The AI Visibility Audit: The First Step Before Any Optimization Strategy

You want to improve your visibility on ChatGPT and Perplexity. Excellent instinct. But where do you start?

With an audit. You can't optimize what you don't measure.

Why the Audit is Essential

The Problem with Intuition

Many companies think they know how AIs talk about them. "We tested it, ChatGPT mentions us."

But:

• On which exact questions?
• How many times out of 100 queries?
• With what sentiment?
• Compared to competitors?

Without a structured audit, you're navigating blind.

What the Audit Reveals

A complete audit answers 5 strategic questions:

1. Are you visible? Citation rate on your key queries
2. How are you perceived? Sentiment of mentions
3. Where do you stand? Position vs competitors
4. What are your strengths/weaknesses? Distribution by topic
5. What do sources say? Information consistency

The Audit Methodology

Phase 1: Define the Scope

Identify Your Strategic Queries

List 30-50 questions your prospects ask AIs:

Discovery questions:

• "What is a [your category]?"
• "What is [your solution] used for?"

Comparison questions:

• "[Competitor A] vs [Competitor B], which to choose?"
• "[Your market] comparison 2025"

Recommendation questions:

• "What [category] do you recommend for [use case]?"
• "Best [product/service] for [context]?"

Brand questions:

• "What do you think of [your brand]?"
• "[Your brand] reviews"

Define Your Competitors

List 5-10 direct and indirect competitors. You'll compare them in the audit.

Choose Platforms

Test on the 3 main ones:

• ChatGPT (GPT-4)
• Gemini (Google)
• Perplexity

Phase 2: Collect Data

Manual Method

For each query, on each platform:

1. Ask the question
2. Capture the complete response
3. Note if you're mentioned
4. Analyze the context of the mention
5. Evaluate sentiment (positive/neutral/negative)

Estimated time: 2-3 days for 50 queries × 3 platforms

Automated Method

Tools like Repliq automate:

• AI querying
• Mention detection
• Sentiment analysis
• Competitive benchmarking

Estimated time: A few minutes

Phase 3: Analyze Results

Summary Table

Create a recap table:

Analysis by Topic

Break down by question category:

• Product questions: 45% visibility
• Service questions: 20% visibility ← Weak point
• Price questions: 50% visibility

Analysis by Platform

Compare your performance:

• ChatGPT: 40% visibility
• Gemini: 35% visibility
• Perplexity: 25% visibility ← Weak point

Competitive Analysis

Position each competitor:

Visibility (%)
│
80 ─┤                           ○ Competitor A (leader)
    │
60 ─┤
    │              ○ Competitor B
40 ─┤    ● YOU
    │
20 ─┤                    ○ Competitor C
    │
 0 ─┼───────────────────────────────────────
         Sentiment →
        50        70        90

Phase 4: Identify Priority Actions

Impact/Effort Matrix

Classify opportunities:

Quick wins (high impact, low effort):

• Correct information inconsistencies
• Update "About" pages

Strategic projects (high impact, high effort):

• Get Wikipedia mentions
• Develop press partnerships

Continuous optimizations (medium impact, low effort):

• Enrich existing content
• Improve social profiles

Avoid (low impact, high effort):

• Actions unrelated to identified gaps

The Audit Deliverable

A good audit produces:

1. Overall Visibility Score

Your average citation rate on strategic queries.

2. Thematic Heat Map

Where are you strong? Where are you weak?

3. Competitive Benchmark

Your relative position in the market.

4. AI Verbatims

Exact AI quotes about you (positive and negative).

5. Prioritized Action Plan

5-10 concrete actions to take, ranked by priority.

Mistakes to Avoid

Testing Too Few Queries

10 queries don't give a reliable view. Aim for 30-50 minimum.

Ignoring Context

"Mentioned" isn't enough. Analyze how and why.

Forgetting Competitors

Your KPIs alone say nothing. Benchmarking is essential.

Not Iterating

A one-time audit gives a snapshot. Continuous tracking gives the full picture.

What Comes After the Audit?

The audit is the starting point. It informs:

1. GEO Strategy: What actions to take?
2. Objectives: What KPIs to target?
3. Tracking: How to measure progress?

Conclusion

Before running, know where you're starting from.

The AI visibility audit is the essential first step of any GEO strategy. It transforms intuition into data, and data into action.

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• The 3 Essential GEO KPIs
• How to Measure AI Visibility ROI
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