alicerankHow to Track Your Brand in AI Search Results
Over 70% of searches now end without a click. If your brand isn't visible in AI responses, you're invisible to most of your audience. Here's how to track it.
Nearly 800 million people use ChatGPT every week. Over 70% of searches now end without a click—users get their answers directly from AI systems. If your brand isn't being mentioned in those AI responses, you're invisible to the majority of your potential customers.
Traditional analytics tools track website traffic, but they can't tell you what ChatGPT or Perplexity says about your brand. This guide covers the metrics, tools, and strategies you need to monitor your brand's visibility in AI search.
Why AI Search Tracking Matters
The shift to AI search creates a visibility crisis for brands. More of the buying journey now happens inside AI assistants rather than on traditional search result pages. When prospects ask ChatGPT for recommendations or "best X for Y" queries, they often act directly on those answers.
ChatGPT alone processes over 2 billion user queries per day and holds over 81% market share in the AI chatbot industry. If your brand isn't part of those conversations, you're missing a massive opportunity.
Key Metrics to Track
Traditional SEO metrics like rankings and click-through rates don't capture AI visibility. Here are the metrics that matter:
Share of Voice (SOV)
Share of voice measures your brand's percentage of all relevant AI mentions compared to competitors. If AI tools mention your brand in 30% of responses for your category, your SOV is 30%. This is the most important metric for understanding your competitive position in AI search.
Mention Frequency
How often does your brand appear across different AI platforms? Track this across ChatGPT, Perplexity, Google AI Overview, Claude, and Gemini. Different platforms may recommend your brand at different rates.
Sentiment Score
Being mentioned isn't enough—you need to know the tone. Are AI responses about your brand positive, negative, or neutral? Negative sentiment in AI responses can damage your reputation at scale.
Citation Positioning
When AI tools list multiple brands, where does yours appear? Being mentioned first versus third makes a significant difference in user perception and click-through behavior.
Prompt Coverage
Which specific user queries trigger mentions of your brand? Understanding prompt coverage helps you identify gaps and opportunities in your AI visibility.
AI Visibility Tracking Tools
A growing number of specialized tools now track brand mentions across AI search engines. For ecommerce brands specifically, alicerank offers purpose-built tracking with share of voice metrics, sentiment analysis, and competitor monitoring across ChatGPT, Perplexity, and Google AI Overview. Here's how the options compare:
Budget-Friendly Options
- alicerank (from €49/month): Built specifically for ecommerce brands. Tracks visibility, sentiment, and competitors across ChatGPT, Perplexity, and Google AI Overview. Includes automated weekly scans and share of voice dashboards. Free tier available
- OmniSEO (Free): Tracks AI search visibility and mentions across Google AI Overviews, ChatGPT, Claude, and Perplexity. Good for brands starting out
Mid-Range Options
- Nimt.ai ($79/month): Designed for B2C and DTC ecommerce brands. Offers prompt tracking, share of voice metrics, and topic-based prompt generation
- SE Ranking (£75/month): AI tracking features as part of a broader SEO platform. Includes free trial
Enterprise Options
- Brand Radar (Ahrefs) ($199/month add-on): Tracks mentions across ChatGPT, Perplexity, Gemini, Google AI Overviews, and Microsoft Copilot with a database of 190+ million prompts
- AthenaHQ.ai ($295+/month): Specializes in GEO-to-conversion insights with brand health monitoring across ChatGPT, Gemini, Claude, and Perplexity
Setting Up Your Tracking System
Here's how to implement AI brand tracking for your ecommerce business:
Step 1: Identify Your Key Prompts
Start by listing the questions your potential customers might ask AI tools. Think about buying-intent queries like "best [product category] for [use case]" or "[product type] recommendations under $[price]." These are the prompts where you want your brand to appear.
Step 2: Choose Your Platforms
Prioritize tracking based on where your customers are. ChatGPT and Google AI Overview typically have the highest reach. Perplexity is growing rapidly among researchers and informed buyers. Claude and Gemini matter for specific demographics.
Step 3: Establish Your Baseline
Before you start optimizing, document your current visibility. Run your key prompts through each AI platform and record: Are you mentioned? What position? What sentiment? How do competitors compare?
Step 4: Set Up Automated Monitoring
AI responses change over time as models are updated and new information is ingested. Use a tracking tool to monitor your prompts daily or weekly. Set up alerts for significant changes in mention frequency, sentiment, or competitive positioning.
Step 5: Track Competitors
AI visibility is competitive. Track which brands appear alongside yours and which ones dominate the prompts you care about. This helps you understand where you're winning and where you need to improve.
What to Do With Your Data
Tracking alone doesn't improve visibility. Here's how to act on your findings:
- Low share of voice: Focus on GEO optimization—structured data, authoritative content, and third-party mentions
- Negative sentiment: Address the sources AI is pulling from. Look for negative reviews or outdated information that might be influencing responses
- Poor positioning: Analyze what top-ranking competitors are doing differently. Look at their content structure, schema markup, and citation sources
- Missing prompts: Create content specifically designed to address queries where you're not appearing
Sources
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