DTC Mode · Services ChatGPT Ads & AI Visibility
Live inside ChatGPT

AI is picking the brands. Be one of them.

We get ChatGPT and the other AI models recommending your brand, and we run your paid ChatGPT ads while the space is still cheap and half empty. Both halves, done for you.

Ads are live in only a handful of countries so far. Get in before your competitors do.

Watch: the AI land grab, in 6 minutes
Why now, and what to do about it 06:14
As featured in
The shift

Search is moving, and it is moving fast

Around 900 million people a week now open ChatGPT, and a growing share of them use it the way they used to use Google.

Ask it for the best protein powder, the best CRM, the best supplier, and it names one or two brands. Everyone else may as well not exist.

Almost nobody has worked out how to get named yet, and the ad inventory has barely been touched. That makes this the earliest possible moment to move.

900M
Weekly ChatGPT users, up from 400 million two years ago
~15%
Of search behaviour already shifting towards AI assistants
7
Countries where ChatGPT ads are open to advertisers today
2000
Google
2007
Meta
2020
TikTok
Now
AI search
What we do

Two halves of the same job

Most agencies chasing this only do the organic side. We run both, because they compound.

You need both. Organic is the foundation, paid is the accelerant.

+
01 · Organic

AI visibility

Getting ChatGPT, Gemini, Claude and Perplexity to know who you are and put your name in the answer when someone asks.

  • Audit of what the models currently say about you and your category
  • Rebuilding your site and product data so models can read and cite it
  • Entity and review footprint across the sources the models pull from
  • Content built to answer the questions your buyers are asking the models
  • Monthly tracking of where you show up and who you show up against
02 · Paid

ChatGPT ads

Buying placement inside the answer while the auction is still thin and the cost per click has not caught up with the attention.

  • Ad account setup, verification and access on the platform
  • Product feed and catalogue prepared for the placements
  • Campaign build, targeting and budget structure
  • Creative and copy written for how people read an AI answer
  • Testing, scaling and reporting against contribution margin
Plain english

What this is, in plain English

AEO Answer Engine OptimisationGetting your brand into the answer an AI gives, rather than a list of links.
GEO Generative Engine OptimisationThe same job, named differently. Optimising for models that generate answers.
AI SEO The catch-all termWhatever you call it, the work is the same: make the model trust you and name you.
ADS Paid ChatGPT placementsNew in 2026. Sponsored products and links that sit inside the conversation.

You know SEO for Google. This is that, for AI.

Same instinct, different machine. On Google you were competing for a spot on a page of ten blue links. In an AI answer there is usually room for two or three brands, so the gap between showing up and not showing up is much wider.

The old game

  • Rank on page one
  • Ten results to fight over
  • Keywords and backlinks
  • Google Ads at £4 a click

The new game

  • Get named in the answer
  • Two or three brands mentioned
  • Entities, sources and citations
  • ChatGPT ads, barely bid up
Proof

These are real ads running inside ChatGPT right now

Not a concept, not a beta waiting list. Brands are buying placement inside the answer today.

ChatGPT
What is the best protein powder for someone training five times a week?

At that volume you want around 25 to 30g per serve and a complete amino profile. Two that come up consistently:

Sponsored
Gold Standard 100% Whey
£40.00
Optimum Nutrition UK
Bulk Pure Whey Protein 1kg
£27.99
Bulk
Sports nutrition Product carousel
ChatGPT
Good moisturiser for sensitive skin that will not break the bank?

Look for a short ingredient list and no added fragrance. These two are the usual recommendations for reactive skin:

Sponsored
CeraVe Moisturising Lotion 236ml
CeraVe Moisturising Lotion 236ml
£9.38
LOOKFANTASTIC
La Roche-Posay Toleriane Sensitive
La Roche-Posay Toleriane Sensitive
£23.00
Justmylook
Beauty & skincare Product carousel
ChatGPT
Where should I eat in Shoreditch tonight, mid budget?

Depends what you fancy. For small plates and a decent wine list, a few local spots still have tables tonight:

Sponsored
Table for two, 7:30pmBook
Set menu, £38 per headView
Hospitality Local intent
ChatGPT
Best running shoe for a first marathon?

For a first marathon most people are better served by a cushioned daily trainer than a carbon race shoe. Two popular picks:

Sponsored
Hoka Clifton 10
Hoka Clifton 10
£89.89
Runners Need
New Balance Fresh Foam X 1080 v14
New Balance Fresh Foam X 1080 v14
£79.99
SportsShoes.com
Footwear Product carousel
ChatGPT
What supplement helps with sleep, something not too strong?

Magnesium glycinate is the usual starting point and tends to be gentler than melatonin. Worth a look:

Sponsored
Magnesium Bisglycinate 375mg
Magnesium Bisglycinate 375mg
£7.59
Holland & Barrett
Solgar Magnesium Glycinate
Solgar Magnesium Glycinate
£11.50
Justmylook
Supplements Product carousel
ChatGPT
Which bean to cup coffee machine is worth it under £400?

