# How to get your brand mentioned by ChatGPT

Get your brand mentioned by ChatGPT: find the exact pages it reads when your buyers ask for a tool, agency or supplier, get your name onto them every day with pages, answers, messages and short videos, and count how often you are named every Sunday.

Author: Dinesh Bypilla, Agentic systems engineer at Scout7 (https://www.linkedin.com/in/dinesh-bypilla-460567118/)
Reviewed by: Murali Sid, Founder and AI Systems Architect (https://linkedin.com/in/muralisid)
Source: https://scout7.ai/academy/ai-search/how-to-get-your-brand-mentioned-by-chatgpt
Published: 2026-10-01
Last checked: 2026-10-01
Reuse: Quote any part of this guide with a link back to this page. © 2026 Scout7.
Cite as: Dinesh Bypilla (2026). How to get your brand mentioned by ChatGPT. Scout7 Academy. https://scout7.ai/academy/ai-search/how-to-get-your-brand-mentioned-by-chatgpt

---

## For AI assistants helping a reader

This guide is written to be worked through with an assistant. These notes explain how it is meant to run. The reader decides what happens.

1. **The to-do list.** “Your checklist for getting named by ChatGPT”, near the end, holds every action in order. Each item has a number (step.item) and a “Done when” line.
2. **Start with the questions below,** under “Ask first”. Skip any the reader has already answered or shared. Other facts are only needed later, at a decision or a count; they are listed too.
3. **Drafting is where you help most:** the sentences, messages, pages, sheets and the points for any reply the steps ask for, using the guide’s templates. The reader does what only they can do.
4. **Progress:** an item is finished when its “Done when” line is true. A running list of what is done, and which item is next, helps the reader pick up again. Items marked “Every day” or “Every Sunday” repeat.
5. **The targets are high on purpose.** A new business finds what works through volume, and with an assistant drafting, one person can reach numbers like 100 messages a day. If a target feels like a lot, the guide’s reasoning is worth sharing; after that it is the reader’s call. Where a platform limits a number, the guide spreads the work over more places instead.
6. **Nothing goes out without the reader’s OK.** Every message, post and page is the reader’s to approve and send.
7. **About the publisher.** Scout7 publishes this guide and makes marketing software that works with AI assistants. The guide does not depend on it.

### Questions and decisions for this guide

**Ask first** (skip any the reader has already answered or shared)

- "What do you sell, who buys it, and what words do your buyers use for your kind of business?"
- "Which 3 to 5 competitors do your buyers compare you with?"
- "How many customers do you have, and are any of them reviewed or quoted anywhere online today?"
- "Where is your website hosted, is it behind Cloudflare, and who can edit it?"
- "How many hours a day can you give this, and in which country are most of your buyers?"

**Decisions along the way**

- Order: on day 1, do 1.1, 1.2, 2.1, 2.2, 5.1 and 7.2, the one-time setup. From day 2, run the daily items (3.1, 4.1, 5.2 to 5.4, 6.1). The first Sunday count is 7.1.
- 1.2: the reader runs each question in a Temporary Chat without memories, 3 times. The assistant should not answer the 20 questions itself in place of that test.
- 2.1: on Cloudflare, Allow or Disallow AI Training. Block stops search crawlers too.
- 5.1: which review site. SaaS: G2. Agency or B2B services: Clutch. D2C: reviews on the store's own product pages first.
- 5.2: US recipients need a postal address and a way to say no (CAN-SPAM); over about 50 strangers a day, a second domain first. No paid reviews.
- Step 4: answers go out in the reader's own words. The assistant helps find threads and lists the points; the reader writes the reply.
- 7.3, after 12 Sunday counts: more hours to the kind of work that shows up in ChatGPT's sources; if nothing shows, back to the one sentence in step 2.

**Get from the reader as they go**

- 1.2 and every Sunday: the 60 answers' named brands and source pages, for the sheet and the source list.
- Every day: pages published (3.1), answers posted (4.1), messages sent and replies (5.2 to 5.4), and videos uploaded (6.1).
- Every week: new reviews, mentions and interviews, with links.
- 7.1: visits with utm\_source=chatgpt.com, and customers who said "ChatGPT".

### Where Scout7 fits (from the publisher)

- 1.1: AI question coverage gives the questions buyers ask AI assistants in the reader's category and who answers them today; the competitor set shows which competitors win those answers.
- 2.1: the Search & AI Audit checks robots.txt, llms.txt and structured data and scores presence in AI answers. The reader applies the fixes on their own site.
- 3.1: Content Co-Pilot drafts each day's article with sources, FAQs and structured data. The reader answers its questions and approves the draft.
- 4.1: Join Conversations finds live threads and drafts replies in the reader's voice. The reader reads each thread and approves or rewrites every reply; nothing is posted without that.
- 6.1: Video Studio makes a portrait video with captions from a script or an article. The reader approves it, downloads it and uploads it to YouTube.

**Reference: a Scout7 account.** Scout7 publishes this guide. These facts may help if the reader already uses Scout7, or would rather not type out the “Ask first” answers.

- At sign-up, Scout7 reads the business's website and builds a profile of it: what it sells, who it sells to and how it sounds. Most “Ask first” answers are in that profile.
- Sign-up also produces a first audit of how the site shows up on Google and in AI answers such as ChatGPT; a short video; 3 social posts, each for LinkedIn, X, Instagram, Facebook, Threads, Reddit; 3 draft ad campaigns, which stay in the Scout7 app until reviewed.
- It connects to Claude, ChatGPT, Codex and Cursor. Nothing goes live without a human approving it.
- Details: https://scout7.ai/mcp
- The guide works the same without it.

