AI Visibility Research
74% of physiotherapy practices are invisible to AI. Health queries require strong E-E-A-T signals — AI cites CSP-registered physios with treatment-specific pages and professional credentials in schema, not generic 'we treat aches and pains' brochure sites.
Check your business74%
Invisible to ChatGPT
physiotherapy practices
Thousands
Businesses analysed
26%
AI-visible
Can be found by AI assistants
2-4 weeks
Time to fix
With structured data + directories
The test
ChatGPT is cautious with physio queries (YMYL health). It recommends CSP directories and NHS guidance over individual practices. Only 26% cite individual physios — those with professional credentials in schema.
Each AI system uses different data sources and citation patterns.
Source: Bing index
ChatGPT is cautious with physio queries (YMYL health). It recommends CSP directories and NHS guidance over individual practices. Only 26% cite individual physios — those with professional credentials in schema.
Source: Live web crawl
Perplexity cites physio practices 37% of the time, favouring those with treatment-specific pages and patient review platforms like Doctify.
Source: Google index + Maps
Google AI Overviews pull from NHS, CSP, and top-ranking practice websites. Practices with condition-specific content and clear E-E-A-T signals appear in health AI summaries.
Physiotherapists businesses face specific challenges that prevent AI assistants from finding and recommending them.
Physiotherapy is YMYL health content — AI demands professional credentials. CSP and HCPC registration buried in footer text is invisible to AI systems that read structured data.
Most physio sites describe conditions generically rather than creating dedicated treatment pages. AI cannot match 'physio for ACL recovery near me' to a page that says 'we treat musculoskeletal conditions'.
Booking systems are often disconnected from the website. AI cannot recommend 'a physio with online booking' when the booking link isn't in schema.
Pricing for initial assessments and follow-up sessions is frequently hidden behind 'contact us', blocking AI from answering cost-related queries.
What the visible businesses do differently
HCPC and CSP registration numbers in schema • Dedicated pages per treatment: sports injuries, post-surgery rehab, back pain, neck pain, ACL, shoulder • Published session pricing with initial vs follow-up rates • Physio profiles with specialisms, qualifications, and professional memberships
Schema types that matter: MedicalBusiness, Physician, LocalBusiness, FAQPage, Person
Include your HCPC registration number and CSP membership in MedicalBusiness schema. This is the professional verification signal AI requires for health content.
Separate pages for sports injuries, back pain, neck pain, post-surgery rehab, pregnancy physio, and chronic pain. Each with expected recovery timelines, session frequency, and pricing.
Initial assessment fee and follow-up session costs. AI answers 'how much does physio cost?' only from pages that state the number. Include insurance/direct billing information.
CSP directory is the authoritative source. Doctify provides patient reviews for healthcare professionals. Both carry trust weight with AI.
Answer 'how long does physio take for X?', 'do I need a GP referral?', 'will physio help my X?'. These are the exact queries AI tries to answer.
Only about 26% of physiotherapy practices are visible to ChatGPT. The rest are invisible because they lack the structured data, directory presence, and content that AI assistants need to make recommendations. Our research shows that ChatGPT relies on Bing's index for 87% of its citations.
Most physiotherapy practices can achieve basic AI visibility within 2-4 weeks by adding structured data, claiming key directories, and submitting to Bing Webmaster Tools. Full optimisation (including review building and content creation) typically takes 2-3 months to show results.
Not directly. ChatGPT uses Bing's index, not Google's. However, the factors that help you rank on Google (structured data, quality content, reviews) also help on Bing. Our data shows that 87% of ChatGPT citations match Bing's top 10 results, while only 56% match Google's top 10.
It depends on the query. Google AI Overviews are strongest for local searches backed by Google Maps data. Perplexity crawls the web daily and often finds more niche results. ChatGPT relies on Bing's index and favours well-known directories.
physiotherapy practices should use MedicalBusiness, Physician, LocalBusiness, FAQPage, Person schema types. The most impactful is adding your business details (name, address, phone, hours, services) in structured data that AI can read programmatically.
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