SEO, Google & AI · · 12 min read
Your customers are asking ChatGPT. Does it mention your business?
Try asking ChatGPT for a roofer in your town. Or a tax adviser or hairdresser. You will get names, often with reasons and sources. Check whether your business is among them. Many owners do not know. You can find out how AI search finds local businesses and what you can do yourself without paying for a package. But first, the figures, because most of them are quoted incorrectly.
How many people in Germany use AI to search?
In autumn 2025, the digital industry association Bitkom surveyed internet users aged 16 and over. Half said they use AI chats instead of a traditional search engine at least occasionally. 24 per cent said they often read only a search engine’s AI summary and no longer look at the results below it. These are people’s accounts of their own behaviour; clicks were not measured. Three years ago, though, hardly anyone would have said they searched this way.
OpenAI says more than 1.2 billion people worldwide use ChatGPT each week. That includes every kind of use, such as recipes and job applications. The figure therefore does not tell us how many people use it to search. In early 2024, Gartner predicted that traditional search engine volume would fall by 25 per cent by 2026. Whether that has happened cannot be verified publicly. We therefore continue to describe this figure as a forecast.
AI Overviews and AI Mode are part of Google Search. According to an analysis by SISTRIX, Google displays an AI Overview for around 20 per cent of the German search terms examined. Google and AI search therefore overlap. Check whether your business appears in the answers. That applies to Google just as much as to OpenAI or Microsoft.
These figures do not show how often customers in your sector use AI to choose a local provider and then place an order. There are no reliable statistics for Germany on this yet. In the same Bitkom survey, 47 per cent also said they use only traditional search. Search habits are changing, but traditional search is still widely used.
- 50 % of German internet users say they use AI chats instead of a search engine at least occasionally (Bitkom, 11/2025)
- 24 % say they often read only a search engine’s AI summary (Bitkom, 11/2025)
- More than 1.2 billion weekly ChatGPT users worldwide, across all uses (OpenAI, 10/2026)
- Around 20 % of the German search terms examined show an AI Overview on Google (SISTRIX, as of 10/2026)
Do visits from AI search bring more customers?
Two US studies show that the traditional list of search results is becoming less important. In March 2025, the Pew Research Center analysed the browsing behaviour of 900 adults. On Google results pages with an AI summary, users clicked a traditional result in 8 per cent of visits, compared with 15 per cent without a summary. A source within the summary was clicked in 1 per cent of visits. In February 2026, Ahrefs analysed Search Console data for 300,000 search terms: for terms with an AI Overview, the click-through rate of the first organic result was 58 per cent below the modelled comparison value. Both studies are based on observations, not experiments. Neither focuses specifically on small German businesses. Even so, the findings clearly show that the traditional results list receives fewer clicks.
At the same time, Semrush reports that visitors from AI search sources such as ChatGPT are 4.4 times as valuable as traditional organic search visitors, measured by conversion rate. These visitors may already have made their shortlist in the chat and arrived at the website with a specific intention. The study does not establish this as the cause. Nor do the published data tell us whether the same factor applies to a painting and decorating business in Potsdam.
When looking at your figures, distinguish between website visits and enquiries. How many of those turn into jobs needs to be considered separately. In future, your website may receive fewer visitors while still generating as many enquiries, or more. If your business is missing from the answers, however, both figures could fall. You need your own measurements to know what is happening in your case.
How does ChatGPT find local businesses?
ChatGPT does not have a fixed ranking like Google’s positions 1 to 10. OpenAI describes the process as follows: when ChatGPT uses web search, it may turn your question into several more targeted searches and involve search partners. It then assesses the pages it finds. For local questions, OpenAI also mentions external providers of business data. The result may depend on the location in your question, an approximate location derived from your IP address or a device location you have shared. Saved memories may also play a role. Two people asking the same question will therefore not necessarily receive the same names.
Ahrefs analysed which sources ChatGPT cites in the US market. Reddit, Wikipedia and Consumer Reports lead the list. This does not establish a ranking for German trades businesses. A separate Ahrefs analysis of source selection shows that cited pages answer a specific part of a question and have a title that matches their content. A homepage saying “Quality and passion since 1998” tells customers nothing about prices, the process or availability. A page titled “Roof renovation in Spandau: process, timescale, costs”, by contrast, answers a specific question.
Also check whether ChatGPT is allowed to access your website. This is often overlooked. Its search crawler is called OAI-SearchBot; Perplexity’s is PerplexityBot. If robots.txt, a firewall or your hosting blocks these crawlers, the AI cannot use your own pages as a source. That leaves information about your business from directories and other portals. Both providers recommend allowing access. This does not guarantee that your pages will be cited, but blocking access reliably prevents it.
How can I prepare my website for AI search?
Google explicitly states that AI Overviews and AI Mode do not require a special AI file or special markup. As with ordinary search, content must be indexable. It should contain specific, helpful information. There is no comparably detailed guide for ChatGPT and Perplexity, but their documented processes point in the same direction. The sources suggest the following tasks. You can do some yourself; for the technical questions, you will need whoever maintains your website.
- Make sure your address, phone number, opening hours, service area and services match across your website, Google Business Profil and the main directories. You can do this yourself without technical knowledge. Conflicting information is the most common problem we see with new clients.