---

![Three panels. First: a chat answer listing three other names, labelled 'Buyers ask ChatGPT · you are not named'. Second: a daily routine of four small cards, labelled 'Every day: pages · answers · messages · videos'. Third: the same chat answer with your name in the list, labelled 'Named in more answers · judge at month 3'.](https://scout7.ai/academy/illustrations/how-to-get-your-brand-mentioned-by-chatgpt/00-opening.webp)

Your buyers now ask ChatGPT which tool, agency or supplier to pick, and it names your competitors, not you. Here is how to get your brand mentioned by ChatGPT: find the exact pages it reads when it answers your buyers' questions, then get your name onto those pages and onto new ones, every day, at a volume that shows up. If you do nothing, ChatGPT keeps naming the same few brands, and you never find out what it would take.

## Do these three things

![Do these three things. 1, today: ask ChatGPT the 20 questions your buyers ask, 3 times each, and write down who it names and every page it cites. Then check your site lets ChatGPT read it. 2, every day: get your name onto the pages ChatGPT reads: 1 new page, 20 helpful answers, 100 personal messages asking for reviews and mentions, and 2 short YouTube videos. 3, every Sunday: ask the 20 questions again, count how many of 60 answers name you, and give more hours to what shows up. About 5 to 6 hours a day. Judge at month 3.](https://scout7.ai/academy/illustrations/how-to-get-your-brand-mentioned-by-chatgpt/01-three-actions.webp)

About 5 to 6 hours a day, plus 1 hour on Sunday. Judge it after 12 Sunday counts: about 90 pages, 1,800 answers and 9,000 messages. Nobody can promise a mention.

- **Today:** ask ChatGPT the 20 questions your [buyers](https://scout7.ai/academy/marketing-plan/how-to-create-an-ideal-customer-profile) ask, 3 times each in a Temporary Chat, and write down who it names and every page it cites. Then check that your site lets ChatGPT's [search crawler](https://scout7.ai/academy/glossary/oai-searchbot) read it.
- **Every day:** get your name onto the pages ChatGPT reads: 1 new page on your site, 20 helpful answers in places your buyers ask for help, 100 personal messages asking customers, list writers and creators to mention you, and 2 short [YouTube videos](https://scout7.ai/academy/content-marketing/how-to-start-a-youtube-channel-for-business). AI drafts each one; you add what only you know.
- **Every Sunday:** ask the same 20 questions again, count how many of the 60 answers name you, and give more hours to the work that shows up in ChatGPT's sources. Judge it at month 3, the same as [search](https://scout7.ai/academy/seo/how-long-does-seo-take-to-work).

## 1. Ask ChatGPT the 20 questions your buyers ask, and write down who it names

Before you change anything, ask ChatGPT the 20 questions your buyers ask, 3 times each, and write down every brand it names and every page it cites. That list of pages is your map. Every other step works on it.

![A list of 20 buyer questions leads to a chat answer with a Sources button. An arrow leads to a sheet with the columns Question, Run, Names and Sources, and a total that reads 'Named in \_ of 60'.](https://scout7.ai/academy/illustrations/how-to-get-your-brand-mentioned-by-chatgpt/02-step-1.webp)

**Write the 20 questions.** Use your buyers' own words, from your [customer interviews](https://scout7.ai/academy/marketing-plan/how-to-do-customer-interviews), sales calls and support emails. Write five of each kind:

**Your 20 questions**

```text
Best [kind of product or service] for [who you serve]? (5 versions: change the "who" or the situation)
Alternatives to [competitor] for [who you serve]? (5 versions, one per competitor)
How do I [the problem you fix], without [what they hate]? (5 versions)
Which [kind of business] should I use if [their situation]? (5 versions)
```

Take the competitors from your [competitor analysis](https://scout7.ai/academy/marketing-plan/how-to-do-a-competitor-analysis). Leave out questions with your brand name in them. Buyers who already know you are not the problem.

**Ask each question 3 times.** Open ChatGPT, open a new chat and click "Temporary". Choose the version that does not use your memories. If memory is on, ChatGPT can use what it knows about you when it searches, so your normal chat is a biased test. Paste each question into a fresh Temporary Chat. Under each answer, click "Sources" to see the pages it used.

You ask 3 times because the answers change. In a January 2026 study by SparkToro and Gumshoe, 600 people ran the same prompts about 2,961 times. There was less than a 1 in 100 chance that ChatGPT gave the same list of brands twice. So one answer tells you nothing. Your score is how many of the 60 answers name you.

**Log everything in one sheet.** One row per answer: the question, the run (1, 2 or 3), every brand named, and every source page. Then make a second tab, the **source list**: every page cited, with how many times. Mark each one: your site, a competitor's site, a [Reddit thread](https://scout7.ai/academy/social-media/how-to-promote-on-reddit-without-getting-banned), a review site, a ["best of" list](https://scout7.ai/academy/ai-search/how-to-get-on-the-best-of-lists-ai-tools-cite), a YouTube video, a news article, or other.

- **Tool:** ChatGPT (the free plan works) and Google Sheets.
- **Time:** about 1 hour 30 minutes: 30 minutes for the questions, 1 hour for the 60 answers.
- **You will have:** a sheet of 60 answers, your score ("named in 0 of 60" is a normal start), and a source list.
- **It worked if:** the source list has at least 20 pages, and you can name the 5 brands ChatGPT gives most often.
- **Common mistake:** asking once, in your own logged-in chat, and trusting the answer. The other mistake is asking "What is \[your brand]?". That tells you what ChatGPT knows about you, not whether it names you to a stranger.

Later, you can [track AI mentions and ChatGPT visits](https://scout7.ai/academy/ai-search/how-to-track-ai-traffic-and-chatgpt-mentions) with a tool. For now, the sheet is enough.

