AI Visibility Audits
An AI Visibility Audit is a detailed review of how well your website can be found, understood, and cited by AI assistants such as ChatGPT, Google Gemini, and Microsoft Copilot. Each one searches a different library, so this audit makes sure your business is on the shelf in all of them, not just Google’s.
Understand How to Improve Your Visibility in AI-Generated Results
Every audit I deliver is custom-written and provides insights drawn from over 20 years of analysing search behaviour and website performance. My AI Visibility Audits combine that experience with real data on how AI assistants describe and recommend your business, so you can see exactly what is keeping you out of their answers and what to do about it.
This type of audit helps:
- Identify how visible your business is in AI answers – by tracking how often you are mentioned and cited when people ask the questions your customers ask.
- Identify which competitors are recommended instead of you – showing who appears in the answers where you do not.
- Identify any barriers preventing AI assistants from accessing your website – such as blocked crawlers, firewall settings, or pages missing from key search indexes.
- Identify content structure and metadata issues – helping AI assistants understand your pages and quote your content accurately.
- Identify gaps in your topic coverage – highlighting the questions your customers are asking that your content does not yet answer.
- Identify weaknesses in your third-party coverage – such as press coverage, Wikipedia, Reddit, and review platforms, with a plan for strengthening your brand signals.
- Identify the tactics that are working for your competitors – with clear insight into how they are gaining visibility in AI answers.
- Identify where your SEO strategy needs to adapt – so that it works for both traditional search and AI search.
For further information on this type of audit, you can arrange a free initial consultation with me via my contact page.
AI Visibility Audits from £600
The cost of the audit depends on your objectives, the number of topics you would like me to assess, and the number of competitors you would like me to analyse. Arrange an initial chat with me to discuss your requirements and I will send you a tailored quote.
Why AI Visibility is Important for Your Business
More and more people are asking AI assistants for recommendations, alongside traditional search engines. If these tools cannot access your website, or do not recognise your business as a trusted source, you may be left out of their answers entirely while your competitors are named instead.
My audit checks how ChatGPT, Google Gemini, Microsoft Copilot, Perplexity, and Claude each find and use your content, tests how your business appears for the questions your customers are asking, and gives you clear, prioritised recommendations to improve your chances of being cited.
One of the most talented SEOs I’ve worked with. James’ audits are so insightful, well-written and informative.
What is AI Visibility?
When someone asks an AI assistant a question such as “Who is the best accountant in Bristol?” or “Which project management software is best for a small team?”, it does not show them a list of ten links. It writes a single answer, often naming a handful of businesses and linking to the websites it used as sources. AI visibility describes how often, and how favourably, your business appears in those answers.
Mentions and Citations
Your business can appear in an AI-generated answer in two main ways:
- A mention is when the AI names your business, product, or service in its answer. This builds awareness and can influence a customer’s decision, even if they never visit your website.
- A citation is when the AI links to a page on your website as one of the sources for its answer. Citations can send visitors straight to your website, and they show that the AI regards your content as trustworthy.
The strongest position is to be both mentioned and cited. You can, however, be mentioned without being cited, for example, when an AI repeats what other websites say about you. You can also be cited without being named. My audit looks at both.
A Different Way of Searching
Traditional search engines show a list of results and leave the choice to the user. AI assistants make much of that choice for the user: they read several sources, summarise them, and present a single answer. Many people get what they need from that answer without clicking through to any website. If your business is not part of the answer, you may not get a second chance to be seen.
Why Ranking Well on Google is Not Enough
Strong traditional SEO remains a vital foundation, but it does not guarantee AI visibility. There are three main reasons for this:
- Different AI assistants use different search indexes. ChatGPT has historically relied mainly on Bing, Microsoft Copilot uses Bing, Claude appears to use Brave Search, and Perplexity has its own index. Ranking well on Google does not mean you are visible in all of them.
- AI assistants look beyond a single search term. They break a question into several related searches and choose sources that cover the whole topic well. A study by Ahrefs in March 2026 found that only 38% of the pages cited in Google’s AI Overviews ranked in Google’s top ten results for that search.
- AI assistants consider your reputation as well as your rankings. What other websites, review platforms, and online communities say about your business can influence whether an AI recommends you.
Who This Audit Is For
This audit is ideal for any business that is already investing in search and wants to improve its visibility in AI assistants. It is particularly useful if:
- You have invested in SEO, content, or PR and want to know whether it is helping you appear in AI answers.
- You have noticed competitors being recommended by AI assistants when your business is not.
- You want to understand how AI search is changing your market and take action before competitors do.
- You need clear, independent advice on where to focus your efforts and budget.
How AI Assistants Find and Cite Web Pages
Most AI assistants follow the same basic process. Crawlers visit your website and add it to a search index. When someone asks a question, the AI assistant breaks it into several related searches, reads the most promising pages, and cites the passages that answer the question best. What the AI already knows about your business from its training also influences which sources it looks for and trusts.
