More customers now ask ChatGPT, Gemini, or Google's AI Overviews which business to call. This is what decides who gets named.
At a glance
An AI assistant recommends a business when it can tell who that business is and trust what it finds: consistent details across the web, structured data that says what the business does and where, and independent mentions that back it up. Without those signals, even the best shop in town doesn't come up.
From doing generative engine optimization (GEO) on my own business, Liquid Breathwork.Google hands you ten links. ChatGPT, Gemini, and Perplexity hand back a name, sometimes two. If yours isn't one, that customer never sees you, and your analytics won't show the lost lead. If it keeps naming someone else, here's why ChatGPT recommends your competitor and how to find the gap.
Quality alone doesn't decide it. The AI first checks who you are, whether your details match everywhere, and whether other sites vouch for you. That check is called entity resolution. There is no form to submit your business to ChatGPT, so anyone selling one belongs on my list of SEO company red flags.
Consistent NAP. Your name, address, and phone number should match word for word on your website, Google Business Profile, Facebook, and every directory. A different suite number on Yelp can make you look like two businesses. Google's own assistant leans hardest on your Business Profile, which I cover in how to get your business recommended by Gemini.
Structured data (schema markup). Code on your site that tells machines what you do and which cities you serve, so the AI doesn't have to guess.
An llms.txt file. A short plain-text file at your site's root that lists who you are, what you offer, and your key pages.
Independent corroboration. Reviews, listings, and mentions on other sites. AI engines weigh these heavily, since anyone can say anything on their own website.
Recency. Recently updated content gets cited more than pages untouched for years.
Ask the AI what your customers would ask and see who comes back. I built a free tool that runs those questions against ChatGPT, Gemini, Perplexity, and Google's AI Overviews for your business and industry.
Get your free Website + AI Audit to see the results.
Building those signals on purpose is generative engine optimization (GEO). I did it on my own business first. Liquid Breathwork went from as few as 17 clicks a month at its low point to a peak of 1,647,Google Search Console, Feb to Jun 2026. Over the first 9 months, about $14,000 in Breathwork training sales came from people who found it through AI assistants like ChatGPT.Stripe payments, matched to how each buyer found Liquid Breathwork.
For the full breakdown, read how GEO works. If an agency is pitching it to you, here's what AI SEO services should actually include. Or book a free call and we'll go through your results together.