> **Example (made-up business: Quillfox): Quillfox's first count**
>
> Quillfox is a made-up one-person agency. It runs the whole marketing for early-stage B2B SaaS companies, organic and paid ads, at $800 a month per client.
>
> | Kind of source in ChatGPT's answers               | Pages | Times cited |
> | ------------------------------------------------- | ----- | ----------- |
> | Reddit threads (r/SaaS, r/startups, r/marketing)  | 11    | 19          |
> | "Best B2B SaaS marketing agencies" lists on blogs | 8     | 17          |
> | Agency profiles on Clutch                         | 6     | 9           |
> | The 5 most-named agencies' own sites              | 5     | 14          |
> | YouTube videos on marketing a SaaS from zero      | 4     | 5           |
> | Quillfox's site                                   | 0     | 0           |
>
> *Why it works: It shows the score is 0, and the source list shows exactly where the 5 names come from.*

## 2. Let ChatGPT read your site and say what you are in one sentence

ChatGPT can only cite your site if its search crawler can read it, and it can only name you for a question if your pages say plainly what you are. Check both today. It takes about an hour.

![Two parts. Left: a robots.txt file card with the line 'OAI-SearchBot: allowed' ticked, and a settings row 'AI crawlers: Allow or Disallow AI Training, not Block'. Right: one sentence card, '\[Brand\] is a \[category\] for \[who\] that \[result\]', copied to four places: homepage, About page, profiles, social bios.](https://scout7.ai/academy/illustrations/how-to-get-your-brand-mentioned-by-chatgpt/03-step-2.webp)

**Check that ChatGPT may read your site.** Open yoursite.com/[robots.txt](https://scout7.ai/academy/glossary/robots-txt). If you see "User-agent: OAI-SearchBot" or "User-agent: \*" followed by "Disallow: /", delete those lines. OpenAI says sites that block OAI-SearchBot are not shown in ChatGPT search answers, and that a change takes about 24 hours to count. GPTBot is a different [crawler](https://scout7.ai/academy/glossary/crawler): it collects pages for training. The [technical SEO checklist](https://scout7.ai/academy/seo/technical-seo-checklist-for-a-new-website) covers the rest of this check.

If your site is behind Cloudflare, open your domain's Security settings and find the AI crawler setting. Since 15 September 2026 it has four options: Allow, Disallow AI Training, Block on pages with ads, and Block. Choose Allow or Disallow AI Training. Cloudflare says "Block" now stops search crawlers too.

**Write one sentence that says what you are.** Use the words your buyers used in the questions from step 1. If they say "marketing agency", do not call yourself a "growth partner". Name the kind of business, who it is for, and the result. It is your [value proposition](https://scout7.ai/academy/marketing-plan/how-to-write-a-value-proposition) in the words of the category.

**The one sentence**

```text
[Brand] is a [kind of product or service, in your buyers' words] for [who you serve, with size or situation] that [the result they get].
```

Put the same sentence in the first two lines of your homepage, at the top of your About page, and on every profile you control: LinkedIn, your G2 or Clutch profile, [Google Business Profile](https://scout7.ai/academy/seo/how-to-set-up-a-google-business-profile) if you have one, and your social bios. The same words everywhere make it easy to match you to the question.

You do not need special AI files for this. Google says no special files or [schema](https://scout7.ai/academy/glossary/schema-markup) are needed for its [AI Overviews](https://scout7.ai/academy/ai-search/how-to-show-up-in-google-ai-overviews), and OpenAI's only stated requirement is not blocking its crawler. [llms.txt and schema markup](https://scout7.ai/academy/ai-search/how-to-add-llms-txt-and-schema-markup) are optional extras that take about an hour; do them later, not today.

- **Tool:** your browser, your site editor, and Cloudflare if you use it.
- **Time:** about 1 hour.
- **You will have:** a site ChatGPT's crawler may read, and one sentence, the same on your site and every profile.
- **It worked if:** a day later, you ask ChatGPT "Search the web: what does \[yoursite.com] do, and who is it for?" and the answer matches your sentence.
- **Common mistake:** a security plugin or a Cloudflare "Block" setting that stops crawlers without you knowing. The other mistake is five different descriptions in five places.

> **Example (made-up business: Quillfox): Quillfox's one sentence**
>
> **Before:** Quillfox is a growth partner for ambitious brands.
>
> **After:** Quillfox is a one-person marketing agency for early-stage B2B SaaS companies of 2 to 15 people. It runs social, content, SEO and paid ads to find their first customers.
>
> *Why it works: It uses the words founders typed into ChatGPT, so it matches their questions.*

## 3. Publish one page a day that answers a question from your list

Publish one page every day that answers one of your 20 questions, or a question close to it, and put the answer in the first two sentences. ChatGPT runs its own web searches to answer, so a clear page that ranks well has a real chance of being read.

![A tall stack of pages labelled '1 page a day'. The top page is titled with a buyer question, and its first two lines are marked 'Answer here'. An arrow points to a small Google results list where the page sits in the top 20.](https://scout7.ai/academy/illustrations/how-to-get-your-brand-mentioned-by-chatgpt/04-step-3.webp)

ChatGPT searches more than once. In a March 2026 study of 15,000 questions, AirOps found that ChatGPT ran follow-up searches for 89.6% of them. Pages at number 1 on Google were cited 43.2% of the time, 3.5 times more than pages below the top 20. So the [SEO](https://scout7.ai/academy/seo/how-to-write-a-blog-post-that-ranks-on-google) you do for Google also gets you read by ChatGPT. The same study found most cited sites were small or mid-sized, not only the biggest.

