether your site has schema applied to business info and major services.
8. Make sure AI tools can actually access your site
This is the one most people miss. All your hard work goes out the window if your site blocks AI crawlers. OpenAI’s OAI-SearchBot crawls web pages to power ChatGPT search features. If your “robots.txt” file blocks it, you’re invisible to ChatGPT search—even if your website is otherwise perfect.
Worth flagging: OAI-SearchBot is separate from GPTBot (used for AI training) and the two can be blocked or allowed separately.
Get recommended by ChatGPT: the short version
Getting recommended by ChatGPT isn’t some separate new job—it’s about setting up a solid digital presence, period. Clear info, helpful content, positive, detailed reviews, a consistent web footprint. Nail those basics and you’ll be in good shape, whether the recommendation comes from a search engine, an AI, or just word of mouth.
And if all of this sounds overwhelming on top of running your business, that’s exactly why we created Peerie. We break it all down into a simple monthly plan—with step-by-step tasks and ready-to-use templates. So you can keep your marketing on track and still have a life outside work.
→ Take a look at what Peerie does
FAQs about how to get recommened by ChatGPT
Is there a way to directly submit my business to ChatGPT?
No. There's no submission form, no paid listing, no shortcut. ChatGPT finds businesses by crawling the web and drawing on its training data — the same sources Google uses. The way to get recommended is to make your business easy to find and understand across those sources: a clear website, consistent directory listings, genuine reviews, and content that answers the questions your customers actually ask.
How long does it take to start appearing in ChatGPT recommendations?
There's no set timeline. ChatGPT's training data is updated periodically, and its live search crawls pages on an ongoing basis. If your website is well-structured and your business information is consistent across the web, you're already in the right position. Most of the steps in this guide are things you'd want to do for Google anyway — and the effects compound over time.
Do I need to be on Google to get recommended by ChatGPT?
A Google Business Profile helps, but ChatGPT isn't pulling exclusively from Google. It draws on a much wider range of sources — your website, directories, reviews platforms, industry associations, local press. A strong presence across several of those carries more weight than any single platform. That said, Google Business Profile is still one of the most widely-indexed sources, so it's worth keeping up to date.
Does the type of reviews I collect make a difference?
Yes — significantly. A generic 5-star rating with no text tells AI tools almost nothing about what you do. A review that names the service, the location, and the outcome ("sports massage in Glasgow for a calf injury — the therapist explained the cause and gave me exercises") gives AI something to work with. When asking clients for reviews, prompt them to be specific: what problem did you help them with, and what changed as a result?
Will doing all this stop working if ChatGPT changes how it operates?
The specifics of how AI tools work will keep changing — but the fundamentals here won't. Clear information, helpful content, credible third-party mentions, consistent business details: these are the things that make any platform — search engine, AI, or human recommendation — more likely to point people your way. Optimising for clarity and credibility is never wasted effort.
