Check it yourself

How can I check if ChatGPT recommends my business?

Ask ChatGPT, Perplexity and Gemini the exact questions your customers ask, many times in a fresh chat each time, and count how often your shop is named first. One ask tells you almost nothing because the answer changes from one try to the next.

Updated 14 November 2026

You can run this test yourself at your kitchen table. It takes a notepad, a private browser window, and a quiet afternoon. Here is how to do it properly.

Step 1: Open a private window

Open an incognito or private window in your web browser. Log out of your accounts where you can. If you stay logged in, your past chats can steer the answer, and you won't see what a stranger sees.

Step 2: Write down 4 or 5 homeowner questions

Do not just type "plumber near me." Write out the full question the way a homeowner talks when something breaks. Include a specific job, a town, and a day of the week.

Here are the five questions we use for plumbers (swap in your own town, zip code, and trade):

Step 3: Ask each question several times across all three tools

Do not stop at ChatGPT. Homeowners also use Perplexity and Google Gemini. You need to check all three, and you need to start a brand-new chat every single time you ask.

Why so many times? Because they do not agree with each other, and they do not give the same answer twice in a row. On 13 Nov 2026, we asked that same Round Rock water-heater question over and over (you can read the full Round Rock study):

Three tools, three different favourites. If someone sends you a screenshot of a shop at #1, or promises to put you there, take it with a grain of salt. A single screenshot proves nothing, and nobody can honestly sell a #1 spot.

Step 4: Keep a tally of who gets named

Every time an answer finishes loading, write down two things:

  1. Which shop was named first.
  2. Whether your shop was named anywhere in the answer.

When you are done, count your share of first names for each tool. That is your real standing.

Step 5: Check the links they read

Look at the little links or sources cited at the bottom of the answers. Click them. Those are the exact web pages the tool read before deciding who to recommend.

Look at what the winning shops have on their pages that you do not. Usually, it comes down to plain facts on their site—we break down what these tools look for on another page.

Two quirks to watch out for

Use your town name, not only your zip code. On 14 Nov 2026, we asked Perplexity for a plumber "near 78626", "near 78634", and "near 76574" (Georgetown, Hutto, and Taylor). Perplexity named no plumber at all in all 9 of those answers. Always test with your town name.

They do not check the state licence board. You might see some questionable names pop up ahead of you. In Round Rock on 14 Nov 2026, ChatGPT recommended a shop in 3 of 50 answers whose owner's master plumber licence expired in 2023, per the state licence board. They repeat what they find on the web, right or wrong.

Or let us run the 50 asks for you

Doing this by hand takes an afternoon per town. It is tedious work, and you probably have trucks to keep moving.

Running this test 50 times across ChatGPT, Perplexity and Gemini is what our free check does. We run the questions for your trade and town, count the results, and email you the report within 5 business days. You will see who gets named, how often, whether it is you, and what those shops' pages have that yours does not. No credit card and no contract.

If you like what you see and want us to fix it, we build a clear page for each job and town you work in, hooked up to a booking page or a tracked phone line. You only pay per new customer who books through it—never for rankings or monthly reports.

Common questions

Why can't I just ask ChatGPT once to see if I show up?

Because the answer changes every time you ask. On 13 Nov 2026, when we asked the same Round Rock water-heater question, ChatGPT named its top shop first in 14 of 51 tries. If you only ask once, you have no idea if you got a lucky draw or if you are never named at all.

Should I test with my zip code or my town name?

Use your town name, or test both separately. On 14 Nov 2026, when we asked Perplexity for a plumber near 78626, 78634, and 76574 (Georgetown, Hutto, and Taylor), it named no plumber at all in all 9 of those answers.

Someone sent me a screenshot of a shop at #1 on ChatGPT. Does it mean anything?

Not much. The answer changes from one ask to the next, so one screenshot shows one draw. Nobody can honestly sell or promise a #1 spot.

What does the free check from Fifty Asks include?

We ask ChatGPT, Perplexity and Gemini fifty homeowner questions for your trade and town. Within 5 business days, we email you a report showing who gets named, how often, whether you show up, and what the top-named shops have on their websites that you do not. There is no credit card and no contract.