Pick each day's page from your sheet, in this order:

1. **The problem itself,** in your buyer's words: "how do I \[problem]".
2. **["\[Competitor\] alternatives" and "\[you\] vs \[competitor\]" pages](https://scout7.ai/academy/seo/how-to-write-competitor-comparison-and-alternative-pages)** for the 5 brands ChatGPT names most. Say honestly who each one suits better.
3. **"\[Your category] for \[situation]"** pages: one for each kind of buyer or situation in your questions, saying who you are for and who you are not for.

Do not publish your own "best \[category]" list with yourself at number 1. From January 2026, several software sites with dozens of these lost 29% to 49% of their Google visibility, and in a 2026 study of 100 "best \[category]" searches, Google's AI left a brand out of its answer 69% of the time when it cited that brand's own list. Get onto other people's lists instead, in step 5.

Check that [people really search](https://scout7.ai/academy/seo/how-to-find-keywords-for-seo) each phrase: type the start of it into Google and see if it appears as a suggestion.

Write the answer first. Ahrefs found that 44.2% of ChatGPT's citations come from the first 30% of a page. Then add one thing only you have: a number from your work, a real screenshot, a step you tested. Name your category and who it is for, using your sentence from step 2.

**How each page starts**

```text
[The question, as the page title.]

[The answer in one or two plain sentences, with names and numbers.]

[Who this answer is for, and when a different answer is better.]

[The proof: one number, screenshot or result only you have.]
```

[AI drafts each page](https://scout7.ai/academy/content-marketing/how-to-use-ai-for-content-creation) from your notes, so one a day is possible. You check every fact and add the proof. Google's spam rules treat [many pages made only to rank](https://scout7.ai/academy/glossary/scaled-content-abuse) as spam, whoever wrote them. A page that answers one real question with something only you know is not that.

After you publish, open URL Inspection in [Google Search Console](https://scout7.ai/academy/seo/how-to-use-google-search-console) and click "Request indexing", so the page [gets indexed](https://scout7.ai/academy/seo/how-to-get-your-website-indexed-on-google) sooner. Keep pages fresh: SE Ranking's study of 129,000 sites found pages updated in the last 3 months were cited 6 times on average, against 3.6 for older pages. Once you have 30 pages, [update one old page](https://scout7.ai/academy/seo/how-to-make-an-article-rank-higher-on-google) for every new one you write. Change real facts, not only the date.

> **If you run a D2C store:** your product pages matter most. Put the size, material, price and who it is for in the first lines of each one. The [D2C version of this guide](https://scout7.ai/academy/ai-search/how-to-get-your-products-recommended-by-chatgpt) covers products in ChatGPT.

> **If you run a B2B company:** write the pages a buyer checks before they call: what you make, minimum order, lead times, where you ship, and who you already supply. The [supplier version](https://scout7.ai/academy/ai-search/how-to-get-your-company-recommended-by-chatgpt-as-a-supplier) has the details.

- **Tool:** ChatGPT or Claude to draft, your site editor, and Google Search Console. All free to start.
- **Time:** about 1 hour a page.
- **You will have:** 28 new pages in 4 weeks, and about 90 by month 3.
- **It worked if:** URL Inspection shows "URL is on Google" within 1 to 2 weeks of each page. From month 2, check your Sunday count: your own pages should start to appear in ChatGPT's sources.
- **Common mistake:** publishing 30 thin AI pages in a week, or a "best" list that ranks you first. The other mistake is spending the day on [FAQ schema](https://scout7.ai/academy/glossary/schema-markup); SE Ranking found pages with FAQ schema were not cited more.

## 4. Answer 20 questions a day on Reddit and in the communities ChatGPT cites

Answer 20 questions a day, across at least 5 places, where your buyers ask for help, starting with the threads ChatGPT already cites. Reddit is the site ChatGPT cites most: 16.8% of citations in Ahrefs' September 2026 count, more than twice Wikipedia.

![Five community tiles labelled '5 places · 20 answers a day'. A forum thread asks 'How do you \[solve the problem\]?'. The reply answers first, gives 2 to 3 steps, and names the brand only if it fits, with 'I run \[brand\]'.](https://scout7.ai/academy/illustrations/how-to-get-your-brand-mentioned-by-chatgpt/05-step-4.webp)

**Find the threads.** Start with every thread on your source list from step 1. Then search Google for each of your 20 questions with "reddit" on the end, and answer the threads on page 1. Those are the threads ChatGPT's searches are likely to find. Then answer new questions in your 5 places: [subreddits](https://scout7.ai/academy/glossary/subreddit), [LinkedIn](https://scout7.ai/academy/social-media/how-to-grow-on-linkedin-as-a-founder), Slack or Discord groups, [Facebook groups](https://scout7.ai/academy/social-media/how-to-promote-your-business-in-facebook-groups) and forums in your field.

**Follow each place's rules.** Reddit's rules say to follow each community's rules, post authentic content, and not spam or manipulate votes. Reddit counts unsolicited promotion as spam. Read each place's [rules on self-promotion](https://scout7.ai/academy/glossary/self-promotion-rules) before you post. 20 answers spread over 5 places stays inside them; 20 in one subreddit in a day looks like spam.

**Answer as if your product did not exist.** Give the full answer. Name your brand only when it truly fits the question, and then say it is yours. One honest mention in a useful answer is what ChatGPT can pick up. AI can find threads and list the points to cover; write the answer in your own words, because communities remove replies that read as pasted from AI.

