"Recommend someone to build a website in Ostrava." "What accounting software is good for a small business?" "Where can I buy good Moravian wine?" People increasingly ask questions like these of AI assistants instead of Google. If the answer doesn't name you, you've lost the customer before they ever opened your website. In this article I show a simple way to find out whether ChatGPT recommends you (and other AI assistants too), how to evaluate the results and what to do if they don't know you.
Prepare 10 to 20 questions your customers ask, without your business name (for example "web development Ostrava price"). Ask them in ChatGPT using a temporary chat, in Perplexity and in Google, and record whether you're mentioned, in what position and which source is cited. Repeat each question several times, because the answers vary. Run the test once a month. If AI doesn't know you, three things are usually missing: clear content on your website, mentions of your business on other websites and consistent details across your profiles.
Why care what AI says about you?
Someone asking an AI assistant for a recommendation usually doesn't see ten blue links. They see two to five names with a short justification. If you're not in the answer, you don't exist for them. Traffic from AI assistants is still smaller than from Google, but the people who arrive from them tend to be well informed and close to a decision. I've collected the numbers and sources in the article AI search is already sending customers.
How do you find out whether AI assistants recommend you?
1. List the questions your customers ask
The key is that the questions don't include your business name. If you ask "what is company XY", AI will find you easily. What you want to know is whether it mentions you when the customer doesn't yet know you exist.
Good questions fall into three types:
| Question type | Example |
|---|---|
| Recommendation | "Who builds custom e-shops in Ostrava?" |
| Comparison and choice | "Shoptet or a custom e-shop for a small business?" |
| Price and decision | "How much does a business website cost and who should build it?" |
Ten to twenty questions are enough. Take them from what customers ask you on the phone and by email.
2. Ask the questions in several tools
Each AI assistant works with different sources, so test more than one:
- ChatGPT, ideally in a temporary chat, so the answer isn't influenced by memory or your previous conversations,
- Perplexity, which shows its sources clearly next to each answer,
- Google, where you watch the AI Overview above the results,
- optionally Microsoft Copilot and Gemini.
Watch out for personal bias: if you often use ChatGPT to work on your own business, it may "know" more about it than it would for a stranger. That's why you use a temporary chat or an account that knows nothing about you.
3. Repeat each question
AI assistants give a different answer every time you ask. A single answer therefore means nothing. Repeat each question three times and note how many times you were mentioned. "2 out of 3" is more useful than "yes, once".
4. Record the results in a table
A simple table is enough:
| Question | Tool | Mentioned me? | Times out of 3 | Who was mentioned instead of me | Source cited |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Who builds custom e-shops in Ostrava? | ChatGPT | no | 0 | Company A, Company B | directory, reviews |
The last two columns are the most valuable. They show you who AI recommends instead of you and where it gets that from. If it repeatedly cites the same directory, comparison site or article, you know where you should be too.
5. Repeat the test once a month
Same questions, same tools, same process. Only a comparison over time shows whether your changes are working.
What affects who an AI assistant recommends?
No provider publishes its exact selection process. Based on what's publicly known and what I see in tests, four things matter most:
- Search visibility. AI assistants with search look information up on the web. ChatGPT search also works with Bing results, and Google AI Overviews draw on Google's index. A website that isn't visible in these search engines is hard for AI to find.
- Content that can be quoted. Clearly described services, prices, industry and service area. If your website doesn't say clearly what you do and for whom, AI won't say it for you. I explain how to write this kind of content in the article how to write content for AI search.
- Mentions on other websites. Reviews, directories, industry articles, interviews, lists of recommended businesses. AI tends to recommend brands it can verify from several independent sources.
- Consistent details. The same name, address, industry and offer on your website, your Google profile, Firmy.cz and other directories. Conflicting details lower the confidence with which AI mentions you.
What should you do if AI assistants don't know you?
Start with the simplest steps:
- Make sure search engines can find you. Your site in Google Search Console and Bing Webmaster Tools, with the important pages indexed.
- Add clear business information to your website. What exactly you do, for whom, where, for how much and who is behind the business. An "about me" or "about us" page with concrete facts is a valuable source for AI.
- Align the details in your profiles. Google, Firmy.cz, industry directories, social media.
- Get mentioned where AI looks. Check the "source cited" column in your table. If AI repeatedly cites a particular directory or comparison, get listed there if it makes sense.
- Collect reviews. Regularly and honestly, ideally with a concrete description of what you did for the customer.
- Write content for the questions from your test. If customers ask "how much does X cost and who does it" and your website has no answer, AI has nothing to cite.
You'll find a more detailed technical process (Bing, the llms.txt file, structured data) in the article how to get your business into AI search.
What to avoid
- Testing only your own business name. It shows whether AI knows you, not whether it recommends you.
- Drawing conclusions from one answer. Answers change; you need a repeated test.
- Buying "AI mentions" or listing your business in dozens of dubious directories. The quality of a source matters more than the number.
- Writing text for AI instead of people. What's clear to a person is clear to AI too.
Frequently asked questions
How do I find out whether ChatGPT recommends me?
In a temporary chat, ask it 10 to 20 questions your customers ask, without your business name. Repeat each question three times and note how many times it mentioned you and who it recommended instead. Run the same test in Perplexity and Google.
Why does ChatGPT mention me once and not the next time?
AI assistants don't give the same answer every time. It depends on the exact wording of the question, the sources found at that moment and the randomness in how the model composes its answer. That's why it makes sense to track the share of repetitions in which you're mentioned, not a single answer.
Can you buy a mention in ChatGPT?
Not in a way that works long term. AI assistants rely on publicly available sources. You can increase your chances by being visible in search, having a clear website and being written about by other trustworthy websites.
How often should I test my AI visibility?
Once a month with the same questions is enough. Changes to your content, reviews and mentions show up in AI answers gradually, over weeks to months.
How long does it take before AI starts recommending me?
For a business that has almost nothing about it online, it usually takes months, because you need to build both content and mentions on other websites. It's faster for businesses that are already visible in Google but whose website doesn't give AI clear information.
Want to know where you stand?
If you'd like me to review your business's visibility in Google and AI assistants and suggest what to change, take a look at SEO optimization. Preparation for AI search is part of it. For a quick first overview, you can try the free website check.