How AI assistants find local businesses, and what you can control
People now ask ChatGPT, Google, Perplexity and other assistants for local pros. Here is how those answers get built from the open web, and the practical steps a Colorado business can take.
Where the answers come from
When someone asks an assistant for "a licensed electrician in Boulder", the assistant typically searches the web or its own index and then summarizes what it finds. The sources are the same kinds of pages people read: business websites, map and business profiles, directories, reviews and news. No single source decides the answer, and no one can promise a placement.
What helps an assistant describe you correctly
- The same facts everywhere. Use the same business name, address, phone number and website on your site and on every profile. Conflicting details make it harder to be sure which business is which.
- A website an agent can read. Put your services, service area, hours and contact details in plain text on the page, not only inside images or behind scripts.
- Structured data. A small block of schema.org
LocalBusinessmarkup (JSON-LD) states your name, address, phone and hours in a format machines read reliably. - Let the crawlers in. Check that your
robots.txtdoes not block the search crawlers you want to be found by, such as Googlebot, Bingbot, OAI-SearchBot or PerplexityBot. - Proof you are licensed. Show your license number on your website. Anyone, including an assistant, can then match you to the public state record.
Profiles worth claiming
Free business profiles are part of the open record about you. The usual starting points are Google Business Profile, Apple Business Connect (Apple Maps) and Bing Places for Business, plus the directories in your trade. If your Colorado license is active, you are probably already listed on Licensed Colorado; claiming the listing is free and lets you add your phone, website and services after review.
Measure, then fix the basics
Our free AI search check reads your website the way an agent does and scores the basics above, from HTTPS and readable text to structured data and click-to-call links, with a short list of fixes. The full checklist is in our guide, Get your Colorado business found in AI search.
Questions
Can anyone guarantee my business shows up in ChatGPT or Google AI answers?
No. Assistants decide what to show on their own. What you can do is make accurate information about your business easy to find and easy to read.
What is llms.txt?
A proposed convention: a plain-text file at /llms.txt that summarizes a site for AI tools. It is optional and not a ranking factor anyone has confirmed, but it is cheap to add.
Do I need a new website?
Not necessarily. Many sites only need clear text about services and service area, consistent contact details and a small block of structured data.