To get your business recommended by ChatGPT, you need to be mentioned across multiple trusted websites that AI models use as training data and citation sources. This means press coverage, directory listings, review sites, and well structured content on your own website.
That's the short answer. Here's the longer one, with everything you can actually do about it.
Why ChatGPT recommends some businesses and not others
When someone asks ChatGPT to recommend a plumber in Leeds or a dentist in Bristol, it doesn't search the internet in real time. It draws on patterns from its training data — millions of web pages, articles, reviews, and documents it has already processed.
If your business is mentioned across enough of those sources, in the right context, ChatGPT learns to associate your name with your trade and location. If you're not mentioned anywhere beyond your own website, you're invisible.
68% of AI citations come from third party sources — not from the business's own website. That's the key insight. Your website matters, but it's not enough on its own.
Step 1: Check where you stand right now
Before you do anything, find out if ChatGPT already knows about you. Open ChatGPT on your phone or laptop and type: "Recommend a [your trade] in [your town]."
Try it a few different ways. Ask for "the best electrician in Manchester" and then "top rated electricians near Manchester." AI tools give different answers to different phrasings, so test at least 3 or 4 variations.
If you don't appear at all, that's your starting point. If you do appear, note how consistently — is it every time, or just occasionally?
Step 2: Get mentioned on third party sites
This is the single most impactful thing you can do. AI models trust third party mentions far more than what you say about yourself on your own website.
Press releases
A press release distributed through a service like EIN Presswire gets your business mentioned across 100+ news and media sites. Google News, Bing News, Apple News, Yahoo, and hundreds of industry specific outlets. These are exactly the sources AI models draw from.
You don't need to have "news" in the traditional sense. Won an award? Hired someone new? Launched a new service? Hit a milestone? All valid angles for a press release.
Directory listings
Make sure you're listed on every relevant directory: Yell.com, Checkatrade, TrustATrader, Bark, FreeIndex, Thomson Local, and any trade specific ones for your industry. Keep your name, address, and phone number consistent across all of them.
Reviews
Google reviews, Trustpilot, Facebook reviews, and trade specific review sites all feed into AI training data. The more reviews you have, the more often your name appears in the data AI models learn from. Ask every happy customer to leave a review. Make it easy — send them a direct link.
Step 3: Fix your own website
Your website needs to clearly state who you are, what you do, and where you do it. That sounds obvious, but most small business websites bury this information or assume the visitor already knows.
Structured data (schema markup)
Schema markup is code you add to your website that tells search engines and AI tools exactly what your business is. Your name, address, phone number, opening hours, service area, and what you do — all in a format machines can read instantly.
If you use WordPress, the Yoast SEO plugin handles this for you. If not, your web developer can add it in about an hour.
Content that answers questions
Write pages and blog posts that directly answer the questions your customers ask. "How much does a boiler replacement cost in Leeds?" is far better than a generic services page. AI tools love content that answers specific questions with specific answers.
Step 4: Let AI crawlers access your site
Some websites accidentally block AI tools from reading their content. Check your robots.txt file (yourdomain.com/robots.txt) and make sure you're not blocking GPTBot, ClaudeBot, or PerplexityBot.
If your robots.txt says "Disallow: /" for these bots, they can't see anything on your site. Remove those lines or ask your web developer to update it.
Step 5: Keep showing up
This isn't a one time job. AI models are retrained regularly, and the businesses that keep appearing in fresh content keep getting recommended. The ones that had a burst of mentions three years ago and then went quiet will gradually fade.
A monthly press release, regular blog posts, and a steady flow of reviews will keep you visible. Think of it like staying fit — consistency matters more than intensity.
How long does it take?
Some changes, like fixing your robots.txt and adding schema markup, can have an effect within weeks. Press releases typically take 2 to 4 weeks to propagate through AI training cycles. Building a strong review profile is a longer game — months rather than weeks.
But here's the thing: 64% of consumers now use AI tools to discover local businesses. That number is growing every month. The businesses that start now will have a massive head start over those who wait.
Don't want to do this yourself?
That's exactly what FastGEO does. We audit your current AI visibility, fix the technical issues, write and distribute press releases, and monitor your citations every month. Our GEO Starter package is £150 and includes a full audit plus your first press release.
Or try this first: open ChatGPT and ask it to recommend a business like yours in your area. If you don't show up, get in touch and tell us what happened. We'll explain exactly why and what to do about it.