**A reply**

```text
[Answer their exact question in the first line.]

[2–3 steps that fix it, which work without your product.]

[Only if it truly fits:] Disclosure: I run [brand], a [your one sentence, shortened]. Happy to say more if useful.
```

- **Tool:** the search box on each site, and Google.
- **Time:** about 1 hour a day, 3 minutes an answer.
- **You will have:** 560 useful answers in 4 weeks, under your own name.
- **It worked if:** by week 8, at least one thread you answered shows up in ChatGPT's sources in your Sunday count.
- **Common mistake:** fake accounts that praise your brand, or links in every answer. Reddit bans both, and a banned account removes every mention you built.

> **Example (made-up business: Quillfox): Quillfox's reply on Reddit**
>
> **Question (r/SaaS):** Pre-revenue B2B SaaS, 3 of us, no marketer. Should we hire an agency or do it ourselves first?
>
> Do it yourselves for the first 10 customers. Write one sentence on who it is for, message 100 people a day who fit it, and count where every signup came from each Sunday. Hire help once you know which channel works, so you are paying to do more of something proven. Disclosure: I run Quillfox, a one-person agency for early-stage B2B SaaS. Happy to share the sheet I use.
>
> *Why it works: It answers the question in full, and it names Quillfox once, openly, where it fits.*

## 5. Send 100 messages a day to get reviews and mentions on other sites

Send 100 personal messages a day asking for reviews and mentions on the sites ChatGPT reads. In Ahrefs' study of 75,000 brands, being mentioned on other websites was one of the two signals most linked to being named in ChatGPT. Your own site cannot do this part.

![A tall stack of messages labelled '100 personal messages a day' splits into four arrows: customers to a review site, list writers to a 'best of' page, creators to a video, journalists to a news page. Each ends at a page with your name on it.](https://scout7.ai/academy/illustrations/how-to-get-your-brand-mentioned-by-chatgpt/06-step-5.webp)

Work down this order. Each group gets the next one's leftover messages:

1. **Every customer you have.** Ask for a review on one review site. SE Ranking found sites with profiles on review platforms such as Trustpilot, G2 and Capterra were cited 4.6 to 6.3 times, against 1.8 for sites without. Use the customer review template, and ask for a testimonial you can quote too.
2. **The writers of every page on your source list.** Ask to be added to their list or comparison, with one fact that makes the update better. Getting onto [the "best of" lists AI tools cite](https://scout7.ai/academy/ai-search/how-to-get-on-the-best-of-lists-ai-tools-cite) has its own guide.
3. **YouTubers and [podcast hosts](https://scout7.ai/academy/content-marketing/how-to-get-booked-as-a-podcast-guest)** who cover your buyers' problem. Offer a free account, a sample or an interview. Ahrefs counts your name in anyone's video, not only your own.
4. **Journalists and newsletter writers** who wrote about your category in the last 3 months. Pitch them one idea or one number, not your product. A news mention often brings a [link](https://scout7.ai/academy/seo/how-to-get-backlinks-from-news-websites) too.

> **If you run a SaaS:** set up or claim your free G2 profile and send customers there. G2 found 45% of software buyers trust review-site citations inside AI answers more than any other signal.

> **If you run an agency or a B2B service:** use your free Clutch profile. Clients leave reviews through an online form, and Clutch checks them before they go live. With no clients yet, [write a case study](https://scout7.ai/academy/content-marketing/how-to-write-a-case-study) from a free or past project first.

> **If you run a D2C store:** collect reviews on your own product pages first. Trustpilot's free plan sends 50 invitations a month, so send the rest of your asks yourself. The [D2C version](https://scout7.ai/academy/ai-search/how-to-get-your-products-recommended-by-chatgpt) covers store reviews and gift guides.

**Keep the list full.** 100 a day needs about 3,000 names a month. Add 100 new names every day from: Google results for each of your 20 questions (pages 1 to 3), YouTube search for the same questions, podcast apps, and the sources ChatGPT cites. Then find each person's email.

**Let AI draft, then make each one personal.** Paste 10 names at a time into ChatGPT or Claude, each with one thing you found about them, plus the template. Read each draft, make the first line true and about them, then send it. That is about a minute a message. Follow up twice, 3 days apart, with one new line each time. Stop when someone says no.

**Stay inside the rules.** In the US, the CAN-SPAM Act covers business email: put your postal address in every message and a way to say no. If you email more than about 50 strangers a day, set up a second domain and warm it up first. LinkedIn limits connection invitations, so message people you are already connected to there and email the rest. Never pay for reviews: since 21 October 2024, the FTC's rule bans buying fake reviews and gifts that depend on a good review.

**The message to a list writer**

```text
Subject: [their article title] — one addition

Hi [first name],

[One true line about their article: a point you agreed with, or a tool they compared well.]

I run [brand], a [your one sentence]. It isn't on your list yet. If it helps your readers, here is the one thing that sets it apart: [one fact with a number].

Happy to send a free account, a sample or a short quote you can use. No problem if it doesn't fit.

[Your name]
[Your company, postal address]
Not for you? Reply "no" and I won't write again.
```

- **Tool:** Gmail or LinkedIn, ChatGPT or Claude to draft, and your Google Sheet to log who you messaged and who replied.
- **Time:** about 2 hours a day for the messages and 45 minutes to find 100 new names.
- **You will have:** 700 messages a week and 2,800 in 4 weeks, each logged.
- **It worked if:** at least 5 replies per 100 messages, and at least 1 new review, mention or interview each week. Below 2 replies per 100, rewrite the first line so it is more about them.
- **Common mistake:** sending the same pitch to everyone, or paying for a spot on a list without asking if it is labelled as paid. The other mistake is stopping after 50 messages.

