Is Your Website Used in AI Search? How to Check & Optimize for It
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Zack Saadioui
8/12/2025
So, you’ve spent countless hours, maybe even years, building up your website. You’ve written blog posts, created landing pages, & perfected your SEO. But now there’s a new player in town: AI search. & honestly, it’s changing the game.
You’re probably wondering, "Is my website even being used in these new AI search engine answers?" It's a HUGE question, & the answer isn't as straightforward as you might think. Turns out, the way these new "answer engines" like Google's AI Overviews, Perplexity, & even ChatGPT work is fundamentally different from the good ol' Google search we're used to. They don't just give you a list of links; they synthesize information from across the web & present a direct answer.
This can be both a good & a bad thing. On one hand, if your content is used to form that answer, it positions you as an authority. On the other hand, it could lead to what everyone's worried about: "zero-click searches," where the user gets their answer without ever visiting your site.
So, how do you figure out where you stand? Let's dive deep into this. It's a bit of a rabbit hole, but SUPER important for anyone with a website right now.
The Big Shift: From Search Engines to Answer Engines
First, let's get on the same page about what’s actually happening. Traditional search engines are like librarians. You ask a question, & they point you to a bunch of books (websites) where you can find the answer. You still have to do the work of going to the shelf & reading the book.
AI answer engines are different. They act like a research assistant. They read all the relevant books for you, pull out the key points, & then give you a custom summary. Pretty cool for the user, right? Instant gratification. But for website owners, it means our content is being consumed & used in a totally new way.
These AI models use something called Large Language Models (LLMs) to scan a massive amount of data—including your website—to understand topics & generate human-like responses. They're looking for clear, concise, & authoritative information. If your site provides that, there's a good chance you're in the mix. The new goal isn’t just to rank on page one; it's to be a cited source in the AI's answer. Being a source is the new top spot.
Part 1: The Paid Tools - Getting a Clear Picture
If you're serious about tracking your visibility in this new AI world & have some budget to play with, there are some pretty powerful tools emerging that are built specifically for this. They do the heavy lifting for you & give you a dashboard view of your "AI visibility."
Here’s the thing, these tools are basically doing what you could do manually, but at a scale & speed that’s impossible to replicate on your own. They are constantly running queries on platforms like Google’s AI Overviews, ChatGPT, Gemini, & Perplexity to see when & how your brand is mentioned.
Some of the big names popping up are:
Keyword.com: This tool has an "AI Rank Tracker" that specifically monitors your brand mentions & citations in AI-generated answers. It can tell you which of your pages are being referenced & how often you're showing up.
SE Ranking: They've rolled out an "AI Search Toolkit" that tracks your presence in Google's AIO results, ChatGPT responses, & more. It shows you if your site is mentioned, if it's a linked mention, & how you stack up against competitors.
Profound & Brandrank.ai: These are more specialized platforms focused on measuring your brand's visibility inside AI outputs. They give you metrics like "share of voice" in the AI ecosystem, which is a whole new way of thinking about market presence.
Using one of these tools is the most direct way to answer the question. You plug in your domain, your keywords, & they'll spit out reports showing exactly where you're being used as a source. It takes the guesswork out of it. The downside, of course, is that they come with a subscription fee.
Part 2: The DIY Method - Digging into Your Own Analytics
Okay, so what if you're not ready to shell out for a new tool? Don't worry, you can still get some solid clues by putting on your detective hat & digging into your own Google Analytics 4 (GA4). It’s not as straightforward, but it’s definitely doable.
Here's the deal: when an AI search engine links to your site & a user clicks that link, it shows up in your analytics as referral traffic. The trick is knowing how to isolate it. Most AI traffic gets lumped into the generic "Referral" bucket, so you have to create a custom filter to see it clearly.
Step-by-Step Guide to Finding AI Traffic in GA4
Ready to get your hands dirty? Here’s a process that works. It looks a bit technical, but if you follow it step-by-step, you’ll get it.
Navigate to Your Traffic Acquisition Report: In GA4, go to Reports > Acquisition > Traffic Acquisition. This is your starting point.
Change the Primary Dimension: The default view is usually "Session default channel group." You need to change this. Click the little dropdown arrow & select "Session source / medium". This will show you the specific websites sending you traffic.
Create a Custom Channel Group for AI: This is the magic step. You’re going to tell GA4 to group all the known AI search referrers together.
Go to Admin (the gear icon in the bottom left).
Under "Data display," click on Channel Groups.
Click "Create new channel group." Give it a name like "AI Search Traffic."
Click "Add new channel" & name it "AI Referrals."
Now, you need to set the conditions. This is where it gets a little nerdy. You'll use something called a regular expression (RegEx), which is just a fancy way to match patterns in text.
Set the dimension to "Source" & the condition to "matches regex."
In the value box, you'll paste a string that lists the common AI referrers. Here’s a good one to start with, based on what experts are using:
Save the channel & then save the group. You might need to reorder it to make sure it sits above the standard "Referral" channel, so GA4 checks for AI traffic first.
