OpenAI just shared the first clear guidance for how merchants and publishers can get their products included in ChatGPT’s new shopping experience. Here's what we know — and how to act on it.
For official details, see OpenAI’s announcement: How to get your products discovered in ChatGPT.
ChatGPT now recommends products in search
When users type queries with shopping intent — like "best gifts for home cooks" or "affordable noise-cancelling headphones" — ChatGPT may surface product recommendations directly in the response.
These results are selected algorithmically. They’re not paid placements, and any merchant can be included — if your content is accessible.
Two things matter right now
OpenAI outlined two actions any brand can take to improve discoverability inside ChatGPT search:
1. Make sure ChatGPT can crawl your site
ChatGPT uses a crawler called OAI-SearchBot to index websites for its shopping and search experiences. If this crawler is blocked in your robots.txt, your content won’t be visible in product results — regardless of quality.
Action:
Check your robots.txt file for the following:
User-agent: ChatGPT-User
Disallow:
User-agent: GPTBot
Disallow:
User-agent: OAI-SearchBot
Disallow:
User-agent: OAI-Operator
Disallow:
This allows full access. If you’ve previously blocked this bot, update your configuration.
You can track referral traffic from ChatGPT via the UTM parameter utm_source=chatgpt.com, which is automatically added to outbound links.
Note: This crawler is not used for model training. It is used only for ChatGPT’s search and product features.
2. Join the product feed waitlist
OpenAI is working on a direct product feed system. This would allow merchants to supply up-to-date product data for more accurate recommendations inside ChatGPT.
Action:
Submit your interest to OpenAI via their form and you'll be notified when feed uploads go live.
What this means for brands
The lines between search engines and AI assistants are blurring. ChatGPT’s product results now shape buyer behavior — and inclusion is algorithmic, not paid.
If you want your product to be visible:
- Let OAI-SearchBot crawl your site
- Be ready to supply structured product data when feed access opens
As OpenAI expands this feature, Profound's tools like Agent Analytics and Answer Engine Insights will help you track your discoverability, measure AI visibility, and optimize your content accordingly.
Analysis of ChatGPT Shopping in Profound
Profound provides a dedicated ChatGPT Shopping dashboard to help brands understand and optimize their product visibility in AI-powered shopping results. You can:
- Track your product visibility over time and benchmark against competitors.
- Analyze how specific products are represented, including details like pricing, reviews, and purchase locations.
FAQ: Getting Your Product Discovered by ChatGPT
How does ChatGPT decide which products to show? ChatGPT uses an algorithm to select products based on relevance, content quality, and accessibility. There are no paid placements.
Is there a way to guarantee my product appears? No. Inclusion is algorithmic. The best way to improve your chances is to ensure your site is crawlable, your product data is structured and up-to-date, and to submit your interest via the OpenAI product feed form to be notified when direct feed uploads are available.
Does ChatGPT use my site for model training? No. The OAI-SearchBot crawler is only used for search and product features, not for model training.
How can I track traffic from ChatGPT?
Look for the utm_source=chatgpt.com parameter in your analytics to identify referrals from ChatGPT.
When will the product feed feature be available? OpenAI has not announced a launch date. You can join the waitlist to be notified when it’s live.
How Profound Helps You Win in ChatGPT Shopping
If you want to monitor and improve your performance in ChatGPT Shopping, Profound offers two powerful tools that work together:
- Profound ChatGPT Shopping: See how your products are showing up in ChatGPT Shopping, analyze placement, track visibility, and benchmark against competitors. Get actionable insights to boost your product’s presence and drive more conversions.
- Profound Agent Analytics: Gain full visibility into how AI crawlers access and interpret your content. Track AI bot activity, ensure your site is optimized for AI-driven search, and measure the impact of AI search on your human traffic.
By combining these features, you can:
- Track when and how your products appear in ChatGPT Shopping
- Understand which prompts trigger your listings
- Monitor AI crawler activity and ensure your site is fully accessible
- Attribute traffic and conversions from AI-powered search
Ready to take control of your AI shopping performance? Contact sales to see how Profound can help your brand win in AI-powered search.
