To work on ChatGPT discovery, allow OAI-SearchBot and its published addresses, make your actual services and business facts easy to read, and publish useful evidence that helps a customer choose. These steps support eligibility and clarity. OpenAI does not guarantee placement, and a prompt test is an observation rather than a ranking score.
Check the search crawler first
OpenAI's crawler documentation distinguishes OAI-SearchBot for Search, GPTBot for potential model training, and ChatGPT-User for user-triggered fetches. Their jobs are separate. You can allow Search while choosing to disallow training.
Check robots.txt for the page you want found, then check CDN and firewall rules for OpenAI's published searchbot addresses. OpenAI's ChatGPT Search help page covers that access. A successful request with a copied bot user-agent is a limited diagnostic; logs of real crawler requests provide stronger evidence.
Publish the facts a prospective customer needs
State the business name, actual services, location or service area, hours, contact method, and ownership clearly. Correct outdated directory and business-profile details. A customer comparing providers should be able to confirm the same facts across those sources.
Put important service information in served HTML. A price available only in an image, or a service list loaded only after client-side code runs, is harder for a fetcher to use. Give readers ordinary internal links to service pages, examples of work, and the person responsible for the business.
Answer the buying question with evidence
Use the questions people ask in calls and consultations. Answer directly, then explain the scope, exclusions, costs you are allowed to publish, and tradeoffs. A useful answer can also help someone who arrives from ordinary search or a referral.
Original proof makes the page more useful: describe an actual problem, the decision you made, and the artifact or measured result that supports it. Get permission before naming a client or publishing their results. Clear headings and FAQs help readers navigate; they are not a promise that an assistant will cite the page.
Keep markup accurate and optional files in perspective
Use structured data that agrees with the visible content. Do not add a rating, credential, or service the page cannot substantiate. Google's AI optimization guide requires no special schema and says Google Search ignores llms.txt. Those statements apply to Google; no reviewed OpenAI guidance establishes an llms.txt citation benefit.
An optional llms.txt overview can document selected links. It does not replace crawl access, useful pages, or a sitemap. Fix a blocked or inaccurate service page before spending effort on the overview.
Keep a dated observation record
Choose a small set of real buying questions, including the service and place the customer would name. Record the engine, exact prompt, date, location context, answer, source URLs, and whether the business details are correct. Separate an unlinked mention from a linked citation.
Repeat the same checks, keeping the conditions as consistent as practical. ChatGPT can rewrite queries using context, including location or saved memories, so the result is a contextual sample. Avoid turning a handful of prompts into a percentage of the market or a universal ChatGPT rank.
Then connect observed referrals and self-reported discovery to qualified inquiries. A recommendation matters commercially when it helps the right customer make contact.
Eligibility does not guarantee a recommendation
OpenAI describes Search as seeking relevant, reliable information and does not guarantee placement. Improving access and useful content is work you can control. Which sources an assistant selects is controlled by the platform.
Our AIO service reviews that foundation and records what changes. It does not sell a guaranteed organic recommendation or a first-citation deadline.
Common questions
How do I get ChatGPT to recommend my business?
Check OAI-SearchBot access, publish accurate service and business information, and support buying questions with useful evidence. These actions support eligibility and clarity, but OpenAI does not guarantee placement.
Do I have to allow GPTBot?
GPTBot is used for potential model training. Its setting is independent from OAI-SearchBot, the crawler used for ChatGPT Search. Allowing training is not a requirement for Search eligibility.
Does schema or llms.txt guarantee a citation?
No. Accurate markup can describe visible facts, and llms.txt is an optional overview. Neither is a documented guarantee of ChatGPT selection.
How do I check whether ChatGPT mentions my business?
Save the exact question, engine, date, location context, answer, and source URLs. Repeat a small fixed set and distinguish mentions, linked citations, referral visits, and qualified inquiries.
Can an agency guarantee an organic recommendation?
No. Search systems select their own sources, and answers vary with the question and context. An agency can commit to the work and evidence it reports, not to independent platform selection.
See what needs checking first
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