Tools · 3 minutes

Google & AI Search Visibility Check

How visible is your company in Google and in AI answers like ChatGPT? Twelve questions for founders and marketing leaders. No technical knowledge needed, and your next three steps at the end.

Findable

Can buyers find you?

01When buyers search for the problem you solve, on Google or in ChatGPT, do you know whether your company shows up?
02Do you know which topics bring buyers to your website today, and which important topics bring almost no one?
03Is being visible in AI answers (ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, Perplexity) part of your marketing plan this year?

Quotable

Will AI repeat what you say?

04Does your website answer your buyers’ most common questions directly, in their words?
05Do you publish things others want to quote: your own data, clear definitions or honest comparisons?
06When buyers compare you with alternatives, do they find your version of the story, or only your competitors’?

Understandable

Do Google and AI understand what you do?

07If you asked ChatGPT “What does [your company] do?”, would the answer be correct and up to date?
08Does each of your key offerings have one clear page that explains it, rather than being spread across many?

Trustworthy

Do others vouch for you?

09Do you know which websites AI tools trust in your category, such as review sites, “best of” lists and communities, and whether you’re on them?
10Do you know which competitors are taking your place in AI answers, and why AI picks them?

Measured

Are you measuring and acting on it?

11Do you track how often AI tools mention you compared with your competitors, month by month?
12Do you have an action plan, with owners and dates, to improve how you show up in Google and AI search?

What this check looks at

Buyers now research in two places: Google and AI assistants. This check looks at five things that decide whether you show up in both: whether buyers can find you, whether AI will repeat what you say, whether Google and AI understand what you do, whether others vouch for you, and whether you measure and act on it.

Findable

Can buyers find you?

3 questions

Quotable

Will AI repeat what you say?

3 questions

Understandable

Do Google and AI understand what you do?

2 questions

Trustworthy

Do others vouch for you?

2 questions

Measured

Are you measuring and acting on it?

2 questions

How the result works

Each answer scores 2 for yes, 1 for somewhat and 0 for not yet. Your score is your points as a share of the maximum for the questions you answered. Each area gets its own result, and the next steps come from your weakest answers first.

  • Invisible (0 and up): Buyers researching your problem are probably finding someone else. The first steps are simple and cheap.
  • Occasionally seen (38 and up): You show up sometimes, but not on purpose. A plan and a monthly check would change that quickly.
  • Showing up (63 and up): You are visible for many buyer questions. The gains now come from being quoted and recommended, not just found.
  • Recommended (88 and up): Google and AI tools know and trust you. Keep measuring, and keep publishing things worth quoting.

Measure it yourself

Measure whether AI assistants recommend you

Also called: AI visibility and generative engine optimisation (GEO)

Ask ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini and Perplexity the questions your buyers ask, many times each, and score every answer: not mentioned, mentioned in passing, listed or top pick. Track your mention rate and share of voice against competitors over time.

Why it matters. More buyers ask AI assistants for recommendations before they visit any website. If you are not in the answer, you are not on the shortlist.

  1. Collect real buyer questions from sales calls and your customer profile.
  2. Tag each question by stage: learning, comparing, deciding.
  3. Run them on several assistants with web search on, several times each.
  4. Score every answer with one rubric and check facts about you are correct.
  5. Report mention rate and share of voice for questions that do not name you.

What goes wrong. Trusting one run. Answers change every time. Counting a mention that describes a different company.

SparkToro (January 2026) found under a 1 in 100 chance of getting the same brand list twice from AI tools for the same question. [independent research]

Run it with the AI visibility check agent

Find out who AI recommends instead of you

Also called: AI citation and lost-mention analysis

For every question where AI named a competitor and not you, collect the sources it cited and sort them: competitor pages, review sites, "best of" lists, articles. The pattern becomes your content and PR plan.

Why it matters. AI assistants repeat what the web says. The sources they cite show exactly where you need to be mentioned.

  1. Separate who got mentioned from which pages were cited.
  2. Rank the cited domains by how many questions they appear in.
  3. Sort pages by type: lists, comparisons, reviews, definitions.
  4. Plan: get listed, publish the missing comparison, fix pages that are cited but broken.

What goes wrong. Only looking at links. Some assistants mention sources in text without a link.

Questions people ask

What is AI search visibility?

AI search visibility is how often AI assistants such as ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini and Perplexity mention and recommend your company when buyers ask about the problem you solve. It works alongside classic Google visibility, and the two now shape which vendors make a buyer’s shortlist.

What is the difference between SEO and GEO?

SEO (search engine optimisation) helps your pages rank in Google. GEO (generative engine optimisation) helps AI assistants understand, quote and recommend you in their answers. Both reward clear pages, direct answers and being mentioned by sources others trust.

Why do AI tools recommend my competitors instead of me?

Usually because the sources they trust, such as review sites, “best of” lists, comparison pages and communities, mention your competitors and not you, or because your own pages do not answer buyer questions clearly enough to quote.

Are my answers stored?

No. The check runs entirely in your browser. Nothing is sent to us or saved.