How AI recommends your hotel (and how to influence it)

More and more guests no longer type 'hotel Friesland' into Google, but ask ChatGPT or Perplexity directly: 'where's the best place for me to stay in Friesland for a cycling weekend'. That AI then names two or three accommodations. The question is no longer whether you're in Google, but whether the AI knows you.

The problem

Imagine you have a B&B with 6 rooms and most of your bookings come via Booking.com. Some of your future guests no longer search with loose keywords, but ask a whole question to an AI assistant. These are tools like ChatGPT (OpenAI's chatbot), Perplexity (a search engine that gives answers instead of link lists) and the AI overviews Google itself shows at the top.

That assistant reads no ads and picks no partner that pays the most. It builds an answer from what it finds on the public web. If your accommodation isn't described clearly and factually anywhere there, you won't be in the answer. The guest sees three other names and you hear nothing about it.

Concretely, this means a shift in how people plan. Previously, someone searched 'B&B Friesland', got a list of ten links and clicked on a few. Now that same guest types 'what's a good quiet B&B in Friesland for a cycling weekend in May' and immediately gets two or three names, with a short motivation. The choice is already largely made before the guest ever opens a website. If you're not on that short list, there's no second chance on that page.

The uncomfortable part: this happens out of your sight. With Google you can still see what position you're at. With an AI answer you often don't even know the question was asked, let alone that you were missed. There's no position 11 to work toward. You're mentioned or you're not. That's why it's worth making sure the facts about you are right beforehand, instead of guessing afterward why the phone stayed quiet.

Good news: there's something you can do about this, and it costs no ad budget. It's about consistent, verifiable information in the places where AI looks. And unlike big ad channels, you as a small accommodation don't have a disadvantage here. An AI answering a question about your region doesn't look at who's the biggest player, but at who's described most clearly and reliably. This article is part of the pillar AEO and GEO for accommodations, where the broader strategy is. Here we zoom in on exactly how the recommendation comes about.

Worked example

AI doesn't make up a recommendation. It relies on a handful of sources and weighs what it finds there. Below are the main sources an AI assistant relies on for a hotel question, plus the question of whether your accommodation is visible there now. Go through the right column for your own situation.

What this means: the more rows where you appear factually and consistently, the greater the chance an AI mentions you. An accommodation that clearly appears in all five rows gets recommended more often than one that only appears in Google with a half profile. This isn't a contest for the highest score, but for completeness and consistency. One source calling you a 'B&B in Drenthe' and another saying 'vacation home Friesland' actually muddies the picture.

Calculate it for your own situation. Say you're now only in Google with a half-filled profile and 24 reviews, and nowhere else. Then you're effectively visible in 1 of the 5 rows, and even that one row is thin. A comparable B&B down the road has a complete own page with all the facts, 90 reviews and is mentioned in a regional cycling guide. That appears in 4 of the 5 rows, consistently. Ask an AI then which quiet B&B it recommends for cyclists in the region, and the chance that your neighbor gets mentioned and you don't is high. The difference isn't in the quality of the rooms, but in how well the facts are findable. That's exactly the part you have in your hands.

Action plan

You don't influence AI directly. You make sure the facts about you are right in the places where AI looks. In this order:

1. Make your own page factually complete. Put in plain text who you are, where you're located, how many rooms, suitable for whom (couples, cyclists, families), and a price indication. AI reads text, not atmosphere photos. A page with only beautiful images and three sentences gives nothing to work with.
2. Fill out and verify your Google Business Profile. Category, hours, address, photos and an honest description. A verified profile is a reliable anchor for AI. How to set that up is in Setting up Google Business Profile for hotels and B&Bs.
3. Collect reviews structurally. Reviews are the voice of real guests for AI and carry heavy weight. Not a one-time action, but a regular rhythm after each stay. The approach is in collecting reviews on Google.
4. Ensure consistent mentions elsewhere. Use the same name, same address and same description of your type and region everywhere. Different names confuse both Google and AI.
5. Test it yourself. Ask ChatGPT and Perplexity what they recommend in your region for your type of guest. Are you mentioned? Is what they say correct? If not, you immediately see which source is falling short.

Common mistakes

• Thinking you can buy your way into a recommendation. Unlike ads, there's no button to place you in an AI answer. Anyone promising that is selling vapor. The recommendation comes from public sources.
• Trying tricks. Hidden text, stuffed keywords or fake reviews backfire. AI weighs consistency and authenticity, and manipulated signals stand out. Besides, Google punishes this separately anyway.
• Relying only on pretty photos. Images are nice for guests, but an AI can extract little facts from them. Without clear text about type, location and target audience, it has nothing to recommend you for.
• Inconsistent naming. One place 'Het Friese Hof', another 'Friese Hof B&B', a third with a different address. That weakens the picture AI builds of you. Choose one spelling and stick with it everywhere.
• Filling it out once and forgetting. Reviews and mentions get old. A profile that's stood still for 2 years carries less weight than one that shows recent, current signals.

What you can do now

You don't need to become an AI expert and you don't need to free up a budget. The winnings are in a few hours of work to get the facts about your accommodation in order and consistent. Start with your own page, then your Google profile, then reviews. That's exactly the same foundation that also helps you in regular search results, so double ROI.

Important to understand: this isn't a task you finish one evening and then forget about. Reviews come in slowly, mentions on other sources build up over months, and your own page can grow as your offering changes. Think of it as maintenance, not a project. Fifteen minutes a month to check if your profile is right and if new reviews have come in keeps the picture AI has of you current. That small rhythm ends up weighing more heavily than a one-off big action.

Want the broader strategy behind visibility in AI search engines, read the pillar AEO and GEO for accommodations. For the specific steps to show up in ChatGPT, head to being found in ChatGPT. And because reviews are the heaviest lever, collecting reviews on Google is the logical first action this week.

One last thought to take with you. The guest who asks an AI where to sleep often trusts that answer more than a list of ads. That trust is your chance. Not by advertising smarter, but by simply being the clearest, most honest and most complete description of your accommodation that can be found online. That's work no one can take from you and that keeps paying off.

Want to first see what you're paying in commission now and what more direct bookings would bring, calculate it through in the savings calculator. Rather have someone handle this for your accommodation? We discuss that at marketing for hotels.