The Night We Tried to Argue Our Way to the Top of ChatGPT
In 2024, about thirty of our river guides had just finished two weeks of intense high-water training. One of our guides asked ChatGPT which local rafting company it recommended for a high-water trip. It named another outfitter and left us out entirely.
As far as we knew, the outfitter it recommended wouldn’t start training until after the high water had receded. We knew what our crew had put in, and we took the omission personally. So we tried to change its mind.
One person explained why we thought we deserved the recommendation. Then someone else added more. Somewhere along the way, arguing with ChatGPT became a group project.
Late that night, I was still at it when a large orange policy warning appeared. It wasn’t a ban, but I glanced over my shoulder to make sure the Terminator wasn’t coming. Was this how you got on the Terminator’s list?
Eventually, I found a more useful question: what would a potential customer find when they went looking?
I researched, tested and documented what I learned until I understood how to make our business easier to find. I kept checking what people could find about us and whether it reflected the business we actually ran.
I remember finding us around page three or four of Google results in searches I checked. Over time, I started seeing us much higher in those searches. We also began appearing in AI recommendations, sometimes as the first company suggested.
Later, we had record advance bookings. As of October 14, 2026, Adventure Idaho is one of Riggins’ top-rated rafting outfitters, with a 5.0 Google rating across 650 reviews. The demand case study has broader, dated measures. Search became a meaningful part of our growth, alongside the work of earning a reputation and running good trips.
That night changed the way I think about visibility. Selling to people is a learned skill. So is making your business understandable to the machines helping them choose. It takes research, judgment and a clear understanding of what makes the business worth choosing.
That’s the work I help other service businesses do. If you want to talk about what customers find when they look for yours, start with a free fit call.
Preferably before you spend a whole night arguing with a chatbot.