How to track whether AI search tools recommend your business

Most monthly SEO reports still end at Google rankings and organic visits. Yet more and more homeowners now ask an AI assistant something like “who is a good electrician near me?” before they ever open a website. If your firm is missing from those answers, your rankings report will not show the work you are losing.

This is the approach we use with trades and local service clients to put a number on AI visibility, and it does not need costly software.

The three numbers worth tracking

We split AI visibility into three measures, because a weak score on each one calls for a different fix:

Step 1: Write down the questions customers really ask

Begin with what a genuine customer types or says when they are choosing a firm like yours. Useful places to look include the questions you hear on the phone, enquiry emails, Search Console queries worded as questions, and Google’s “People also ask” suggestions.

Collect between 30 and 100 questions, spread across three kinds:

• Category questions: “Who are the best-rated boiler installers in Dundee?”
• Problem questions: “Why is my combi boiler losing pressure?”
• Comparison questions: “Is an air source heat pump or a new gas boiler better for a three-bed semi?”

Leave the list unchanged for at least three months. Swapping questions every month makes it impossible to see a real trend.

Step 2: Decide which AI tools to check

For most UK businesses we monitor four: ChatGPT, Google AI Overviews (plus AI Mode where it is available), Gemini and Perplexity. If you work mainly for commercial clients, such as a contractor serving offices or facilities managers, add Microsoft Copilot, because many workplaces have it built in.

Where you can, run the questions logged out or in a clean session, with the location set to the UK. Your own search history and location can alter what you see.

Step 3: Log everything in a scorecard

For every question in every tool, record:

1. Did your business get named? Mark yes or no.
2. Did the answer link to or reference your website? Mark yes or no, and note the page.
3. Which competitors were named?
4. Did the answer say anything wrong about you?

A basic spreadsheet is enough at the start. Specialist AI visibility tools can automate the process once you scale up, but we recommend doing the first month by hand so you get a feel for what the answers really say.

Why the same question gives different answers

AI tools write a new answer every time you ask, so one question can produce a different list of firms on each run. A single screenshot therefore proves very little. We put each question to the tool a few times, then work out what proportion of those runs named the business. Once you are tracking 50 or more questions, the overall direction becomes dependable even when individual answers jump around.

Step 4: Link visibility to visits in GA4

Lots of AI tools send visitors through as referrals when a person taps on a source they quoted. In Google Analytics 4, build a custom channel group, or an exploration report, that collects sessions from referrers such as chatgpt.com, gemini.google.com, perplexity.ai and copilot.microsoft.com. ChatGPT frequently tags its links with utm_source=chatgpt.com, so those visits are simple to find.

Clicks from Google’s AI Overviews are rolled into normal Google organic traffic in both Search Console and GA4, so there is no clean way to separate them. Use your question scorecard to follow those instead.

Step 5: Act on what you find

Measuring is only useful if it tells you what to fix. These are the patterns we come across most:

• Rivals get named and you do not: they tend to feature in more “best of” round-ups, review sites and comparison pages. Local PR and a steady flow of reviews help close the gap.
• You get named but your site is never cited: there is no clear page on your website answering that question. Write one.
• The answer gets your details wrong: make sure your Google Business Profile, About page and directory entries all match and are current.

Frequently asked questions

Does Search Console show traffic from AI Overviews?

Not on its own. AI Overview clicks and impressions are counted inside the standard Performance report, blended with the rest of your Google results.

How often should a local business check its AI visibility?

Once a month suits most firms. AI answers change often, but genuine movement in how visible you are usually takes a few weeks to appear.

What counts as a good AI share of voice?

That depends on your area and trade. One helpful comparison is your share of AI mentions against your share of page-one Google rankings or of the local market. If AI tools name you much less often, there is a gap worth closing.

Do I have to buy software for this?

No. A fixed set of questions and a spreadsheet are enough to start. Paid tools start to earn their keep when you are tracking hundreds of questions or several service areas.

Sources and further reading

• Google Search Central: how AI features work with your website

Want help with this? We can build and run a monthly AI visibility report for your business. It comes with our AI search and GEO work. Get in touch.