1. Check access before rewriting content
Inspect important URLs directly and through the appropriate reporting tools. Confirm that they return the intended content, are not accidentally blocked or marked noindex, and use a sensible canonical URL. Check whether navigation links make them discoverable.
For Google, inspect indexing and crawl evidence in Search Console. For ChatGPT search, OpenAI documents OAI-SearchBot access separately from GPTBot training permissions. Anthropic similarly distinguishes its search and user-retrieval crawlers. Server or firewall rules can matter as well as robots.txt.
2. Check the page against the buyer’s actual question
A homepage saying “we work in any industry” may not answer a hotel owner evaluating direct-booking support. A useful service page should explain the specific problem, approach, deliverables and evidence relevant to that buyer.
That does not justify a separate page for every wording variation. Group related questions around a genuinely useful subject. If a page already answers the intent, improve its substance and links instead of publishing another near-duplicate version.
3. Make identity and evidence explicit
- Who provides the service and who does the work?
- What is included and where is it available?
- What relevant experience can the buyer inspect?
- Which outcomes are supported, and over what period?
- Are contact details and service information consistent across pages?
Visible authorship, appropriate source links and accurate structured data can clarify the information. They do not turn unsupported claims into evidence.
4. Understand what “visible” means
A business can rank in search without appearing in a particular AI answer. An AI response may mention the business without linking to it, or cite an article without recommending the service. These are different observations and should be recorded separately.
Results also depend on the question, context, market and whether the system uses web retrieval. A single favourable screenshot is not a dependable measure of overall visibility.
5. Prioritise a supported action
| Observed problem | Useful response |
|---|---|
| Important URL cannot be accessed or indexed | Resolve the technical obstacle |
| No page answers the service need | Create or substantially improve the appropriate page |
| Claims lack support | Add verifiable experience and evidence |
| Information conflicts across pages | Correct the underlying service information |
Google states that special AI markup and llms.txt are not required for its Search AI features. Spend effort on useful content and functioning discovery before treating optional files as a visibility strategy.
Common questions
Will allowing a crawler guarantee recommendations?
No. Access enables retrieval; it does not determine whether your page is relevant or selected.
Should we create a separate page for each AI platform?
Only if there is a genuinely distinct useful subject or service. Repeating the same offer with platform names adds little value.
Can we check performance without analytics access?
Some public checks are possible, but conclusions about indexing, traffic and business impact will be more limited.