You know that feeling when your phone is dead quiet, then you find out a neighbor “asked ChatGPT for a plumber” and hired someone else? That is happening more than most plumbing owners realize. People are using AI like ChatGPT the same way they used Google, they ask for “a good plumber near me,” “who can replace a water heater today,” or “best drain cleaning company in town.” The good news is you can influence whether your business shows up in those answers. It just takes the right signals in the right places.
First, understand what “showing up in ChatGPT” really means
ChatGPT is not a phone book with a single database. When it recommends local businesses, it pulls from a mix of public information and trusted sources, like:
- Your Google Business Profile details and reviews
- Other directories (Yelp, Angi, Apple Maps, Bing Places, local chamber sites)
- Your website content (services, cities, FAQs, proof like licenses and warranties)
- Articles and lists that mention your company
- Consistent mentions of your name, address, and phone number (NAP)
So when you ask “How do I get my plumbing business in ChatGPT?” you are really asking:
“How do I make my business easy for AI to verify and confident recommending?”
That is the game. Clarity, consistency, and credibility.
If you want a deeper breakdown of how different AI results work, this is worth reading: ChatGPT vs AI Overviews vs Grok vs Perplexity: What's the Deal?.
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Nail your basics: Google Business Profile and consistency across the web
If your Google Business Profile is messy, outdated, or missing key info, you are making it harder for AI to trust you.
Here is what I would check this week:
1) Your core info matches everywhere
- Business name (don’t stuff keywords like “Best 24/7 Emergency Plumber”)
- Address (or service area settings if you hide your address)
- Phone number
- Website URL
Make sure that exact same info shows up on your website footer, your Google profile, and your main directory listings. Even small differences like “St.” vs “Street” can create confusion at scale.
2) Pick the right primary category Your primary category should be as specific as possible, usually “Plumber.” Then add secondary categories that match your real services (drain cleaning, water heater installation, etc.). Do not add categories for things you do not really offer.
3) Fill out services and service areas List the big money services homeowners actually ask for:
- Water heater repair and replacement (tank and tankless)
- Drain cleaning and hydro jetting
- Sewer line repair and inspection
- Leak detection
- Toilet repair, faucet replacement
- Emergency plumbing
Also list your real cities and neighborhoods. AI recommendations often come down to location fit.
4) Add photos that prove you are real Not stock photos. Real trucks, team, job sites, before and after shots, your shop if you have one. It builds trust with humans and helps platforms verify your business.
Reviews are the strongest “trust signal” AI can see
If you want to show up when someone asks ChatGPT for “the best plumber near me,” reviews are a big part of the answer. Not because you need a perfect 5.0, but because reviews create a steady stream of specific, believable evidence.
What matters most:
Quantity and freshness A plumbing company with 40 reviews from the last 2 months looks more active than a company with 400 reviews, but none in the last year.
Specific service keywords, written naturally by customers You cannot control exactly what customers write, but you can guide it. When you ask for a review, prompt them with something like:
“If you can, mention what we helped with, like the water heater replacement or the drain clog, and the city.”
That one sentence helps your reviews contain the words people actually ask AI about.
Responses to reviews Reply to your reviews like a normal person. Thank them, mention the service, and mention the area when it makes sense. Example:
“Appreciate it, Mark. Glad we could get that main line unclogged in Aurora the same day.”
If you want the full case for why reviews have gotten even more important in the AI era, read: Why Reviews Matter More for AI Than Traditional SEO for Plumbers.
Make your website easy for AI to understand (not just “pretty”)
A lot of plumbing websites look fine, but they are thin on the details AI needs to confidently recommend you. You want your site to clearly answer: who you serve, what you do, where you do it, and why you are trustworthy.
Here are the pages that tend to move the needle:
1) A strong service page for each core job type Instead of one generic “Services” page, build separate pages for:
- Water heater repair
- Water heater replacement
- Drain cleaning
- Sewer line repair
- Leak detection
- Emergency plumbing
Each page should include:
- Common symptoms and what you check
- Your process (simple steps)
- Typical factors that affect price (without posting fake “$99” bait)
- Service area mention
- Proof: license, insurance, warranties, brands you install, years in business
- A clear call to action (call, text, or book)
2) City or service area pages (if you truly serve those areas) If you serve 10 towns, a short page for each can help, as long as it is not copy-pasted fluff. Mention real neighborhoods, common housing types, and the actual services you do there.