Once you’ve set this up, you can go back to your Traffic Acquisition report & select your new custom channel group as the primary dimension. Now, you'll have a clean view of how much traffic is coming from these AI sources. You can see which of your pages they’re sending traffic to & how engaged those visitors are. Is the bounce rate lower? Do they convert better? This is where the real insights are.
It’s a bit of a setup, but once it’s done, it’s done. You’ll be able to monitor this new, important traffic source just like you monitor organic search or social media.
Part 3: Generative Engine Optimization (GEO) - How to Get Your Site Noticed by AI
Okay, so now you know how to check if you’re getting traffic. But what if you’re not? Or what if you want more of it? This is where a new discipline is emerging: Generative Engine Optimization (GEO).
GEO is the practice of optimizing your content not just for keywords, but for AI-driven answer engines. It’s about making your website as easy as possible for an AI to read, understand, & trust. If you do this well, you dramatically increase your chances of being a cited source.
Here are the core strategies for GEO:
1. Structure Your Content Like a Q&A
AI models love clarity. They are literally trying to answer questions. So, format your content to help them out.
Use Clear Headings & Subheadings: Think of your H2s & H3s as questions. For example, instead of a heading like "Our Process," try "What is Our Process for Onboarding New Clients?" It's direct & matches the kind of language people use when they search.
Create FAQ Sections: This is HUGE. Answering common questions in a structured FAQ format is like handing the AI the answers on a silver platter. Use
1
FAQPage
schema markup to make it even more explicit for the AI.
Break Content into Small Chunks: Forget long, dense paragraphs. Break your content into small, easily digestible blocks of text, each focused on a single idea. One expert suggests keeping answer blocks under 300 characters.
2. Double Down on Quality & Authority (E-E-A-T)
If you've been in the SEO world for a while, you know about E-E-A-T (Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, & Trustworthiness). With AI, this is more important than EVER. AI engines want to pull from sources they deem credible.
Cite Your Sources: Just like in a school paper, if you mention a statistic or a study, link to the original source. LLMs reward this kind of transparency.
Incorporate Unique Data: If you have proprietary data, original research, or unique case studies, highlight them. This is content that the AI can't get anywhere else, making you a valuable source.
Focus on In-Depth, Value-Packed Content: Superficial, keyword-stuffed articles won't cut it. Your content needs to be genuinely helpful & comprehensive. Go deep on topics in your niche.
3. Make Your Content More Conversational
People talk to AI search engines like they talk to a person. They use full sentences & natural language. Your content should reflect this.
Write in a Natural, Conversational Tone: Avoid corporate jargon & overly formal language. Write like you're explaining something to a smart friend. This is where a good brand voice comes in. (Notice the tone of this article? That's the idea).
Answer the Question Directly: Get to the point. If the heading is a question, answer it in the first sentence before you elaborate. This is a best practice for featured snippets & it's just as important for AI answers.
4. Optimize for the "Messy Middle"
A lot of AI-driven searches happen in what marketers call the "messy middle" of the buyer's journey. People are solution-aware but haven't decided on a specific brand yet. Content that helps them compare & decide is GOLD.
Create Comparison Pages: Think "X vs. Y" articles. These are incredibly useful for users & AI models love them because they are structured & full of factual information.
"Best of" Roundups: Articles like "The 7 Best Tools for X" perform really well. If you can create an honest, well-researched roundup, you have a high chance of being cited.
How Arsturn Fits Into This New World
As you’re thinking about how to engage visitors who do land on your site, especially those coming from a very specific AI-generated answer, you need a way to continue the conversation. This is where having a smart, custom AI chatbot becomes a no-brainer.
If a user lands on your site from an AI search result, they have a very specific intent. They're not just browsing. They're looking for validation or deeper information on the answer they just got. This is a perfect opportunity to use a tool like Arsturn.
With Arsturn, you can build a no-code AI chatbot that's trained on your own website data. This means it can instantly answer follow-up questions with information that is perfectly aligned with your brand & content. It can provide 24/7 support, capture leads from these high-intent visitors, & provide the kind of personalized experience that turns a curious visitor into a loyal customer. It’s a powerful way to capitalize on the AI-driven traffic you’re working so hard to get.
The Bottom Line
Figuring out if your website is being used in AI search is the first step. You can use specialized tools for a clear, paid-for picture, or you can roll up your sleeves & create custom reports in GA4 for free. Both paths will give you valuable insights.
But the real work is in adapting your strategy. This shift to "answer engines" isn't a fad; it's the next evolution of search. By focusing on Generative Engine Optimization (GEO)—creating high-quality, well-structured, conversational content—you're not just trying to get cited by an AI. You're also creating a better user experience for the humans who visit your site. & that's a win-win.
So, start digging around in your analytics. Test out some of these GEO strategies. It’s a new frontier for all of us, & the ones who adapt will be the ones who come out on top.
Hope this was helpful & gave you a clear path forward. Let me know what you think or if you find anything interesting in your own data