UpPeek field notes · 7 min
How AI assistants find and recommend tools (and how to show up)
What tends to make AI assistants mention a product, what does not, and how to check where you stand.
By Neha, founder of UpPeek ·
How assistants get their answers
AI assistants answer from what they learned in training and, in many products, from live web search that retrieves pages and cites them. Recommendations tend to reflect products that are clearly described and mentioned across several sources, not only on the product's own site.
What tends to help
No one outside the model providers can promise a result, but these habits are consistent with how retrieval and citation work.
- ✓Describe the product in one clear sentence and use it consistently on your site, profiles and listings
- ✓Make sure crawlers can read your site: no accidental blocking in robots.txt, and real text in the HTML
- ✓Publish pages that answer the questions people ask, such as comparisons, how-tos and alternatives
- ✓Get mentioned on third-party sources: directories, reviews, forums, newsletters and videos
- ✓Keep key pages fresh and add structured data such as Organization and FAQ
What does not help
Keyword stuffing, hidden text, fake reviews and mass-produced thin pages rarely work and can damage trust with both search engines and assistants.
Measure it
Pick ten questions your customers would ask an assistant, such as “what is the best tool for [problem]?”, and run the same prompts every week. Note whether you are mentioned, cited or ignored, and which competitors appear. A free check such as UpPeek's AI Visibility Check gives a first snapshot.
Questions people ask
How long until an AI assistant mentions a new site?
There is no fixed time. It depends on the assistant, how often it refreshes its sources and how many places mention you. New sites commonly need weeks to months of consistent publishing and mentions.
Does llms.txt guarantee citations?
No. An llms.txt file helps describe your site in a machine-readable way, but it does not guarantee that any assistant will use it. Clear pages and third-party mentions matter more.