How to show up in ChatGPT and Google’s AI answers
More buyers now ask an assistant instead of scanning ten links. Much of the advice on this is guesswork. Here is what the platforms themselves say, what you can control, and what to ignore.
The short answer
Good SEO still does most of the work. Google says there are no additional requirements or special optimizations for AI Overviews or AI Mode: a page needs to be indexed and eligible to show with a snippet.
Beyond that, make sure AI search crawlers can reach you, write pages that answer one question clearly, and get your company mentioned accurately on other sites. Nobody can guarantee a place in an AI answer.
Step 1: let the right crawlers in
Each company runs separate crawlers, so you can appear in search answers without giving your content to model training. Check robots.txt, then check your host or CDN too: security settings can block bots even when robots.txt allows them.
| Crawler | What it does | If you block it |
|---|---|---|
| Googlebot | Google Search, including AI Overviews and AI Mode | You leave Google Search |
| Google-Extended | A control for use in training and grounding in Google’s other AI systems. It does not affect Search | Search is unchanged |
| OAI-SearchBot | Surfaces websites in ChatGPT search | You lose ChatGPT search answers |
| GPTBot | May be used to train OpenAI’s models | Your content is signalled out of that training; search is separate |
| ChatGPT-User | Visits a page when a person asks ChatGPT to | Not an automatic crawl, and robots.txt may not apply |
| ClaudeBot and Claude-SearchBot | Anthropic’s crawlers for training and for search results | Each one is controlled separately |
| PerplexityBot | Surfaces websites in Perplexity | You may drop out of its results |
Step 2: write pages an answer can use
- Answer the question in the first two sentences, then explain
- Give each page one clear topic, with headings that match how people ask
- Keep important content in text, not only in images or video
- Use tables for comparisons, prices and rules
- State who says so: link to official sources and show the date you last checked
- Say plainly who you serve, where, and what you charge, so nobody has to guess
- Publish real Arabic and French pages, linked to each other, rather than leaving translation to the assistant
Step 3: use the technical basics, skip the magic
Link important pages from others on your site, use descriptive titles, and keep pages fast and readable without running heavy scripts. Google says no special structured data is needed for AI features; where you use it, it must match what the page shows.
Google also says you do not need new machine-readable or AI text files. An llms.txt file is cheap to add and some tools read it, but treat it as optional, not as a ranking trick.
Step 4: be known outside your own site
- Keep your name, address, phone and services consistent on Google Business Profile, LinkedIn and industry directories
- Earn reviews on platforms your buyers really use
- Publish case studies with named clients and real results when clients agree
- Get cited: original data, free tools and useful guides are what other sites link to
- If your name is shared with another brand, say clearly who you are and who you are not
Step 5: measure it honestly
- Google counts AI Overviews and AI Mode traffic within the Web search type in Search Console, so you cannot view it there as its own line
- In your analytics, watch referrals from chatgpt.com, perplexity.ai and similar sites
- Each month, ask assistants 10 to 20 questions your buyers would ask, in each language, and record whether you appear and whether the facts are right
- Ask new leads how they found you, and include AI assistants as an option
Assistant answers vary between people and between days, so read this as a trend rather than a rank.
What to avoid
- Mass-producing AI pages to catch searches: Google’s spam policies cover scaled content made mainly to manipulate rankings
- Hidden text aimed at AI systems
- Paying anyone who promises a guaranteed spot in ChatGPT
- Blocking every AI crawler by default, then wondering why assistants do not know you
Sources
- Google Search Central: AI features and your website
- Google Search Central: spam policies
- OpenAI: overview of OpenAI crawlers
- Anthropic: how Anthropic’s web crawlers work
Rules change. Check the official text, or ask your accountant or lawyer, before you rely on a figure.
Build a site that can be found
keyt builds fast websites and products in Arabic, English and French, with the structure search engines and assistants can read.