How to show up in ChatGPT and AI answers

How AI engines choose who to recommend

When someone asks "recommend an accounting firm in Buenos Aires", the engine searches for sources, reads the ones it can read, and builds the answer citing those it finds clear and trustworthy. There are no ads to buy: you appear if you're readable and citable.

The technical detail that decides everything: most AI crawlers don't execute JavaScript. If your site only renders in the browser, to ChatGPT it may be a blank page.

Step 1: make sure they can read you

Before thinking about content, remove the blockers.

• Check that your robots.txt doesn't block GPTBot, ClaudeBot or PerplexityBot
• Make sure content arrives in the HTML (server-side rendering), not only via JavaScript
• Publish an llms.txt file describing what your business does and your key pages
• Keep the site fast: crawlers abandon pages that don't respond

Step 2: make sure they can cite you

Engines cite sentences that answer questions on their own. Every important page should open with a direct answer, include concrete numbers and facts (with sources), and carry structured data (schema.org) saying who you are, what you do and where.

Real frequently asked questions, written the way a customer would ask them, are among the most cited content by AI engines.

Step 3: make sure they find you beyond your site

Engines cross-check sources: a LinkedIn profile consistent with your site, a Google Business profile with reviews, and mentions in your industry's communities weigh as much as your own content. Consistency matters: same name, same description, same details everywhere.

How to know if you show up today

Ask ChatGPT and Perplexity about your industry and city, the way a customer would: "recommend a [your industry] in [your city]". Note who appears and who doesn't, and repeat the test monthly: answers change, and it's better to find out before your competitors do.