Imagine you have an online clothing shop. A customer wants to buy a quality Panjabi for Eid. What did they used to do? They would go straight to Google and search for “Best Panjabi for Eid in Bangladesh.” Then, they would browse through 10-12 website links, read reviews, compare prices, and finally make a decision.
But times have changed. That same customer now directly asks ChatGPT, “Where can I find a good quality Panjabi for Eid within my budget?” Instead of giving ten links, ChatGPT provides the names of 2-3 top brands or shops directly, along with explanations of why they are the best.
Now, think about this: what if ChatGPT doesn’t mention your shop’s name among those 2-3 recommendations? Simply put, to that customer, your business doesn’t exist. You could spend thousands on traditional SEO or Facebook ads, but without a proper ChatGPT SEO strategy, you would still fail to reach this new generation of buyers.
Feeling scared? You should be. OpenAI recently published a massive study revealing that nearly 700 million people use ChatGPT every week, and 24% of them seek its advice before making a purchase or a decision. This number is growing daily. This means a huge shift is happening in the world of search. Businesses that fail to adapt to this change will be left behind.
This article will break down OpenAI’s groundbreaking research and provide you with a three-step framework to establish your business as a credible source for ChatGPT and other AI search engines.
Understanding Trust in ChatGPT SEO: What Sources Does AI Prioritize?
My team and I asked ChatGPT dozens of product-related questions to see which sources it relies on and prioritizes. We found a clear pattern. ChatGPT primarily trusts three types of sources.
1. Top and Reliable Industry Websites (Industry Publications):
AI gives importance to websites that are experts on a specific topic. For example, if you want to know about marketing tools, ChatGPT will pull information from articles on sites like Search Engine Land or HubSpot. In the context of Bangladesh, if you’re looking for information on mobile phones, AI would prioritize sites like GSMArena or TechShohor. This is because these sites don’t just run ads; they provide detailed and unbiased comparisons of various products.
2. Review Aggregator Sites:
AI gathers a lot of data from international sites like G2, Capterra, or Trustpilot. These platforms present user ratings, pricing, and features in a well-structured format, which is very easy for AI to process. Although Bangladesh doesn’t have such large-scale review sites, AI also considers user experiences shared in various Facebook groups and community forums.
3. Community Discussions (Reddit, Quora, etc.):
To understand real user experiences, AI now relies on platforms like Reddit and Quora, where people share their honest opinions after using a product or service. For questions like, “What’s a good daycare center in Dhaka?” or “Which courier service offers the fastest delivery?”AI analyzes threads on these platforms to find answers.
The bottom line is that AI trusts sources that provide genuine information and unbiased analysis over promotional content.
The 3-Step ChatGPT SEO Framework: Highlighting Your Business in AI Search
The question now is, what should you do to survive and thrive in this new AI-driven search world? By following the three steps below, you can establish your business as a reliable source in the eyes of AI.
Step 1: Create Research-Focused Content
The days of promotional content like “Our product is the best” are over. You now need to create content that helps customers make informed decisions.
- Create Comprehensive Guides: Instead of writing a short blog post like “Best Email Marketing Software,” write a detailed article like “A Complete Guide to Choosing the Right Email Marketing Software for Your E-commerce Business.”
- Write Comparative Articles: Write an unbiased article comparing your product with the top 2-3 competitors in the market. For example: “Pathao vs. RedX vs. Steadfast: Which is Best for Your E-commerce Business?”
- Use Comparison Tables: Include a table in your article that shows features, prices, pros, and cons side-by-side. AI loves this kind of structured data.
- Answer People’s Questions: Find out what questions people are asking about your industry on Reddit, Quora, and various Facebook groups. Create content that provides detailed answers to those questions.
Step 2: Build Your Authority on Various Platforms (Authority Distribution)
It’s not enough to just have good content on your website. You need to prove your expertise and credibility across different platforms.
- Write on Other Reliable Sites: Write guest posts on popular blogs or news portals in your industry. For instance, if you’re a digital marketer, try to get your articles published on blogs like Marketing Fare or in the business section of a leading newspaper. When AI sees that other credible sites recognize you as an expert, it will start to trust you too.
- Update Your Profile on Review Sites: Create a business profile on sites like G2 or Capterra and encourage your clients to leave reviews there. The more positive and detailed reviews you have about your product or service, the more credible you will appear to AI.
- Be Active in Communities: Answer questions related to your business on Reddit or Quora. Establish yourself as a helpful expert, not just someone trying to sell their product.
Step 3: Fix the Technical Issues
Even with great content and authority, you can fall behind due to a few technical mistakes.
- Are You Blocking ChatGPT’s Bots?: Check your website’s robots.txt file. Make sure you are not blocking the two bots named GPTBot and oai-searchbot. Sometimes, security tools like Cloudflare automatically block these bots, which can make you invisible to AI search.
- Use Schema Markup: Schema Markup is a type of code that helps AI understand your website’s content. You can think of it as “labels for AI.” Use Organization Schema to tell AI your company’s name, logo, address, etc. Use Product Schema to provide information like your product’s name, price, rating, etc. This helps AI get accurate and structured information about you.
- Keep Your Content Fresh: AI always prefers new and updated information. Add a “Last Updated” date to your important articles. Regularly refresh your top-performing content with new information. This signals to the AI that your content is still relevant and reliable.
The rise of AI is changing the world of digital marketing forever. Those who stick to old SEO strategies will quickly fall behind. OpenAI’s research clearly shows how much the process of finding information and making purchasing decisions has changed.
Now is the time to adapt to this change. By following the three steps discussed above, you will not only secure your place in AI search but also establish your brand as a reliable and trustworthy resource. Remember, in the future of search, those who can provide people with the best and most accurate information will be the ones who survive.
