What does WRKNG Digital do?

WRKNG Digital helps Shopify store owners optimize for AI-powered product discovery. We build the structured data, content strategy, and product feed optimizations that get your store recommended by ChatGPT, Google AI Overviews, and Perplexity.

Who is WRKNG Digital for?

Shopify store owners and DTC brand operators doing $500K to $10M+ in annual revenue who want to understand how AI is reshaping product discovery — and what to actually do about it.

What is the Free AI Commerce Audit?

A free tool that scores your Shopify store for AI discoverability across ChatGPT, Google AI Overviews, Copilot, and Perplexity. Identifies gaps in structured data, product feeds, and content extractability. Results delivered in 24 hours.

How does AI change product discovery for Shopify stores?

AI shopping assistants like ChatGPT and Perplexity now recommend products directly in conversation — without sending users to a search results page. Stores that aren't optimized for AI extraction are invisible to these systems, regardless of their Google SEO.

5 AI Shopping Assistants Your Customers Use Instead of Google

By Steve Merrill, Founder of WRKNG Digital | August 28, 2026

Your customers aren't only searching Google anymore. A growing share ask an AI assistant to find, compare, and recommend products for them.

Here are five they're using, and what your store needs to show up in each.

1. ChatGPT

ChatGPT now handles product discovery and is building checkout with partners. Shoppers describe what they want and it recommends options. To appear, you need complete product data, valid schema, and ideally a catalog connection where supported.

2. Perplexity

Perplexity answers shopping questions with cited sources and has been building commerce features. It favors content and data it can verify and quote. To appear, make your pages citable with direct answers and clean structured data.

3. Google AI Overviews

Google's AI Overviews sit above the classic links and answer many queries before a click. Google's own overview of AI in Search explains how they're built. To appear, format for extraction and keep your structured data strong.

4. Microsoft Copilot

Copilot brings AI answers into Bing and Windows, including product help. It reads structured, authoritative content. To appear, the same fundamentals apply: complete data, clear answers, and consistent brand signals.

5. Shopping-focused AI agents

A new class of agents browses and buys on a shopper's behalf across stores. They compare readable data and complete checkout where they can. To appear, make your feed accurate and your checkout low-friction.

Frequently Asked Questions

Are customers really shopping through AI assistants?

A growing share use AI to research and compare products before buying, and some assistants now support discovery and checkout directly. The behavior is early but expanding quickly.

What do all these assistants have in common?

They read structured, machine-readable data and favor citable, direct-answer content. Complete product data and valid schema are the shared entry ticket.

Do I need to optimize for each one separately?

Mostly no. The core work, complete feeds, valid schema, and extractable content, helps you across all of them. Some, like ChatGPT, add platform-specific connections worth enabling.

How do I know if I appear in them?

Ask each assistant your top buyer questions and record whether your brand or products come up. Track that mention rate over time as you improve your data.

Want to know if AI assistants can actually find and recommend your store? Get a free AI-visibility read on your Shopify store at WRKNG Digital. We show you exactly what ChatGPT, Perplexity, and Google AI see when they look at your products.