3) An FAQ page that matches real homeowner questions This is gold for AI visibility because it mirrors how people ask questions. Add FAQs like:
- “How much does a water heater replacement cost in [City]?”
- “Is a slow drain a sign of a bigger problem?”
- “Do you offer emergency plumbing after hours?”
- “How do I know if my sewer line is collapsed?”
- “What should I do if my water heater is leaking?”
Write answers like you would explain it to a customer on-site. Short, clear, and honest.
Get mentioned in the right places (and clean up the wrong ones)
AI recommendations improve when your business is mentioned consistently around the web. That includes directories, local sites, and industry-relevant pages.
Here is the practical approach:
Claim and fix the major listings
- Google Business Profile
- Bing Places
- Apple Maps
- Yelp (even if you hate it, keep it accurate)
- Angi, Nextdoor, Thumbtack if you use them
Go after a few “local trust” mentions These are usually easier than people think:
- Your local chamber of commerce directory
- Local neighborhood association sponsor pages
- Supplier partner pages (some supply houses list preferred pros)
- Community event sponsor pages (Little League, charity runs)
Even 5 to 10 solid mentions can help AI systems corroborate that you are established and local.
Avoid spammy directory blasts Old-school listing spam can create duplicate addresses, wrong phone numbers, and weird name variations. That hurts trust. If you have a lot of messy listings already, cleaning them up can be more valuable than creating new ones.
Track how AI talks about your business (and fix the gaps)
This is the part most plumbers skip because it sounds abstract. It is not.
You should know the answers to questions like:
- When someone asks ChatGPT “best plumber in [City],” do you show up?
- If you show up, is your phone number right?
- Does it describe your services accurately, or does it mix you up with someone else?
- Does it mention competitors instead, and why?
The simplest way to do this is to run the same 5 to 10 prompts once a week across a few AI tools and keep notes. Look for patterns: who gets mentioned, what details are wrong, and what sources it seems to rely on.
A simple 7-day checklist to increase your chances of showing up
If you want something you can actually knock out between jobs, do this:
- Audit your Google Business Profile
- Correct category, service areas, hours, website, services.
- Check your NAP consistency
- Make sure name, address, phone match on your website and top directories.
- Ask for 5 reviews
- Text the link right after a successful job, not a week later.
- Reply to your last 10 reviews
- Mention the service and city naturally.
- Create or improve one money service page
- Water heater replacement or drain cleaning is usually a good start.
- Add 6 to 10 FAQs
- Use real questions you hear from customers.
- Claim or fix 3 key listings
- Start with Bing Places, Apple Maps, Yelp.
If you want to see whether these changes are actually working, Pantora tracks how your business shows up across AI platforms and gives you a clear to-do list to improve your chances of being recommended.
Do those seven things and you will be in a much better spot than the majority of plumbing companies in your market.
What to do if you are still not showing up
Sometimes you do the basics and you still do not appear in AI recommendations. When that happens, it is usually one of these issues:
- Your service area is unclear, or you are competing in a nearby big city where you have no location signals.
- You do not have enough recent reviews compared to the companies being recommended.
- Your website is too thin, and it does not clearly cover the services people ask for.
- Your business info is inconsistent across listings, so systems do not “connect the dots.”
- Competitors are getting talked about more, on local lists, neighborhood groups, and review sites.
The fix is not a secret trick. It is building more trusted signals in the places AI already looks.
This is where Pantora helps. It shows you where you are not being mentioned, which competitors are getting recommended instead, and what gaps to fix so you have a better shot at showing up.
If you want more ideas on generating leads using AI-driven channels (without turning your day into a marketing job), this is a solid read: AI-Driven Lead Generation Strategies for Home Service Businesses.
The next move
Start with the boring stuff, because it works. Clean up your business info, get a steady rhythm of reviews, and make your website answer the questions homeowners actually ask. Then check how AI platforms describe you and where they are pulling information from. Once you line those pieces up, you give ChatGPT a clear reason to mention your plumbing business when the next homeowner asks for help.