ChatGPT closed a deal for me yesterday. Not through some automated sales funnel or chatbot—it literally vouched for me when a potential client did their due diligence.
This was my second client from ChatGPT, but the first time I realized the platform was actively recommending me. After the client told me what happened, I did what any curious marketer would do: I searched myself on ChatGPT to see what it was saying about me.
What I found changed how I think about brand building in 2026.
How ChatGPT Became My Unintentional Sales Team
Yesterday, I sent a significant proposal to a potential client. Today, he called me back with an interesting story.
“I was on the fence,” he said. “I felt like I should do my due diligence, so I went to ChatGPT and asked about you.”
Whatever ChatGPT told him was enough to close the deal. That conversation confirmed something I’d suspected but hadn’t tested: people are increasingly turning to AI for professional research, and the information these systems provide can make or break business relationships.
What I Discovered When I Searched Myself on ChatGPT
After hanging up with the client, I immediately opened ChatGPT and searched my own name. This was actually the first time I’d done this, and the results were eye-opening.
ChatGPT had pulled together a comprehensive profile that included:
- Direct quotes from my website
- References to videos I’d posted on LinkedIn, TikTok, and YouTube
- Mentions of blog posts I’d written
- Citations from podcast appearances
The remarkable part? I’ve only been consistently creating content for about two and a half months. In that short time, ChatGPT had developed an accurate understanding of my expertise, my opinions, and my approach to digital marketing.
More importantly, everything it said about me was positive and aligned with how I want my brand represented.
Why AI Search Works Differently Than Google
Traditional Google searches show you a list of links—you still have to click through and evaluate sources yourself. ChatGPT synthesizes information from multiple sources and presents a cohesive answer. This fundamental difference changes how professionals conduct due diligence.
When someone searches for you on Google, they see headlines, snippets, and meta descriptions. When they ask ChatGPT about you, they get a narrative—a story about who you are, what you do, and whether you’re credible.
Google remains valuable for finding specific facts and original sources, but ChatGPT excels at providing quick overviews and synthesizing information. For busy professionals doing initial research on a potential vendor or partner, that quick overview often determines whether they proceed to the next step.
The concerning part for many businesses: if there’s not enough positive content about you online, ChatGPT might not have much to say. Or worse, it might surface the limited information that does exist—even if that information is outdated or negative.
How Much Content Does It Take to Control Your Narrative?
There’s no magic number, but the research is clear: you need content saturation and consistency. Large language models build their understanding of you from patterns across many sources.
Think of it this way: every piece of content you create is a data point. The more data points you provide, the clearer the picture becomes. One blog post won’t cut it. Neither will updating your About page and calling it a day.
SEO experts recommend creating multiple, in-depth pieces across diverse platforms. This means:
- Regular blog posts on your website
- Videos on YouTube, TikTok, LinkedIn
- Social media updates and thought leadership posts
- Guest articles on industry sites
- Podcast appearances with transcripts
The goal is omnipresence. When ChatGPT looks for information about you, it should encounter your name and story repeatedly across different platforms. Each mention reinforces the narrative you want to establish.
The Best Content Types for AI Visibility
Not all content formats influence AI systems equally. Recent studies reveal some surprising findings about what works best.
YouTube videos are cited by AI chatbots 200 times more often than any other video platform. If you’re going to create video content (and you should), prioritize YouTube. Make sure your videos have accurate titles, descriptions, and ideally, transcripts.
Structured text remains critical. Large language models love content that’s easy to parse: summaries, bullet lists, FAQ sections, and clear headings. These formats make it simple for AI to extract and cite your information confidently.
The most effective approach combines both:
- Create video content for platforms like YouTube
- Write detailed blog posts and articles
- Post regularly on social media
- Ensure all your content is interconnected and reinforces the same core messages
What This Means for Your Business
For the past two months, I’ve been posting content consistently across multiple platforms. The results speak for themselves: ChatGPT now provides accurate, positive information about me when asked—information that’s closing deals.
But here’s what concerns me: when I search for most small business owners on ChatGPT, there’s either nothing there or the information is sparse and outdated. Many businesses have a website and maybe a LinkedIn profile, but that’s not enough data for AI systems to build a compelling narrative.
Google search results are already declining as more people turn to AI for answers. Within the next year or two, AI-powered search will likely become the primary way people research businesses and professionals. If you’re not represented in these systems now, you’re invisible to a growing segment of your potential customers.
Getting Started: Your First Steps
You don’t need to become a content creation machine overnight. Start small but stay consistent.
Create one foundational piece of content. This could be a comprehensive blog post, a detailed video, or even a podcast episode. Make it something that thoroughly explains who you are, what you do, and what makes you different.
Repurpose that content across platforms. Take your core message and adapt it for different channels: LinkedIn articles, Twitter threads, Instagram posts, YouTube shorts. The goal is to multiply the touchpoints where AI systems encounter your brand.
Maintain consistency. Every piece of content should reinforce the same narrative about your brand. Mixed signals confuse both algorithms and potential customers.
Document everything on your website. Make sure your About page, services pages, and blog thoroughly explain your expertise and processes. The more detailed information you provide, the more confidently AI can describe you.
The Window Is Closing
Right now, there’s an opportunity. ChatGPT and similar AI systems are hungry for quality content about businesses and professionals. If you start creating content today, you can establish yourself as a trusted authority before your competitors catch on.
But this window won’t stay open forever. As more businesses recognize the importance of AI visibility, the competition for attention will increase. The brands that get established early—the ones that have been creating content consistently—will have a significant advantage.
I’ve been doing this for just over two months, and it’s already generating measurable business results. Imagine what six months or a year of consistent content creation could do for your brand.
Take Control of Your Narrative
The conversation that the potential client had with ChatGPT about me could have gone very differently. If I hadn’t been creating content, ChatGPT might have had little to say. If there had been negative information about me online—even if outdated or inaccurate—that might have been what surfaced.
The best time to control your brand narrative was five years ago. The second-best time is now. Start creating content, post it everywhere, and make sure the story AI tells about you is the one you want told.
Need help getting your content distributed across the platforms that matter? That’s exactly what we’re helping businesses do at TJ Digital. Contact us to learn how we can help you establish your brand in the age of AI search.