To get AI to recommend your business you need to give it verifiable evidence that you are a trustworthy option: a website that clearly explains what you sell and to whom, concrete data it can quote directly, and consistent mentions in external sources. The underlying rule is simple: AI doesn't recommend whoever advertises best — it recommends whoever it can verify best.
The new filter between you and your customers
A growing share of purchase decisions starts with a conversation with an AI: "which invoicing software suits me?", "where can I buy office furniture with delivery to Medellín?". The AI replies with a few options and arguments, and the person asking rarely looks further. That turns ChatGPT, Gemini, and Perplexity into a filter that sits before your website: if the filter doesn't know you or doesn't trust you, the customer never gets to meet you. The work of earning AI's trust is called GEO, and we explain it in full here.
The 6 signals AI looks for before recommending you
1. An identity that can be verified
Who is behind the company? An "about us" page with real names, track record, and contact details carries more weight than it seems: it is the raw material of trust. An anonymous site with no address and no accountable people is hard to recommend for an AI that must be careful where it sends its users.
2. Complete answers, not brochures
Picture a Shopify store in Colombia selling ergonomic chairs. If its product page answers what buyers actually ask — weight capacity, materials, warranty, delivery times by city, return policy — the AI has everything it needs to recommend it. If it only says "premium comfort and design," there is nothing to quote. Every product or service page should survive the question: "does this answer something, or just brag about something?"
3. Structured data that states the obvious
Schema turns what your page says into a format machines process without ambiguity: which product it is, what it costs, whether it's in stock, how it's rated. Platforms like Shopify and WordPress generate it partially — almost never completely or correctly configured. It is one of the fixes with the best effort-to-result ratio.
4. Reputation beyond your site
AIs triangulate. Your company gains weight when it appears in industry directories, marketplaces, media coverage, and review sites — always with the same data. The goal isn't to be everywhere, but for the two or three sources the AI checks to say the same thing your site says.
5. Absolute consistency in your data
Business name, address, phone, hours: one official version everywhere. Every inconsistency is a doubt, and doubts get resolved by not recommending you. This step is boring and free, which is exactly why almost nobody does it well.
6. Open doors for crawlers
Everything above is useless if AI bots can't get in. Your site's robots.txt file decides who enters, and many sites block AI crawlers without the owner ever deciding it. Checking takes two minutes and it's on the action list below.
Each platform looks in a different place
| Platform | Where it gets its information | What to prioritize |
|---|---|---|
| ChatGPT | Its training + live search with its own crawlers | Open access for its bots and quotable content |
| Gemini | Google's index and ecosystem (Maps, Business Profile) | A flawless Google listing and solid baseline SEO |
| Perplexity | Live search with verbatim citations of its sources | Pages with exact data that can be quoted word for word |
The good news: the six signals above feed all three platforms at once. You don't need three strategies — you need one done well.
What you can do today, with no tools or budget
- Audit your current presence in all three AIs. Ask ChatGPT, Gemini, and Perplexity: "which companies do you recommend for [what you sell] in [your country or city]?". Note who appears and what is said about them.
- Write your identity paragraph. Three sentences: what your company sells, to whom, and what sets you apart with one provable fact. Put it at the top of your homepage and your "about us" page.
- Complete your flagship product or service page. Add what you answer today by chat or email: prices or ranges, delivery times, warranties, coverage. One complete page is worth more than ten half-done ones.
- Hunt down inconsistencies. Search for your company on Google and correct every old version of your name, phone, or address you find in directories and social profiles.
Where the human eye ends and diagnosis begins
There is a part you can't check by looking: whether your schema is valid or broken, what an AI crawler actually finds when it reads your code, and how extractable your content is compared to your competitors'. It's the difference between believing you're fine and knowing it.
Presencia IA's free audit analyzes your site and returns an AI Visibility Score, findings prioritized by impact, and fixes ready to copy and paste. No credit card, no commitment: it's the fastest way to know where to start.
Frequently asked questions
Do ChatGPT, Gemini, and Perplexity use the same criteria?
They share the essentials: clear content, concrete data, and verifiable trust. They differ in where they look: Gemini leans on Google's index and your Business Profile, ChatGPT on its own crawling and Bing, and Perplexity on sources it can quote verbatim. Preparing well for one brings you closer to all three.
How much does it cost to get recommended by AI?
Mentions cannot be bought: none of these platforms sells placement in its organic answers. The real cost is work: improving your content, your data, and your external reputation. A good part you can do yourself; the technical part depends on your web platform and your developer.
Do reviews influence AI recommendations?
Yes, especially for businesses with local customers. AIs consult public reputation sources — your Google listing, your industry's review sites — to confirm you are a real, well-rated option. Few reviews won't disqualify you, but inconsistent data or unanswered complaints do count against you.
How fast will I see results?
It depends on the cause. If the problem was access or confusing data, you can see changes within weeks, once crawlers re-read your site. If the problem is external reputation, it is a months-long effort. That is why it pays to diagnose first instead of investing blindly.
Do I have to abandon my SEO strategy?
No: they complement each other. SEO keeps bringing traffic from people who search on Google, and much of its work — a crawlable site, useful content — also serves AI. What's new is the citability standard: complete answers and structured data. Think of GEO as the natural extension of your SEO.
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