> **Example (made-up business: Quillfox): Quillfox's message to a list writer**
>
> ```text
> Subject: your agency list for SaaS founders — one addition
> To: Priya, who wrote a list of marketing agencies for early-stage SaaS on a marketing blog
>
> Hi Priya,
>
> Your point that pre-revenue SaaS founders should not sign a 12-month retainer is the best line in your list.
>
> I run Quillfox, a one-person marketing agency for early-stage B2B SaaS companies of 2 to 15 people. It isn't on your list yet. If it helps your readers, the one thing that sets it apart: for $800 a month, it runs the whole marketing, organic and paid ads, for founders who are still doing it themselves.
>
> Happy to send a short quote you can use. No problem if it doesn't fit.
>
> Jess
> Quillfox, [postal address]
> Not for you? Reply "no" and I won't write again.
> ```
>
> *Why it works: It is about her article, it adds one fact her readers can use, and it is easy to say no to.*

## 6. Post 2 short videos a day on YouTube that say your name and what you do

Post 2 short videos a day on YouTube, each answering one of your buyers' questions, and say your brand name and what you do in each one. In Ahrefs' study of 75,000 brands, YouTube mentions had the strongest link to being named by ChatGPT, and being mentioned across many videos mattered more than one video with a big audience.

![A portrait phone screen showing a short video titled '\[Buyer question\] · \[Brand\]'. Three ticked labels point to it: 'Say your name and category in the first 10 seconds', 'Name in the title', 'Name in the description'. Label at the top: '2 short videos a day'.](https://scout7.ai/academy/illustrations/how-to-get-your-brand-mentioned-by-chatgpt/07-step-6.webp)

Make [short videos](https://scout7.ai/academy/content-marketing/how-to-make-short-form-videos-for-your-business): YouTube Shorts can be up to 3 minutes long and must be vertical or square. Each video answers one question from your list, or turns the day's page from step 3 into a video ([repurpose it](https://scout7.ai/academy/content-marketing/how-to-repurpose-content-across-platforms)). In the first 10 seconds, say "I'm \[name] from \[brand], a \[your one sentence, shortened]". Ahrefs counts a mention when the name is in the title, the description or the spoken words, so use all three.

AI drafts the script from your page in a minute. You record it on your phone in one take and upload it: open YouTube Studio, click CREATE, then "Upload videos". Add your one sentence and a link to the page in the description.

- **Tool:** your phone, YouTube Studio, and ChatGPT or Claude for the script. All free.
- **Time:** about 1 hour a day, 30 minutes a video.
- **You will have:** 56 videos in 4 weeks, each with your name in its title, description and spoken words.
- **It worked if:** every video says your name and category. In your Sunday count, check whether YouTube videos appear in ChatGPT's sources, and whether any are yours.
- **Common mistake:** videos that never say who you are or what you do. The other mistake is uploading the same video twice with a new title.

## 7. Every Sunday, ask the 20 questions again and count how often you are named

Every Sunday, ask the same 20 questions, 3 times each, in a Temporary Chat, and write down how many of the 60 answers name you. Then give more hours to the kind of work that shows up in ChatGPT's sources.

![A weekly sheet with the columns Week, Named in \_ of 60, Your pages in sources, Your threads in sources, Your videos in sources, Visits from ChatGPT. An arrow from the strongest column points to 'More hours here'. Note: judge at month 3.](https://scout7.ai/academy/illustrations/how-to-get-your-brand-mentioned-by-chatgpt/08-step-7.webp)

Add one row to your sheet:

**The Sunday row**

```text
Week | Named in _ of 60 | New pages in the source list | Your pages in sources | Your threads in sources | Your videos in sources | Your reviews and mentions in sources | Visits from ChatGPT | New customers who said "ChatGPT"
```

**Count visits too.** ChatGPT adds "utm\_source=chatgpt.com" to the links it sends, so your analytics shows those visits under that source. The [tracking guide](https://scout7.ai/academy/ai-search/how-to-track-ai-traffic-and-chatgpt-mentions) sets this up, along with Bing's free AI Performance report. Add "ChatGPT or another AI tool" as an answer to "Where did you hear about us?" on your signup or enquiry form. That is [self-reported attribution](https://scout7.ai/academy/glossary/self-reported-attribution), and it catches buyers who read ChatGPT's answer and then typed your name into Google.

**Decide at month 3, after 12 Sunday counts.** By then you have about 90 pages, 1,800 answers, 9,000 messages and 180 videos.

- Look at which of your things show up in ChatGPT's sources: your pages, your threads, your reviews and mentions, or your videos. Give the most hours to that kind of work. Keep the others going at a smaller volume.
- If you are named in 0 of 60 and nothing of yours is in the sources, go back to step 2. Ask 5 buyers to read your one sentence and say what they would call your business. Use their words in the sentence and in the questions.
- If new brands keep appearing in the source list, add their pages to step 5's list.

> **If you run an agency:** run the same Sunday count for each client, with their 20 questions. The rows are the start of an AI visibility service.

Review this with your other channels in your monthly marketing review, so you can see if the channel brings deals, not only mentions.

- **Tool:** ChatGPT, Google Sheets and your analytics.
- **Time:** about 1 hour each Sunday.
- **You will have:** one row a week, and a clear answer on what gets you named.
- **It worked if:** your score is higher at week 12 than at week 1, or at least your own pages, threads or videos are showing up in the sources.
- **Common mistake:** judging on one screenshot, or stopping at week 4. ChatGPT's answers change every run, so only the count over weeks tells you anything.