Under £400 you are choosing between build quality and milk texturing. The two most recommended at that price:

Sponsored
DeLonghi Magnifica Evo
DeLonghi Magnifica Evo
£339.00
John Lewis & Partners
Philips Baristina
Philips Baristina
£299.99
Argos
Home & kitchen High-consideration

Layouts recreated for clarity. Product images, names, prices and retailers are live UK Google Shopping data.

Our own proof

DTC Mode is verified and running on the platform. Most agencies talking about ChatGPT ads are still sitting in the approval queue. We are already inside it, testing with our own money, which is how we know what works before we point it at your budget.

How it works

Three steps, and we do the heavy part

01

Run your AI visibility audit

We ask the models the questions your buyers ask, record what they say about you and who they name instead, and hand you the gap in writing.

Free, takes 48 hours
02

We build the organic and paid setup

Site and data rebuilt so the models can read you, entity footprint fixed, ad account verified, feed prepared, campaigns built and creative written.

Weeks two to four
03

You get recommended, and you run ads

Your name starts appearing in answers, your ads run alongside them, and you get monthly reporting on both against contribution margin.

Ongoing
Why us

Why DTC Mode

First movers, already inside

We are verified and live on the ad platform while most of the market is still on a waiting list reading about it. Everything we recommend has been run before it reaches you.

Paid and organic, under one roof

The AI SEO shops only do organic. The ad shops only do ads. Splitting them across two suppliers wastes the compounding effect, so we run both together.

Done for you, or built with your team

We can run the whole thing, or set it up and train your team to keep it moving. Operators who have grown eight-figure brands, not a reseller with a dashboard.

Social proof

What brands are saying

This is new for everyone, so we are being honest about it. Here is where we are.

★★★★★

Testimonial slot. Drop in a client quote about the audit or the first month of ads once the first results land.

Name · Brand
★★★★★

Testimonial slot. A quote about being named in ChatGPT answers works well here.

Name · Brand
★★★★★

Testimonial slot. Or swap this whole row for a results card once you have a number worth showing.

Name · Brand

Onboarding brands right now. Client results are coming, and until they land the proof above is the honest version: real ads, real placements, and us already inside the platform.

The offer

What you get

Organic AI visibility

  • AI visibility audit. What the models say about you today, and who they name instead.

  • Site and data rebuild. Structure, schema and product data the models can read.

  • Entity footprint. Getting you into the sources the models pull from.

  • Answer-led content. Built around the questions your buyers put to the models.

  • Visibility tracking. Monthly view of where you appear and against whom.

Paid ChatGPT ads

  • Account setup. Verification, access and billing on the ad platform.

  • Feed preparation. Catalogue and product data ready for the placements.

  • Campaign build. Structure, targeting and budget split across intents.

  • Creative and copy. Written for how people read an answer, then tested.

  • Reporting. Performance traced back to contribution margin, monthly.

Option A

Done for you

We build it, run it and report on it. You approve creative and watch the numbers. Best if your team is small or already at capacity.

Option B

Built with your team

We set the whole thing up, then train your people to run it. You keep the capability in house once the system is working.

Questions

The things everyone asks

Is this real, and which countries is it live in?

Yes. OpenAI began testing ads inside ChatGPT in early 2026 and has been opening the platform market by market since. As of now advertisers can run in the US, Canada, the UK, Australia, New Zealand, Japan and South Korea, with more markets due before the end of the year. Ads show to free and lower-tier users, so your reach is the largest part of the user base.

Do I need a big budget?

No. The auction is thin, which is the whole point of moving now. Small budgets go a lot further here than they do on Meta or Google, and the organic side costs you nothing per click at all. We will tell you on the call what we think is sensible for your category rather than pushing you to spend more than the data justifies.

What is the difference between organic and paid?

Organic is getting the model to recommend you on its own, because it has learned who you are and trusts the sources that describe you. Paid is buying a sponsored placement inside the answer. Organic takes longer and compounds. Paid works immediately and stops when you stop paying. Running both means the paid spend warms up the ground that the organic work then holds for free.

How fast does it work?

Paid can be live within a couple of weeks of the audit, assuming account verification goes smoothly. Organic visibility moves more slowly, usually somewhere between six and twelve weeks before you see your name turning up in answers with any consistency, because the models need to pick up the changes. We report on both from month one so you can see it moving.

What if I am not in an eligible country yet?

Then we start with the organic side, which works everywhere and has no eligibility gate, and we prepare your ad account and feed so you can switch paid on the day your market opens. Brands that do the groundwork early tend to launch into a much cheaper auction than the ones who start the week the market goes live.

Are you affiliated with OpenAI?

No. DTC Mode is an independent agency. We are a verified advertiser on the platform and we use the OpenAI name only to describe where the ads run.

Get in before your category does

Book a call and we will show you what ChatGPT currently says about your brand, and what it says about the competitor it recommends instead.

First come, first served. We are onboarding fast and taking a limited number of brands per category so we are not competing against ourselves in the same auction.

Not affiliated with, endorsed by or sponsored by OpenAI. ChatGPT is a trademark of OpenAI.