- Take time to write down the ten questions customers ask on the phone. Roughly how much does it cost? What is the process and how long does it take? Who is it not suitable for? Answer each question in two or three sentences on the relevant service page. Readers can then find the answers, and AI can cite the information.
- Ask whoever maintains your website to check: are OAI-SearchBot, PerplexityBot and Googlebot allowed access in robots.txt and by your hosting? Are your service pages indexed by Google? Also have them check whether the site loads on a phone in under three seconds.
- Whoever maintains your website can add structured data for your business, services and FAQ. This describes your content in a machine-readable format, making it easier for systems to interpret it correctly. There is no proven citation bonus for doing this.
- Over several months, work on mentions outside your website, for example in a trade guild directory, the local press or on partners’ websites. Responding to reviews is part of this too. Ahrefs observes a link between a brand’s online presence and its mentions in AI answers. This does not prove cause and effect. I would still give it a try.
- Name the person behind your content. Google recommends content based on first-hand experience. “Our master tradesman Thomas explains why we no longer recommend bitumen membranes for flat roofs” is a sentence a customer will read and an AI will cite. A generic agency template will achieve neither.
How do I measure mentions and customer enquiries from AI search?
The easiest starting point is your website analytics. Visits from chatgpt.com, perplexity.ai or copilot.microsoft.com are listed there by source. For a vehicle brokerage in Berlin that we look after, chatgpt.com appeared as a traffic source in September 2026 without any advertising for it. Even if you see no such visits, your business may still be mentioned in AI answers. Many mentions do not lead to a click.
Bing Webmaster Tools is another option. In February 2026, Microsoft introduced the “AI Performance” section there. It shows how often your pages are cited as a source in Copilot and Bing AI answers, as well as by selected partners. It does not track ChatGPT directly. You will not see clicks or enquiries there either. It is, however, the only place where a business can directly view source citations at all.
We also run regular manual checks for our clients. We ask the same five to ten customer questions, including location and service, in ChatGPT, Perplexity, Copilot and Google AI Mode. Each time, note the date, mode, providers mentioned and sources linked. Individual answers vary with wording, location and context. It takes several questions over several months to see a trend. Also ask new customers how they found you. An enquiry form that says “via ChatGPT” tells you more than a screenshot of an AI answer.
What does AI visibility cost, and when is it worthwhile?
The first two points in the list above take time, but cost you nothing. If someone maintains your website, allowing crawler access and handling indexing are part of their normal work. For many businesses, that is enough to make it possible to appear in AI search. An add-on package is only worthwhile if your customers research online before calling and your competitors already appear in AI answers. You should also want to check regularly whether your position is changing. A one-off check and hoping for improvement will then be of little use.
For our subscription clients, the AI visibility add-on starts at 89 € a month plus VAT, in addition to the website package from 79 €. We check AI search crawlers and allow them access. The package includes structured data for your business, services and FAQ, plus an FAQ page based on your customers’ questions. We make sure your business details match across your website, Google Business Profil and the agreed directories. Every month, we check mentions in ChatGPT, Perplexity, Copilot and Google AI Mode. You receive a short report on mentions and sources.
We cannot promise that ChatGPT will recommend you. No one can honestly guarantee that, because no one except OpenAI controls the selection. We make sure your pages are technically accessible to AI search and your details match across the agreed profiles. Each month, you receive a documented sample of what the AI systems say about your business. Work out how many additional enquiries a month you need to cover the 89 €. For most trades and service businesses, it is less than one.
For digital marketing and SEO topics, Semrush predicts that AI search, including Google’s AI offerings, could generate more website visits than traditional search by early 2028. The forecast does not apply to roofers or dentists. Anyone who already had a complete Google listing with photos and opening hours in 2008, while competitors considered it unnecessary, knows what an early start can be worth. This comparison cannot be substantiated. You still have to decide.
Common questions about AI search and visibility in ChatGPT
Do I need a different website for ChatGPT?
No. A website that works for Google is also the foundation for AI visibility. It needs clear answers to customer questions and a sound technical setup. Crawlers must be allowed access. There is no evidence-based reason to build a second website solely for AI search. Improve the website you already have first.
Does AI visibility replace traditional SEO?
No, it builds on it. Google itself says that AI Overviews and AI Mode use the normal search index. A page that is not indexed by Google cannot appear there as a source either. ChatGPT and Perplexity use their own crawlers. No shared selection formula is documented. But in every case, you need accessible pages with specific content.
How soon will I see results?
After a technical fix, such as allowing a crawler access, you can check straight away whether the pages are accessible again. The available sources do not allow a reliable prediction of when new content or external mentions will lead to mentions in AI answers. That is why we measure monthly and look at developments over several months. Isolated appearances are not enough to assess the results.
Does this make sense for a small business with five employees?
That depends on whether your customers research online and whether the effort is proportionate to the potential jobs. Business size alone does not decide it. Checking that your details match, which costs nothing, and answering customer questions are almost always worthwhile. An add-on package is worthwhile if you want regular updates on where your business stands in AI search.
How can I tell whether my website blocks AI crawlers?
Open ihre-domain.de/robots.txt. If you see “Disallow: /” under “User-agent: OAI-SearchBot”, “PerplexityBot” or “User-agent: *”, access is blocked. Your firewall or hosting provider may also block bots. That will not show in robots.txt. If you are unsure, ask whoever maintains your website, or ask us.