Why AI recommendations matter now
More customers are asking AI assistants questions like “who's the best roofer in Calgary?” instead of scrolling search results. The assistant usually names three to five businesses, and those are often the only ones the customer ever considers.
Your Pick Rate is the share of those answers that name you. Because AI answers change from run to run, treat it as a directional measure and track it over time rather than obsessing over a single result.
How AI assistants choose who to recommend
Assistants blend what they learned during training with live web searches. They favour businesses that are clearly described on their own site, consistently listed across trusted directories, frequently mentioned in reviews and local media, and easy for their crawlers to read.
In short: be readable, be unambiguous, and be mentioned by others.
Let AI crawlers read your site
Check your robots.txt (yourdomain.ca/robots.txt). If you see “Disallow: /” under GPTBot, ClaudeBot, PerplexityBot, OAI-SearchBot or Google-Extended, those assistants are being told to stay away.
Remove those rules unless you have a specific legal reason to keep them. Many website platforms and security plug-ins add them by default, so it's worth checking even if you never set them yourself.
Add structured data (schema markup)
Structured data is a small block of code (JSON-LD) that tells machines exactly who you are: your business name, address, phone, service area, hours, services and reviews.
Use the most specific LocalBusiness type that fits (for example RoofingContractor, AccountingService or MedicalClinic). Most website platforms have a plug-in or setting for this; your web developer can add it in under an hour.
Keep your name, address and phone consistent
Put your business name, address and phone number (NAP) as plain text in the footer of every page, with a clickable tel: link.
Then make sure the exact same details appear on Google Business Profile, Apple Business Connect, Bing Places, Yelp, industry directories and your local chamber of commerce. Inconsistencies make AI less confident about recommending you.
Write answer-ready content
AI assistants quote pages that directly answer questions. Your home page and service pages should clearly say what you do, who you do it for, where you work, what it costs (even a range), and why customers choose you.
Aim for 500+ words on key pages, use plain language, and include proof: review snippets, project examples, certifications and years in business.
Answer real customer questions (FAQs)
List the questions customers actually ask on the phone, then answer each in two to four sentences. Add FAQPage schema so assistants can lift the answers accurately.
Good FAQs double as sales content: pricing, timelines, warranties, service areas and what happens next.
Publish an llms.txt file
llms.txt is an emerging, simple text file at yourdomain.ca/llms.txt that summarises your business for AI tools and links to your most important pages.
It takes ten minutes: a one-paragraph description, your service area, and a bulleted list of key pages with one-line descriptions.
Sharpen titles, descriptions and headings
Each page title should name the service and location, for example “Metal Roofing in Calgary | Maple Ridge Roofing”. Keep it under 60 characters.
Write a 140–160 character meta description and use exactly one H1 heading per page that states what the page is about.
Make your site easy to crawl
Serve every page over HTTPS, publish an XML sitemap (and list it in robots.txt), and make sure important content is in the page's HTML rather than hidden behind scripts or images.
Get mentioned by the sources AI trusts
Look at the “sources cited” section of your report. Those are the sites AI assistants lean on for your industry and area. Getting listed, reviewed or featured on them is one of the most reliable ways to raise your Pick Rate.
Ask happy customers for reviews on Google and industry sites, pitch local media, and join relevant associations.
Measure, fix, repeat
Re-check your Pick Rate every month or two. Because answers vary, look for the trend across several checks. If you'd like help, Marketing Guardians can build and run the plan with you.
Want to know where you stand?
Check your free Pick Rate, or book a call and we'll build the plan with you.