AI search audit: find where AI assistants leave you out
An AI search audit measures how ChatGPT, Perplexity, Gemini, Claude and Google's AI Overviews and AI Mode answer the questions your buyers ask, and turns that into a list of specific gaps and fixes. The output should be evidence (the actual answers and their sources), not opinions about what AI "probably" thinks.
What a useful audit covers
The point of an audit is to replace guesswork with a record. A good one answers five questions:
- For which buyer questions are you named, and for which are you missing?
- Which engines name you, and which never do?
- Which competitors are named instead, and in what order?
- Which sources do the engines cite for those answers, and are you on them?
- What, specifically, should change on your site and on third-party pages?
How Shortlist runs an audit
We start from the questions a buyer in your market asks, including the comparison and "alternative to" questions that matter most at the decision stage. Each question goes to all six engines, several times, through the same pipeline that builds our public leaderboards. Every answer is stored word for word with its sources.
We then count mentions, positions and citations, with error bars so small differences are not over-read. The report shows the gaps, the sources that drive them, and a prioritised list of changes. It costs $390 and is delivered as a written report.
What an audit is not
It is not a promise of placement. No one can guarantee what an AI assistant will say, and anyone who does is guessing. It is also not a general SEO audit, although some fixes overlap. The audit is narrow on purpose: what the assistants say about your category today, why, and what is in your control.
Before you book: the free check
If you are not sure whether there is a problem, start with the free check. It asks three buyer questions on Google AI Overview, Google AI Mode and Perplexity and shows which brands each answer named. If your category already has a public leaderboard, you can also see your mention rate there, with the full answers linked.
Use the audit when you need the complete picture across all six engines, or when the free check shows you are missing and you want to know why.
What you get in the report
The report starts with a one-page summary: where you are named, where you are missing, and the three changes we would make first. After that come the details. For each buyer question and engine you see the mention rate with its interval, the brands named instead of you, and the sources the answers relied on. Every claim links to the stored answer it comes from, so your team can check it and come back to it later.
The final section is the plan: specific pages to create or fix on your site, third-party pages where you are missing or described inaccurately, and naming or positioning inconsistencies that make it harder for an assistant to place you. Each item is tied to the gap it addresses, so you can measure whether it worked.
See it for a real category
- AI recommendations for crm for small business
- AI recommendations for whatsapp business api provider
- AI recommendations for email warm-up tool
- How Shortlist measures
Questions
How much does an AI search audit cost?
The Shortlist audit is $390, delivered as a written report.
Which AI assistants are included?
ChatGPT, Perplexity, Gemini, Claude, Google AI Overview and Google AI Mode.
Do you guarantee my brand will be recommended afterwards?
No. Nobody can guarantee what an AI assistant says. The audit shows where you stand, why, and what is in your control.
Does buying an audit change the public leaderboards?
No. Leaderboards are built only from the answers. The audit is advice for your brand.