AI Visibility Audit Guide

Why audit first

Before optimizing, you need to understand how AI systems currently perceive your brand. An AI visibility audit establishes your baseline — where you are visible, where you are absent and where competitors dominate.

Step 1: Define your query set

Compile 50-100 questions your target audience asks AI platforms. Include questions at every stage: awareness ("what is..."), consideration ("which...") and decision ("best..."). These queries form the foundation of your audit.

Step 2: Query AI platforms

Run your query set across ChatGPT, Perplexity, Google AI Overviews, Gemini, Claude and Copilot. Record exactly what each platform says — which brands are mentioned, cited and recommended.

Step 3: Map your position

For each query, note whether your brand appears. If it appears, classify the appearance: mentioned, cited as source, or actively recommended. Compare against competitor appearances.

Step 4: Calculate metrics

Compute your Share of Recommendation, Citation Share and Top3 rate. Compare against your top 3-5 competitors. Identify the gaps where competitors are recommended but you are not.

Step 5: Identify opportunities

For each gap, analyze why the AI system recommended competitors instead. Common causes include missing entity definitions, weak authority signals, unstructured content or inconsistent brand information.