Getting recommended by ChatGPT, Perplexity and Gemini in Morocco

“Which agency should I use to launch my online store in Casablanca?” Your customers are already asking ChatGPT, Perplexity or Gemini this kind of question. The answer cites three or four names. Working to make that list is called GEO, for generative engine optimization. It's neither magic nor a new profession: it's SEO, applied to engines that write their own answers.

How do ChatGPT, Perplexity and Gemini choose their sources?

They search, then they read. According to OpenAI's help center, ChatGPT often rewrites your question into one or more targeted queries, which it sends to partner search providers; the page notably links to the privacy policy of Microsoft, which publishes Bing. For a local question, it uses an approximate location derived from the IP address. OpenAI states that ranking depends on several factors and that no placement is guaranteed.

Google describes the same mechanism for its AI Overviews and AI Mode: “query fan-out,” which runs several related searches on subtopics before composing the answer. The Gemini apps rely on the Google Search index to ground their answers, according to Google's crawler documentation. Perplexity has its own bot, PerplexityBot, designed to surface and cite websites in its results.

The direct consequence: a page these bots can't read doesn't exist for them. Check your robots.txt and your web host; OpenAI also asks that the site accept traffic from its published IP addresses. And don't mix up the bots: GPTBot is used to train models, and blocking it doesn't stop you from appearing in ChatGPT search, according to OpenAI's list of crawlers.

Which pages give an AI a reason to cite you?

Pages that answer a specific question, from the very first sentence. An AI that breaks a request down into sub-questions looks for the clearest passage for each one. A page that promises “innovative tailor-made solutions” answers nothing.

• One page per service: what you do, for whom, in which cities, how fast, starting at what price.
• Headings phrased as questions, the ones your customers ask on the phone or on WhatsApp.
• A direct answer at the top of each section, then the details.
• Verifiable facts: lead times, delivery areas, results with their source. A precise sentence is more likely to be picked up than a slogan.
• An FAQ on every page, also marked up as structured data.
• Pages in French and Arabic if your customers search in both languages.

These are the basics of good SEO on Google. Google says so itself: there are no additional requirements or special optimizations to appear in its AI features.

Why do directories and reviews matter so much?

Because AI doesn't only read your website. For local questions, ChatGPT may pass an approximate location to third-party providers, including business directories, according to the same OpenAI help page. Google asks you to keep your Business Profile up to date. And a Pew Research Center study of Google's AI summaries in the United States lists Wikipedia, YouTube and Reddit among the most-cited sources: third-party platforms carry a lot of weight.

• A complete Google profile: categories, hours, photos, services. See our Google Business Profile guide.
• Recent, detailed reviews that you reply to. Our method to get Google reviews works without fake reviews.
• The same name, address and phone number everywhere: website, Google, Bing Places, social media, Moroccan business directories.
• Mentions on other sites: local press, partners, vendor lists. The more your name appears in reliable sources, the more material an AI has to cite it.

Structured data and llms.txt: useful or gimmick?

Useful, but no miracle. Structured data (schema.org) describes your business in machine language: name, address, services, FAQ. Google doesn't require it for its AI features, but asks that it match the visible text on the page. Above all, it helps avoid confusion with a business of the same name.

The llms.txt file is a proposal published in September 2024 by Jeremy Howard on llmstxt.org: a Markdown file at the root of the site that summarizes the business and points to its key pages. The proposal claims no official adoption by any engine, and Google says no special text file is needed for its AI features. The cost is low: on anima.ma, we publish one, with our contact details, our services and a section that sets us apart from companies with the same name. See it as one more ID card, not a decisive lever.

How do you measure traffic from ChatGPT and other AIs?

With three tools, and a bit of caution.

1. The utm_source=chatgpt.com tag. ChatGPT adds it to links in its answers; OpenAI extended it to other links in the interface in June 2025, according to Search Engine Roundtable. In early October 2026, these tags disappeared for a few days because of a bug: visits shifted to “direct” traffic, before returning to normal around October 15, according to the same site. So a sudden drop doesn't necessarily mean lost visibility.
2. GA4's “AI Assistant” channel. Google Analytics includes it in its default channel group, for visits from assistants such as ChatGPT, Gemini, DeepSeek, Copilot or Grok. Google's AI Overviews and AI Mode are still counted as organic search.
3. Your own questions. Add “ChatGPT or an AI assistant” to the “How did you hear about us?” field on your forms, and ask the question on the phone. On anima.ma, our llms.txt also offers a WhatsApp link with a pre-filled message that mentions the AI assistant: every conversation opened that way is attributed.

Some clicks from AI arrive with no identifiable source, as the October bug showed. So judge this channel on quote requests and sales, not just sessions. Our article on the KPIs to track helps you pick the right metrics.

Where should you start this week?

• Check that robots.txt allows OAI-SearchBot, PerplexityBot and Googlebot.
• Add the site to Google Search Console and Bing Webmaster Tools.
• Rewrite the opening of your service pages: a direct answer, with city, lead time and price.
• Complete your Google profile and ask your latest customers for a review.
• Align name, address and phone number across all your profiles.
• Add Organization or LocalBusiness structured data, and your FAQs.
• Track the “AI Assistant” channel in GA4 and add an “AI” option to your forms.

Sources

• OpenAI — Searching the web with ChatGPT, rewritten queries, search partners, location, site eligibility.
• OpenAI — Overview of OpenAI crawlers, roles of OAI-SearchBot, GPTBot and ChatGPT-User.
• Perplexity — Perplexity crawlers, role of PerplexityBot.
• Google Search Central — AI features and your website, query fan-out and no special requirements.
• Google Search Central — Google common crawlers, Google-Extended and grounding of the Gemini apps.
• Pew Research Center — Google users are less likely to click on links when an AI summary appears, July 22, 2025.
• llmstxt.org — The /llms.txt file, proposal by Jeremy Howard, September 2024.
• Search Engine Roundtable — OpenAI's ChatGPT updates to improve tracking in analytics, June 16, 2025.
• Search Engine Roundtable — UTM parameters missing from ChatGPT, October 14, 2026, updated October 15.
• Google Analytics — Default channel group, definition of the AI Assistant channel.