Do paid ads affect whether AI assistants recommend your brand?

Do paid ads influence what ChatGPT, Google AI and Perplexity recommend?

Not directly, according to each company's own statements at the time of writing. Google's Ads help centre says paid advertising does not influence the organic responses generated by Google AI, and that being cited organically has no effect on ad eligibility either. OpenAI's help centre says ads in ChatGPT run on separate systems from the chat model, and that advertisers have no ability to shape, rank or alter its responses.

Perplexity said when it launched ads that the content of its answers would not be influenced by advertisers. It has since been widely reported to be phasing ads out, citing user trust.

These are the companies' own descriptions of their systems. There is no independent audit we can point to. But they are clear, public commitments, and they match how these products are built: the answer is generated from sources, and any ad is placed around it.

Where do ads appear in AI search right now?

Ads in AI search are new and the rollout changes month to month. This is the position at the time of writing.

For Google, existing Search, Shopping and Performance Max campaigns are eligible to show in these placements without extra setup. Check Google's help page for the current country list before planning a UK campaign around it.

How do AI assistants choose which brands to mention?

Each system works a little differently, but they share one thing: they can only recommend what they can find and understand.

Google AI Overviews and AI Mode. Google's Search Central documentation says a page must be indexed and eligible to show in Search with a snippet to appear as a supporting link, with no additional technical requirements. Both features may use "query fan-out", running several related searches across subtopics to find supporting pages. Google says they are rooted in its core ranking and quality systems, so normal SEO still applies.

ChatGPT search. OpenAI says any public website can appear, as long as it lets OAI-SearchBot crawl it. It ranks results using several factors aimed at relevant, reliable information, and draws on third party search providers as well as content from partners.

Perplexity. Perplexity's documentation says PerplexityBot is designed to surface and link websites in its search results, and recommends allowing it in robots.txt.

So if your product pages are blocked, thin or inconsistent, no ad budget will put them in the answer.

Can ad spend help indirectly?

Possibly, but only through the same route as everything else. Ads can make more people aware of a product. Some of those people buy, review, post about or write about it. Reviews, press mentions and discussion on other sites are the kind of material AI assistants read and cite.

That is a long, uncertain chain, and we wouldn't plan a budget around it. If being recommended by AI assistants matters to you, spend the effort on the sources they actually use. Run ads for the reasons you always would: reach, sales and testing creative.

What should a beauty brand do to get cited by AI?

The practical work is mostly good housekeeping. It helps with normal search too.

• Put the facts in text on each product page: what it is, key ingredients, skin or hair type, shades, sizes, price and how to use it.
• Answer real customer questions on the page in plain FAQs, such as "is it fragrance free?" or "can I use it with retinol?"
• Keep facts identical everywhere: your site, retailers, marketplaces, Google Merchant Center and your Business Profile.
• Collect genuine reviews on your site and with retailers. Never invent or incentivise misleading ones.
• Earn press and creator coverage that describes the product accurately.
• Make sure robots.txt and your CDN allow Googlebot, OAI-SearchBot and PerplexityBot if you want to appear.
• Keep structured data accurate and matching what's visible on the page.
• Support text with good product images and video, which Google recommends for its AI experiences.

Clear, accurate imagery helps here too. If you need product and campaign images that match the real pack, see our AI product photography and AI campaign visuals.

Do you need llms.txt or special AI markup?

Not for Google. Its AI features documentation says you don't need new machine readable files, AI text files, special markup or special schema.org structured data to appear in its generative AI features. Standard crawlable, indexable pages are what count.

Other assistants haven't published a requirement for these files either. Your time is better spent on clear pages and consistent facts. If a vendor tells you a special file is the key to AI visibility, ask them for the platform documentation that says so.

How can you tell if AI assistants are sending you traffic?

Start with the data you already have. OpenAI says ChatGPT adds utm_source=chatgpt.com to links it sends, so those visits show up in your analytics. Google says traffic from its AI features is included in the Search Console Performance report, and it has started rolling out dedicated generative AI performance reports to some sites.

You can also simply ask. Search ChatGPT, Gemini and Perplexity for the questions your customers ask, such as "best fragrance free moisturiser for sensitive skin UK", and note who is cited and which pages are linked. Repeat it monthly. If competitors are cited and you aren't, look at what their cited pages say that yours don't.

If you'd like help building a plan around this, our consultancy works with beauty brands on content, imagery and how AI fits into marketing.

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