How ChatGPT and Google AI Overviews Decide Which Agencies to Recommend

How do ChatGPT and Google AI Overviews choose which businesses to mention?

No one outside OpenAI and Google knows the exact formula, and both companies change their systems often. What we can describe is how these tools broadly work and what we consistently see in the businesses they recommend. Treat everything below as observed best practice, not insider knowledge.

When an assistant searches the web to answer a question like "who is a good web designer in Sydney?", it pulls a set of pages from a search index, reads them and writes a summary, often with links to its sources. Google AI Overviews draw on pages in Google's own index. Assistants also carry knowledge from the text they were trained on, so a business that is described clearly and consistently across many sites is easier for them to "know" about.

The common thread is confidence. An AI tool appears more likely to name a business when several independent sources agree on what it does, where it is and whether customers are happy with it.

Which signals seem to matter most?

These are the signals we see most often in businesses that get recommended for local and service questions.

• Reviews – Why it likely helps: Independent evidence that customers are satisfied; What to do: Ask every happy client for a Google review that mentions the service and suburb
• Consistent business details – Why it likely helps: Makes it easy to confirm you are a real, local business; What to do: Use the exact same name, address and phone number everywhere
• Clear service pages – Why it likely helps: Gives the assistant a page it can quote for a specific question; What to do: One page per service, with location, process and FAQs
• Third-party mentions – Why it likely helps: Other sites vouching for you carry more weight than your own claims; What to do: Get listed in partner directories, industry bodies and local media
• Helpful content – Why it likely helps: Answers the questions customers actually ask; What to do: Publish guides that answer real questions directly, with specifics
• Technical access – Why it likely helps: Pages that cannot be crawled cannot be cited; What to do: Make sure key pages are indexed, fast and use structured data

Why do reviews matter so much for AI recommendations?

When someone asks an AI assistant for "the best" or "a good" provider, it needs some way to judge quality. Reviews on Google and other trusted platforms are one of the few places that judgement exists in public, written by customers rather than the business. The written detail matters as much as the star rating. A review that says "they rebuilt our Shopify store and sales picked up" says far more than "great service".

Ask for reviews steadily, not in bursts, and never buy or fake them. Fake reviews breach platform rules and can mislead consumers under the Australian Consumer Law, and they undermine the trust you are trying to build.

Why does consistent business information matter?

If your website shows one address, your Google Business Profile shows another and an old directory lists a phone number you stopped using, an AI tool has three versions of you to reconcile. Consistency removes that doubt. Pick one format for your business name, address, phone number and website, and use it everywhere: your site footer, Google Business Profile, social profiles, directories and partner listings.

For example, Leed Agency's details are 26 Surf Ln, Cronulla NSW 2230 and 0401 783 106. The goal is for that exact version to appear wherever the business is listed.

What makes a service page easy for AI to quote?

AI tools tend to lift short, direct answers. A service page that buries the point under slogans gives them nothing to use. Good service pages share a pattern:

• A plain opening sentence saying what you do, for whom and where.
• One service per page, rather than everything on the homepage.
• Named suburbs or regions you serve.
• Your process in clear steps.
• How pricing works, even if you quote case by case.
• Proof: named clients, results or reviews.
• A short FAQ answering the questions customers ask on the phone.

How do mentions on other websites help?

Your own website is your claim. Mentions elsewhere are the evidence. Useful third-party sources for an Australian small business include partner directories (such as Google Partner and Shopify Partner listings, if you qualify), industry associations, local news, supplier and client websites, podcasts and community organisations. A local plumber mentioned by a regional news site and a trade association is easier to recommend than one that only exists on its own website.

What can an Australian business do in the next 30 days?

1. Search your business name and fix any listing with old or inconsistent details.
2. Complete every field in your Google Business Profile, including services and service areas.
3. Ask your five most recent happy customers for a Google review.
4. Rewrite the opening of each service page so the first two sentences answer what, for whom and where.
5. Add an FAQ to your main service pages using questions customers actually ask.
6. Write one genuinely useful guide answering a common buying question in your industry.
7. Ask ChatGPT, Gemini and Google a few questions about your industry and area, and note who gets recommended and which sources are cited.

How do you check what AI tools say about your business?

Write down five to ten questions a customer might ask, such as "best electrician in the Sutherland Shire" or "who builds Shopify stores in Australia". Ask them in a few assistants once a month and record who is named and which sources are linked. Over time you will see which pages and listings the tools rely on, and where your business is missing. Answers vary between sessions and users, so look for patterns rather than reacting to a single response.

Where Leed Agency fits

Leed Agency is a website design and Google Ads studio in Cronulla, in Sydney's Sutherland Shire. Most of the work above is part of how we build a site: clear service pages, consistent business details, fast pages on Webflow or Shopify, and structured content that both people and search tools can read. We are a Google Partner and Shopify Partner with a 5.0 rating on Google Reviews, and we work with businesses Australia-wide.

If you want your website rebuilt around these principles, see our website design service. If you need enquiries while the organic work builds, our Google Ads management has no lock-in contracts. Or request a quote and we will look at where your business currently stands.

Frequently asked questions

How does ChatGPT decide which businesses to recommend?

The exact method isn't public. In practice, assistants that search the web tend to recommend businesses described consistently across several trustworthy sources, with strong reviews and clear pages explaining what they do and where.

Does SEO still matter for AI search?

Yes. Google AI Overviews draw on pages in Google's index, and many assistants search the web before answering, so pages that are indexed and clearly written have a better chance of being used as sources.

How long does it take to show up in AI answers?

There is no fixed timeline. Changes to your site and listings need to be crawled and picked up, so expect months rather than days, and measure progress by checking the same questions regularly.

What is the single most useful step for a small business?

Make your business name, address and phone number identical everywhere, and build a steady flow of genuine Google reviews. Those two steps support every other signal.

Does structured data help with AI search?

Structured data such as LocalBusiness and FAQ markup helps search engines understand your pages. It does not guarantee you will be cited, but it is low effort and widely recommended.