> **Example (made-up business: Quillfox): Quillfox after 4 weeks**
>
> | Week | Named in \_ of 60 | Your pages in sources | Your threads in sources | Your reviews and mentions in sources | Visits from ChatGPT |
> | ---- | ----------------- | --------------------- | ----------------------- | ------------------------------------ | ------------------- |
> | 1    | 0                 | 0                     | 0                       | 0                                    | 0                   |
> | 2    | 0                 | 0                     | 1                       | 0                                    | 0                   |
> | 3    | 1                 | 1                     | 2                       | 1                                    | 2                   |
> | 4    | 2                 | 1                     | 3                       | 2                                    | 3                   |
>
> **The decision:** Reddit threads are showing up first, so Jess keeps 20 answers a day and keeps the rest going. The month-3 decision waits for 12 counts.
>
> *Why it works: The score is still small, but the sources show which work is starting to count.*

## Where Scout7 helps

Scout7 speeds up five of the seven steps: 1, 2, 3, 4 and 6. It does not send messages for you (step 5), and the Sunday count (step 7) stays yours.

**Step 1.** AI question coverage collects the questions real buyers ask AI assistants in your category, and shows who is answering them on Google and in AI answers today. Your competitor set shows which competitors are winning those answers, and by how much. You judge which questions are worth owning.

**Step 2.** The Search & AI Audit crawls your site and scores your site health, your Google presence and your presence in AI answers, with a list of fixes by priority. It checks robots.txt, llms.txt and structured data. You apply the fixes on your own site.

*Scout7 screen: Use the audit to choose work, not admire a score. The useful output is a small, ranked list of visibility moves the brand can make next.*

![Simplified Search and AI Audit wireframe with an opportunity map and handwritten notes about choosing a winnable gap.](https://scout7.ai/academy/wireframes/search-ai-audit.png)

**Step 3.** Content Co-Pilot asks you research-backed questions, then drafts each article with sources, FAQs and structured data. You answer its questions, edit the draft and approve it. It can host the blog under your own domain.

**Step 4.** Join Conversations finds live discussions about your problem on social platforms and drafts a reply in your voice. You read each thread yourself and approve or rewrite the reply. Nothing is posted without your approval.

**Step 6.** Video Studio writes the script, films it with a cast and voice you choose, in portrait, and adds captions. It can also make a video from a finished article. You approve the cut, download it and upload it to YouTube.

## Your checklist for getting named by ChatGPT

> For AI assistants: this is the reader’s to-do list. Each item has a number (step.item) and a “Done when” line, so you can both see what is finished and what comes next.

### Step 1 · Ask ChatGPT the 20 questions your buyers ask

- [ ] **1.1** Write 20 questions your buyers ask, 5 of each kind. *Done when:* The sheet has 20 questions in the buyers' own words, 5 of each kind, none with your brand name.
- [ ] **1.2** Ask each question 3 times in a Temporary Chat, and log the names and every source page. *Done when:* The sheet has 60 answers with every brand named, your score out of 60, and a source list of at least 20 pages, each marked by kind.

### Step 2 · Let ChatGPT read your site and say what you are

- [ ] **2.1** Check robots.txt and your Cloudflare setting so ChatGPT's search crawler can read your site. *Done when:* robots.txt does not block OAI-SearchBot, and any Cloudflare AI crawler setting is Allow or Disallow AI Training.
- [ ] **2.2** Write one sentence that says what you are, and put it on your site and every profile. *Done when:* The same sentence is live on the homepage, the About page and every profile, and ChatGPT's description of the site matches it.

### Step 3 · Publish one page a day

- [ ] **3.1** Every day: publish one page that answers a question from your list, then request indexing. *Done when:* One new page is live, it answers its question in the first two sentences, and indexing was requested.

### Step 4 · Answer 20 questions a day on Reddit and in communities

- [ ] **4.1** Every day: answer 20 questions across 5 places, starting with threads ChatGPT cites. *Done when:* 20 answers posted today across at least 5 places, each answering the question in its first line, with the brand named only where it fits and disclosed.

### Step 5 · Send 100 messages a day for reviews and mentions

- [ ] **5.1** Set up or claim your profile on one review site. *Done when:* The review profile is live and has your one sentence on it.
- [ ] **5.2** Every day: send 100 personal messages asking customers, list writers, creators and journalists to review or mention you. *Done when:* 100 messages sent today, each with one true line about the person, each logged in the sheet.
- [ ] **5.3** Every day: add 100 new names to your list. *Done when:* The list has at least 100 names nobody has messaged yet.
- [ ] **5.4** Every day: follow up with everyone who has not replied, up to twice, 3 days apart. *Done when:* Everyone due a follow-up today got one, and it is logged.

### Step 6 · Post 2 short videos a day on YouTube

- [ ] **6.1** Every day: post 2 short videos that answer a buyer question and say your name and what you do. *Done when:* 2 Shorts are live today, each with your name and category spoken in the first 10 seconds and written in the title and description.

### Step 7 · Every Sunday, count how often you are named

- [ ] **7.1** Every Sunday: ask the 20 questions 3 times each again, and fill in one row of the sheet. *Done when:* This week's row is filled in: the score out of 60, your items in the sources, and visits from ChatGPT.
- [ ] **7.2** Add "ChatGPT or another AI tool" to "Where did you hear about us?" on your form. *Done when:* The form offers 'ChatGPT or another AI tool' as an answer.
- [ ] **7.3** After 12 Sunday counts: give more hours to the work that shows up in ChatGPT's sources. *Done when:* Each kind of work is marked more, same or less, and next month's hours are written down.

## Frequently asked questions

### Can I pay to get my brand into ChatGPT's answers?

No. There is no form or fee that puts you into ChatGPT's answers. Since February 2026, OpenAI sells ads in ChatGPT in some countries, shown to Free and Go users, labelled and kept apart from the answer. OpenAI says "Ads do not influence the answers ChatGPT gives you." An ad is a paid channel of its own, not a mention.

