Why does AI recommend your competitor?

By Victoria Barton · Updated 11 November 2026

If you ask AI who to hire and it suggests another business, start by looking at that answer. A competitor is simply another business offering a similar service. Their appearance in 1 answer does not tell you why you were left out.

Set up a fairer ChatGPT check

If you have already discussed your business with ChatGPT, it may use those details in its answer. That could give you a different result from someone who has never mentioned you. Use a Temporary Chat and choose Unpersonalized before asking your question. This avoids using saved information about you to tailor that answer.

Temporary Chat is a separate conversation. Selecting Temporary alone is not enough if it is set to Personalized. Use the guide below for the buttons to select, an example question and how to keep the answer before you leave.

Follow the step-by-step ChatGPT check

1. Open the pages linked in the answer

Look for clickable website names, small link markers or a Sources button beside or below the answer. Select them and open the relevant pages. These are sources: pages the answer refers to. If no sources are shown, you cannot identify them from that answer alone.

On each page, look for the service you asked about, the area covered and a way to book. Read any relevant reviews or examples. You are checking what information is available, not proving that any one detail caused the recommendation.

You can use AI to help. Copy the relevant page text into a separate chat, put its web address above it, and ask: “From this text only, list the services, areas served and booking instructions. Mark anything missing as ‘not stated’.” Open the original page to check the summary.

2. Compare your own website

Open your home page, services page and contact page. Check whether a new visitor can tell what you offer, who it is for, where you work and how to contact you. If the answer is hidden several clicks away, make it easier to find.

Next, open your public profiles, such as LinkedIn, and any directory entries you use. A directory entry is a page listing your business on another website. Compare the service, location and contact details with your own site. Old descriptions can confuse potential customers.

3. Correct an error you can verify

Choose a real problem, such as an old phone number or a missing service area. Edit it on the page you control, or send the correction to your website manager. In a separate chat, give AI the old wording, new wording and date, and ask it to keep a list of the changes.

After the change is public, repeat the same customer question on another day. Use a fresh test chat, the same place name and the same settings. Save the answer and ask AI to compare it with the earlier answer. A different result is worth recording, but it does not prove your edit caused it.

4. Check before believing an AI explanation

If AI says a competitor has a certain qualification or offers a particular service, open the source page and check. If you cannot find support for the claim, treat it as unconfirmed. Asking AI why it chose someone can produce an explanation, but that explanation is not proof.

My job is to help you understand what I find and what is worth fixing next.

Google’s advice on appearing in AI search

I work online and have no shop. What should my website say about who I help?

On your service page, say what you offer, who it is for, and that customers work with you online. State the countries you serve and any limits, such as only offering appointments in English. This helps a reader decide whether you can help them.

For example: “I offer online bookkeeping for UK sole traders. Book a video call using the button below.” Only use details that are true for you. Add a working booking link or contact method, then open the page as a visitor and test that it goes to the right place.

Want me to check your business?

My £67 AI visibility audit checks your website and whether AI recommends you. You get a personal video showing what I found and what to fix next, in plain English.

Book your £67 AI visibility audit