Your website can fall short at any of these stages, and my audit checks each one.
| Stage | What can go wrong | What I check in the audit |
|---|---|---|
| Crawling and indexing | AI crawlers are blocked by the website or its hosting provider, or pages are missing from key search indexes | Crawler access settings and index coverage across Google, Bing, and Brave |
| Existing knowledge | The AI does not recognise your business or answers without searching | How often your business is mentioned and recommended without a search |
| Searching | Your content only covers a narrow set of search terms | Whether your content covers the wider topics your customers ask about |
| Reading | Content is slow to load or cannot be read by AI crawlers | Page speed and whether your content is visible to AI crawlers |
| Citing | Answers are vague, buried, or spread across a page | Whether your pages give clear, specific answers that are easy to quote |
The Search Indexes Behind Each AI Assistant
Each AI assistant searches a different library. Some rely on Google, some on Bing, one uses Brave, and one has built its own. Being visible in one does not guarantee you are visible in the others, which is why my audit checks your website across all of them.
| AI assistant | Where it finds web pages | When it searches the web | What this means for your business |
|---|---|---|---|
| ChatGPT | Mainly Bing, alongside other search providers | When it decides a question needs up-to-date information | Visibility in Bing and a strong reputation across the web are both important |
| Google Gemini (including AI Overviews and AI Mode) | Google's search index | Almost every search in AI Overviews and AI Mode, and selectively in the Gemini app | Strong Google SEO and in-depth coverage of your subject are essential |
| Microsoft Copilot | Bing's search index | When it decides a question needs up-to-date information | Bing visibility matters most, and Bing should be told promptly when your pages change |
| Perplexity | Its own search index | Every question | Fresh, clearly structured content performs well, and Perplexity cites more sources per answer than most |
| Claude | Very likely Brave Search's index | When it decides a question needs up-to-date information | Visibility in Brave Search is often overlooked but can make a real difference |
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What This Audit Includes
1. Understanding Your Objectives
We will start by discussing what you want to achieve from AI visibility. Together, we will agree on the topics, products, and services that matter most to your business, and the competitors you would like me to compare you against.
2. Tracking Your AI Visibility
I will set up prompt tracking to monitor how your business appears when people ask AI assistants the kinds of questions your customers ask. This shows how often you are mentioned and cited, and which competitors appear alongside you or instead of you. Tracking needs to run for at least two weeks before I can put together the findings, so that they are based on reliable data rather than a one-off snapshot.
3. Assessing Your Website
I will assess your content’s structure, metadata, and technical signals to identify strengths and opportunities for improvement. This includes checking whether AI crawlers can access your website, whether your pages appear in the search indexes AI assistants rely on, and whether your content gives clear answers that are easy for AI to quote.
4. Assessing Your Reputation Beyond Your Website
AI assistants pay close attention to what other websites say about your business. I will assess your off-page signals, such as press mentions, and outline a plan for improving your third-party coverage and strengthening your brand signals.
5. Analysing Your Competitors
I will analyse the competitors that AI assistants mention and cite for your key topics, and identify the tactics that appear to be working for them. This shows where the gaps are and what it will take to close them.
6. Aligning Your SEO Strategy for the AI Era
Finally, I will advise on the changes needed to align your existing SEO strategy with the way people now search. Much of what works for traditional search still applies, but AI assistants reward some things differently, and your strategy should reflect that.
Arrange a Consultation
Get in touch to discuss a plan for improving your AI search visibility.
What My Clients Say
Contact Me – James Hubbard
Send me an email: info@jameshubbardconsulting.co.uk
Call or text: 07850 920369
Why Work With Me?
I’m a highly experienced freelance SEO consultant and former Head of SEO for a digital marketing agency in Brighton. All my audits are:
Custom-written
I create a report that is unique to your business based on our discussion and your business objectives.
Loaded with prioritised advice
I tell you what the key issues are, how to fix them, and the recommended order for fixing them.
Easy to understand
I try to explain complex SEO and AI concepts in an accessible way, keeping technical terminology to a minimum.
Frequently Asked Questions
Some of the common questions I am asked about this type of audit.
What is an AI Visibility Audit?
It is a detailed review of how your business appears when people ask AI assistants such as ChatGPT, Google Gemini, Microsoft Copilot, Perplexity, and Claude for answers. I track how often you are mentioned and cited, assess why, and provide clear recommendations to improve your chances of being recommended.
How is an AI audit different from an SEO audit?
An SEO audit focuses on how your website performs in traditional search results, mainly on Google. An AI audit looks at how AI assistants find, understand, and recommend your business. There is a lot of overlap, as strong SEO remains an important foundation. However, AI assistants rely on different search indexes and give more weight to your reputation across the web, so this type of audit looks well beyond your own website.
What will I receive at the end of the audit?
You will receive a summary of the data collected, showing how your AI visibility compares with that of your key competitors. You will also receive a PDF report containing my audit findings, with clear, prioritised recommendations and a suggested AI strategy.
How long does the audit take?
The audit usually takes three to four weeks to complete. This includes at least two weeks of data collection. It may take longer if your objectives require more data, for example, when tracking a large number of topics or competitors.
Why do you need to collect data for at least two weeks?
AI assistants do not always give the same answer to the same question. Their responses can vary from day to day and from one conversation to the next. Collecting data over at least two weeks means my findings are based on a reliable pattern rather than a one-off snapshot.
How much does it cost?
AI Visibility Audits start from £800. The final cost depends on your objectives, the number of topics you would like me to assess, and the number of competitors you would like me to analyse. Once I understand what you want to achieve, I will provide a tailored quote.
What are your payment terms?
I ask for a 50% deposit to book the audit, with the remaining balance due on completion.