How to Get Your Business
Cited by ChatGPT
A 7-step guide to optimizing your content so ChatGPT, Perplexity, and Google AI Overviews cite your website as a source.
Key Takeaways
- ChatGPT cites content that is indexed (in Bing), directly answerable, factually dense, and authoritatively attributed
- The 5 core levers: content structure, factual density, FAQ schema, brand entity establishment, and Bing indexing
- NZ businesses can begin appearing in ChatGPT citations within 4–8 weeks with the right content changes
- ChatGPT Browse and Perplexity share similar citation preferences — optimising for one helps the other
What You'll Need
- Existing website with published content
- Bing Webmaster Tools account (free)
- Access to your CMS or HTML
- Google Search Console
- Bing Webmaster Tools
- validator.schema.org
What Determines Whether ChatGPT Cites Your Content?
ChatGPT (when using Browse mode or Bing-powered search) selects sources based on several signals:
| Signal | What ChatGPT Looks For |
|---|---|
| Indexability | The page must be crawlable and indexed by Bing and Google |
| Direct answerability | Content that opens with a clear, direct answer to the query |
| Factual density | Specific data points with named sources, not vague generalisations |
| Authority signals | Named authors with credentials, organisation schema, About page |
| Structural clarity | Headers, numbered lists, tables — not walls of text |
| Recency | Recently published or updated content preferred for evolving topics |
The 7 Steps
Before optimising any content, define the specific questions ChatGPT users are asking that you want to answer. Use formats like: "What is [X]?", "How does [X] work?", "Best [X] for [use case]?" — these are the query patterns AI systems most commonly answer with cited sources.
ChatGPT extracts from the opening of pages. Your first paragraph must contain a clear, standalone definition or answer — not a preamble. If the question is "what is a fractional CMO", the first sentence should define it directly and completely.
ChatGPT favours content with specific, verifiable data. Replace every vague claim ("many businesses use this") with a named statistic ("68% of SMEs reported improved marketing ROI after hiring a fractional CMO — CIM, 2024"). Each stat should include the source name and year.
FAQ sections directly match the question-and-answer format ChatGPT uses to generate responses. Each FAQ answer should be 40–80 words — short enough to be quoted directly, long enough to be complete. Implement FAQPage JSON-LD schema markup for all FAQ content.
ChatGPT is more likely to cite sources it can identify as authoritative entities. Add: Organization schema markup, a clear About page with founder credentials, active LinkedIn presence, and consistent brand name usage across all pages.
ChatGPT Browse uses Bing's index. Submit your XML sitemap to Bing Webmaster Tools and verify your site. Many NZ businesses are well-indexed in Google but invisible to Bing — and therefore invisible to ChatGPT's Browse mode.
ChatGPT deprioritises outdated content for evolving topics. Add a visible "last updated" date to pages, refresh statistics annually, and add new FAQ entries as new questions emerge in your industry.
Expected Timeline
| Action Taken | Expected Citation Timeframe |
|---|---|
| Published GEO-optimised page | 4–8 weeks (post-indexing) |
| Added FAQ schema markup | 2–4 weeks additional improvement |
| Established entity signals | 6–12 weeks for full entity recognition |
| Earned 3+ external citations | Accelerates all of the above |
The businesses getting cited by ChatGPT aren't necessarily the biggest or the most authoritative — they're the ones whose content is structured to answer a specific question directly and completely. That's a content strategy decision, not a technical one.— Nick Boulstridge, CIM Fellow, GEO Strategist at MrB Advisory
Frequently Asked Questions
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