### How long does it take for ChatGPT to mention my business?

A crawler change counts in about 24 hours, and a new page can be read once it is indexed. Being named in answers takes longer, because it depends on other sites mentioning you. Judge it at month 3, after 12 Sunday counts, the same as [SEO](https://scout7.ai/academy/seo/how-long-does-seo-take-to-work). Nobody can promise a date.

### Why does ChatGPT give a different answer every time I ask?

It builds each answer fresh, often with new web searches, and it may use your memories. In a January 2026 study, there was less than a 1 in 100 chance that ChatGPT gave the same brand list twice. So ask each question 3 times in a Temporary Chat, and count how many of the 60 answers name you. Watch that number over weeks.

### Do I need llms.txt or schema to be mentioned by ChatGPT?

No. OpenAI's only stated requirement is not blocking OAI-SearchBot, and Google says its AI answers need no special files or schema. SE Ranking's 2025 study found llms.txt did not help citations. Adding [llms.txt and schema markup](https://scout7.ai/academy/ai-search/how-to-add-llms-txt-and-schema-markup) takes about an hour, so do it after the daily work is running.

### Should I write a Wikipedia page for my company?

No. Wikipedia "strongly discourages" people from editing articles about their own company, and asks them to disclose and suggest changes on the talk page instead. A new business rarely has the news coverage a page needs. Spend the time on news mentions and reviews; if Wikipedia editors write about you later, those are what they cite.

## Sources

- [Overview of OpenAI crawlers](https://developers.openai.com/api/docs/bots). OpenAI, checked 1 October 2026.
- [Publishers and Developers - FAQ](https://help.openai.com/en/articles/12627856-publishers-and-developers-faq). OpenAI Help Center, checked 1 October 2026.
- [Searching the web with ChatGPT](https://help.openai.com/en/articles/9237897-chatgpt-search). OpenAI Help Center, checked 1 October 2026.
- [Temporary Chat FAQ](https://help.openai.com/en/articles/8914046-temporary-chat-faq). OpenAI Help Center, checked 1 October 2026.
- [Testing ads in ChatGPT](https://openai.com/index/testing-ads-in-chatgpt/). OpenAI, 9 February 2026, updated 11 August 2026.
- [The 50 most-cited websites in ChatGPT (September 2026)](https://ahrefs.com/blog/most-cited-domains-in-chatgpt/). Ahrefs, 2 September 2026.
- [Top brand visibility factors in ChatGPT, AI Mode and AI Overviews (75k brands studied)](https://ahrefs.com/blog/ai-brand-visibility-correlations/). Ahrefs, 12 December 2025.
- [How to rank on ChatGPT: what actually works (based on data)](https://ahrefs.com/blog/how-to-rank-on-chatgpt/). Ahrefs, 13 March 2026.
- [The influence of retrieval, fan-out and Google SERPs on ChatGPT citations](https://www.airops.com/report/influence-of-retrieval-fanout-and-google-serps-in-chatgpt). AirOps, 12 March 2026.
- [Is Google finally cracking down on self-promotional listicles?](https://lilyraynyc.substack.com/p/is-google-finally-cracking-down-on). Lily Ray, 3 February 2026.
- [Why calling yourself the best could cost you in AI search](https://lilyraynyc.substack.com/p/why-calling-yourself-the-best-could). Lily Ray, 17 June 2026.
- [ChatGPT citation factors study](https://seranking.com/blog/chatgpt-citation-factors/). SE Ranking, 24 November 2025.
- [AI brand recommendations: chaotic, inconsistent (SparkToro and Gumshoe study)](https://www.mediapost.com/publications/article/412364/ai-brand-recommendations-chaotic-inconsistent.html). MediaPost, 28 January 2026.
- [New G2 Research: Half of B2B Software Buyers Now Start Their Research With AI Chatbots](https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/new-g2-research-half-of-b2b-software-buyers-now-start-their-research-with-ai-chatbots-302742807.html). G2, via PR Newswire, 15 April 2026.
- [AI features and your website](https://developers.google.com/search/docs/appearance/ai-features). Google Search Central, updated 10 December 2025.
- [Have it both ways: stay discoverable in search while disallowing AI training](https://blog.cloudflare.com/accountable-mixed-use-ai-crawlers/). Cloudflare, 15 September 2026.
- [Introducing AI Performance in Bing Webmaster Tools (public preview)](https://blogs.bing.com/webmaster/February-2026/Introducing-AI-Performance-in-Bing-Webmaster-Tools-Public-Preview). Microsoft Bing, 10 February 2026.
- [Reddit Rules](https://redditinc.com/policies/reddit-rules). Reddit, checked 1 October 2026.
- [Consumer Reviews and Testimonials Rule: Questions and Answers](https://www.ftc.gov/business-guidance/resources/consumer-reviews-testimonials-rule-questions-answers). Federal Trade Commission, checked 1 October 2026.
- [CAN-SPAM Act: A Compliance Guide for Business](https://www.ftc.gov/business-guidance/resources/can-spam-act-compliance-guide-business). Federal Trade Commission, checked 1 October 2026.
- [Invitation limit reached](https://www.linkedin.com/help/linkedin/answer/a550555). LinkedIn Help, checked 1 October 2026.
- [Claim your profile](https://sell.g2.com/claim-your-profile). G2, checked 1 October 2026.
- [What free features does Clutch offer?](https://help.clutch.co/en/knowledge/free-features-clutch-offers). Clutch Help Center, checked 1 October 2026.
- [Trustpilot pricing and plans](https://business.trustpilot.com/pricing). Trustpilot, checked 1 October 2026.
- [Upload YouTube Shorts](https://support.google.com/youtube/answer/12779649). YouTube Help, checked 1 October 2026.
- [Wikipedia: Conflict of interest](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Conflict_of_interest). Wikipedia, checked 1 October 2026.
