As of now you cannot buy your way into the body of an AI answer. OpenAI, Google, Perplexity and the rest generate those answers from pages they read, and there is no submission form, no bid, and no partner program for local businesses. Some of these products have started testing sponsored placements and shopping units next to AI results. Those are labeled as advertising and sit beside the answer rather than inside the recommendation the model writes.
This matters because the pitch is already out there. If an agency tells you they can get you listed in ChatGPT, ask exactly what they will do. The honest version of the work is improving the pages and profiles the models read: service pages per city, clear text answers, schema, a cleaned up Google Business Profile, consistent listings, real reviews, and a few credible third party mentions. That is earned, it is checkable, and it takes months rather than days.
Expect this to change. Every one of these companies needs revenue, and advertising inside AI answers is an obvious path, so plan for labeled placements with their own reporting at some point. Until then, budget for the earned side and treat paid AI placement claims as a red flag. Heights Digital runs that work at a flat $750 build and $399 a month, month to month with no contract, if you want it handled for you.
Send the site over. We will tell you what is broken, what you could rank for, and whether AI search knows you exist. No charge and no pitch deck.
