How to Optimize for ChatGPT

Understanding How ChatGPT Finds Information

ChatGPT (with browsing enabled), Claude, and Perplexity can access web content in real-time. When users ask questions, these AI assistants search the web and synthesize answers from multiple sources. To be cited, your content needs to be:

1. Discoverable — Indexed and crawlable
2. Understandable — Well-structured with clear information
3. Trustworthy — Showing expertise and authority
4. Citable — Containing specific, quotable facts

Step 1: Implement Schema.org Markup

Schema.org structured data is the single most important factor for AI visibility. It tells AI systems exactly what your content is about in a machine-readable format.

Essential Schema Types

• Organization — For your company/brand
• Article/BlogPosting — For content pages
• FAQPage — For FAQ sections
• Product — For product pages
• HowTo — For tutorial content

Example: FAQPage Schema

{
  "@context": "https://schema.org",
  "@type": "FAQPage",
  "mainEntity": [{
    "@type": "Question",
    "name": "What is AI visibility?",
    "acceptedAnswer": {
      "@type": "Answer",
      "text": "AI visibility measures how well..."
    }
  }]
}

Step 2: Create FAQ Sections

AI assistants love FAQ content because it's already in question-answer format—exactly how users interact with them. Every page on your site should consider having an FAQ section.

Notice how the answer includes specific numbers and options. This is highly citable.

Step 3: Include Citable Facts

AI assistants prefer citing content that contains:

Types of Citable Content

• Statistics — "87% of users reported..."
• Definitions — "AI visibility is defined as..."
• Comparisons — "Unlike X, our approach..."
• Step-by-step processes — "First... then... finally..."
• Quotes — Memorable statements from experts

Step 4: Show Your Expertise (E-E-A-T)

AI systems evaluate source credibility. Demonstrate expertise by adding:

• Author bylines with credentials
• Publication dates (and "last updated" dates)
• Source citations and links to research
• About page with company/author information

Example Author Section

<article>
  <header>
    <time datetime="2026-01-02">January 2, 2026</time>
    <span>By Jane Smith, SEO Director</span>
  </header>
  <!-- content -->
  <footer>
    <p>Last updated: January 2, 2026</p>
  </footer>
</article>

Step 5: Optimize Technical Factors

Make sure AI crawlers can access your content:

• robots.txt — Allow GPTBot and ClaudeBot
• sitemap.xml — Help crawlers find all pages
• Fast loading — Slow pages may be skipped
• Clean HTML — Avoid JavaScript-only content

User-agent: GPTBot
Allow: /

User-agent: ClaudeBot
Allow: /

User-agent: *
Allow: /

Sitemap: https://yoursite.com/sitemap.xml

Measuring Your Progress

Unlike traditional SEO rankings, it's hard to track when AI cites you. However, you can:

• Use Aioli™ to measure your AI visibility score
• Monitor referral traffic from ai.com, perplexity.ai, etc.
• Periodically ask ChatGPT questions about your niche and check if you're cited
• Track brand mentions using tools like Google Alerts