ChatGPT gets its own Search Console, and AI traffic for businesses is here

What happened

On November 10, OpenAI launched Businesses in ChatGPT in beta. Businesses claim their company in Business Hub. Once verified, they can see how often ChatGPT mentions them in answers and how many website clicks those answers bring in. Think of it as a Search Console built into ChatGPT. Qualifying US online shops and online service companies can also set up a Business Agent, which lets users chat with the business right inside ChatGPT.

According to the official blog, three things launched:

• Claim your business: If ChatGPT works in your country and your business qualifies, you can claim your listing in Business Hub. After verification, you can update company details and upload a product catalog with prices and stock levels. ChatGPT uses that up-to-date information when it answers. If you already work with OpenAI as an enterprise customer or advertiser, talk to your OpenAI contact instead. Shopify sellers can link their store from either the Shopify admin or Business Hub, which makes verification faster.
• See the data: The dashboard shows mentions, profile page views, and website clicks. You can view them for the last 7 or 28 days. It also shows "discovery topics," which are the subjects of the conversations where your site gets cited. The data is aggregated, so you cannot see any single user conversation. The dashboard hides numbers when volume is too low.
• Business Agent: When a user opens a business's profile from a ChatGPT answer and that business has an Agent turned on, the user can start a separate chat. They can ask about product differences or which item fits them. These chats are labeled apart from ChatGPT's own answers. Businesses can also pay to promote their Agent, which turns it into a landing page for ChatGPT ads. Those promoted spots are labeled separately too.

Why it matters

OpenAI says ChatGPT has 1.2 billion weekly users. Until now, if you wanted to know whether AI mentioned your business, you had to ask the questions yourself, one by one, or check the AI report in Bing's dashboard. This is the first time ChatGPT gives businesses data on how often they come up and in which topics.

Two other points matter just as much:

• Claiming isn't limited to the US: If ChatGPT is available where you are and you meet the eligibility rules, you can claim your business and see the data. For now, only US online shops and online service companies can add a Business Agent. OpenAI says it will expand to more markets and industries later.
• You can maintain your product info: Prices and stock levels no longer depend only on what ChatGPT pulls from the web. If something is wrong, you now have a direct way to fix it.

How to get started

• Open Business Hub, claim your business, and follow the verification steps.
• If you sell on Shopify, connect your store from the Shopify admin.
• If you want a Business Agent, read OpenAI's Business Agent policy first and confirm your category is in scope.
• Once you have data, check the discovery topics and fill any gaps on your site. For how to check and what to change, read Get your site cited by AI search with a checkup your AI agent can run.

It is still in beta, so features and eligibility depend on what you see in Business Hub.