# How to get your site recommended by ChatGPT and Perplexity > A 7-step checklist to get recommended by ChatGPT and Perplexity: crawler access, Bing and Google indexing, schema, answer pages and third-party mentions. AI assistants with web search recommend the brands whose pages they can crawl, understand, and find repeated on trusted third-party sites. Nobody outside OpenAI or Perplexity knows the exact ranking rules, so this isn't a trick list. It's the 7 things I'd do, in order of impact, plus how to check where you stand today. By Nathan Johnson, founder of GotCited. Updated October 25, 2026. ## The 7 steps 1. **Let AI crawlers in.** Check robots.txt doesn't block GPTBot and OAI-SearchBot (OpenAI), ClaudeBot (Anthropic), PerplexityBot, or Google-Extended. A blanket Disallow or a CDN bot-blocking rule quietly removes you from AI answers. 2. **Get indexed by Bing and Google.** ChatGPT search leans on Bing's index and Google's AI features use Google's. Verify your site in Bing Webmaster Tools and Google Search Console and submit your sitemap. 3. **Make every page easy to understand.** One clear H1 per page, a title and meta description that say what you sell and who it's for, and JSON-LD (Organization, SoftwareApplication or Product, FAQPage) with real prices. 4. **Publish pages that answer buyer questions.** Write the pages your buyers' questions need: comparisons (you vs a competitor), alternatives pages, honest 'best X for Y' roundups, and an FAQ that answers questions in the words people actually type. 5. **Get listed where AI already looks.** Ask an AI your buyer's question and look at what it cites. Usually it's listicles, directories and review sites. Getting added to those pages is often the fastest way into the answer. 6. **Add llms.txt.** A short markdown summary at /llms.txt with links to your key pages. It's not a guaranteed ranking factor, but it's 10 minutes of work. See [what llms.txt is and how to write one](https://gotcited.app/guides/what-is-llms-txt). 7. **Re-check every week.** Answers change as the web changes. Ask the same questions weekly and see whether your fixes moved anything. ## How to check where you stand The manual way: open ChatGPT, Perplexity and Claude with web search on, ask 5 to 10 questions your buyers would ask ("best X for Y", "cheapest X", "alternatives to Z"), and write down who gets named and which pages get cited. The faster way: [run a free GotCited scan](https://gotcited.app/free-ai-visibility-checker). It writes the questions from your site, asks Claude with live web search, and shows your score, the competitors named instead of you, the sources cited and your top 2 fixes. ## What usually goes wrong - The homepage describes the product with a slogan, so AI can't tell what category you're in. - There's no page that matches the question. If buyers ask "alternatives to Otterly.AI" and you have no page about it, a listicle gets cited instead of you. - Nobody else mentions you yet. AI repeats what several sources agree on, and a brand-new product has no third-party mentions. - robots.txt or a firewall blocks AI crawlers by accident. ## FAQ ### How do I get my site recommended by ChatGPT and Perplexity? Allow AI crawlers (GPTBot, OAI-SearchBot, ClaudeBot, PerplexityBot) in robots.txt, get indexed in Bing Webmaster Tools and Google Search Console, give every page a clear title, one H1 and JSON-LD, publish pages that answer your buyers' questions (comparisons, alternatives, FAQ), and get listed on the third-party pages AI already cites. Then re-check weekly. ### How long does it take to show up in AI answers? It varies. On-page fixes can show up once the page is recrawled, which can take days to weeks. Third-party mentions take longer to earn. Anyone promising a fixed timeline is guessing. ### Can I pay to be recommended by ChatGPT? Not in organic answers. You can earn mentions on the sources AI cites, but there's no paid placement in the recommendation itself. ### Does GotCited check ChatGPT and Perplexity? GotCited checks Claude with live web search today. ChatGPT, Perplexity, Gemini and Google AI Overviews are coming to the same $9 plan, and I'll say so on the site when each one is live. ## Keep reading - [Free AI visibility checker](https://gotcited.app/free-ai-visibility-checker) - [What is llms.txt and how to create one](https://gotcited.app/guides/what-is-llms-txt) - [Best AI visibility tracker for a small SaaS](https://gotcited.app/best/ai-visibility-tracker-for-small-saas) [Check your site free](https://gotcited.app/free-ai-visibility-checker) --- GotCited · https://gotcited.app · mail@gotcited.app · Built by Nathan Johnson (@nathanjhsn)