It might, but there’s no form we could find to sign up. ChatGPT and Google’s AI tools pick local businesses from what they can find about you on the web. Google says there are no special steps beyond the normal ones. OpenAI says ChatGPT can’t show sites that block its search crawler.
So the work is the same groundwork that gets a trade found on Google, done properly. Here’s what each company says, and what a trade can do.
Can you register your business with ChatGPT?
We found no business listing or sign-up on OpenAI’s help or crawler pages. ChatGPT search finds and cites websites using its own crawler, OAI-SearchBot. OpenAI says it “sometimes partners with other search providers”. Its help page links to Microsoft’s privacy statement as one of those providers’ policies.
OpenAI says ChatGPT can use your approximate location “to find local results”. It may share that location with “trusted third-party providers” for things like “nearby business listings”. It doesn’t say which providers. OpenAI also says “Placement is not guaranteed.”
What Google says about AI Mode and AI Overviews
Google is plain about it: “There are no additional requirements to appear in AI Overviews or AI Mode, nor other special optimizations necessary.” A page has to be indexed and able to show in normal Google Search.
Google lists the same best practices it gives for normal search, including:
- letting Google crawl your site
- linking your pages to each other
- putting important content in text
- keeping your Google Business Profile up to date
It also says there’s “no special schema.org structured data” you need to add for AI features.
What a trade can do
None of this is new work. It’s the groundwork, kept up:
- Let the crawlers in. Check your website’s robots.txt doesn’t block Googlebot or OAI-SearchBot. OpenAI says sites that opt out of OAI-SearchBot “will not be shown in ChatGPT search answers”. If your host or firewall blocks unknown bots, ask them to allow OpenAI’s published addresses.
- Keep your Google Business Profile complete and accurate. Google names it in its AI best practices. If you haven’t got one, here’s how to set up your Google Business Profile.
- Get a steady flow of genuine reviews. Here’s our routine for getting more Google reviews.
- Have a page for each job and each town. Google’s AI features search across “subtopics and data sources”. A page that answers one job in one town gives it something specific to find.
- Look at your other listings. Apple describes Apple Business Connect as a free tool to control how your business appears in Apple Maps. Microsoft says business owners can claim listings on Bing through Bing Places for Business, which it says is “available in limited markets”. Check what’s open to you in the UK before you start.
Is SEO dead now that people use AI?
No. Google’s AI Mode and AI Overviews use pages that are indexed and can show in Google Search, and ChatGPT search finds sites through search. The things that get a trade found on Google, a complete profile, genuine reviews and a clear page for each job, are the same things AI tools have to work with.
Google counts clicks from its AI features in Search Console, in the Performance report under the Web search type. That’s where to look to see whether they’re sending you visitors. If you’re weighing up paying for clicks instead, here’s SEO vs Google Ads for trades.
For every other way trades get work, and which to start with, here’s how to get more work as a tradesman.
Questions trades ask about AI and their business
Can I pay to be recommended by ChatGPT?
OpenAI’s pages don’t describe a way to pay to be named. They say placement is not guaranteed.
Does my business need an llms.txt file or special code?
Not for Google. Its page on AI features says there’s no special structured data to add and no AI text files needed. OpenAI’s pages don’t say either way.
How do I know if AI tools mention my business?
Ask them the question your customers would ask, in each tool, and see who they name. Ask more than once, because answers change. Our free local forecast includes this check for your trade and towns.
Does ChatGPT use Google reviews?
OpenAI doesn’t say. Its pages don’t name the sources it uses for local business details.
The same groundwork, more places to be found
AI tools are one more place people look for a trade. They don’t change what gets you chosen: being easy to find, clear about what you do and where, and well reviewed. That’s the work we do in local SEO for trades.