How to get your Knoxville business recommended by ChatGPT and Google's AI answers

Customers used to type "plumber near me" into Google and scroll the map. More and more, they ask an AI assistant instead: "Who's a good plumber in Powell who can come this week?" The assistant answers with two or three names. If you're not one of them, you never got a chance.

Nobody outside these companies knows exactly how they choose. But the answers are built from information that's publicly available online, and you control a lot of it.

What AI assistants look at

• Your Google Business Profile. Categories, services, hours, service area, reviews and photos. Google's own AI answers lean heavily on it.
• Your website. Clear pages that say what you do, where you do it and how to contact you. AI tools read websites much like search engines do.
• Reviews, and what they say. Not just the star rating. Reviews that mention specific services and neighborhoods ("fixed our AC in Farragut the same day") help an assistant match you to a request.
• Consistency across the web. When your name, phone number and address match on Google, Facebook, Yelp, Bing and other directories, you look like one trustworthy business instead of several half-finished listings.

Five steps that help

1. Finish your Google Business Profile

Pick the most accurate primary category, add every service you offer in the words customers use, set your real hours and service area, and add photos of your work. Here's a full checklist.

2. Have a website with one page per service

A single Facebook page usually isn't enough. A simple site with a page for each main service and the areas you serve gives AI tools something solid to read and quote. It doesn't need to be fancy. It needs to be clear.

3. Ask for reviews that mention the job

When you ask for a review, say something like "It'd help a lot if you mention what we did and what part of town you're in." That detail is what helps you show up for specific requests.

4. Answer common questions on your site

Write short answers to the questions customers ask on the phone: what you charge for a service call, which areas you cover, whether you do weekends. Assistants often pull from exactly this kind of content.

5. Match your details everywhere

Check Bing Places, Apple Maps, Facebook, Yelp and Nextdoor. Use the same business name, phone and website on all of them.

Try it yourself

Ask ChatGPT, Claude or Google: "Who would you recommend for [your service] in [your part of Knoxville]?" Then ask what it knows about your business by name. What comes back is a good to-do list.

If you'd like help, my Google profile and local SEO tune-up covers these steps.