Free checklist

AI search checklist: the work we do for AEO and GEO

17 items in six groups, each with why it matters, how to check it and when it is done.

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Last updated 22 October 2026

Made by Dimitar Srbinoski, founder. Checked by Dimitar Srbinoski, founder.

The short answer

This checklist is the AI search work we do for clients, in 17 items. It covers crawler access, clear facts about your business, answer-first pages, sources and dates, profiles on other sites and tracking buyer questions. Each item says how to check it. Most of it is good SEO, done properly.

Access

AI search tools can only use pages they can reach.

Access: 3 items.
Item	Why it matters	How to check	Done when
Search crawlers allowed	OpenAI says sites that block OAI-SearchBot are not shown in ChatGPT search answers.	Open /robots.txt. Look for rules for Googlebot, Bingbot, OAI-SearchBot and the other search crawlers you care about.	The search crawlers you want are allowed. Blocking training crawlers is a separate business choice.
Indexed, with a snippet	Google says a page must be indexed and allowed a snippet to appear in its AI features.	Search Console, Page indexing report. Check key pages for noindex and nosnippet.	Key pages are indexed, with no nosnippet.
Text in the HTML	Content that needs a script to appear may be missed.	View a page with JavaScript off, or read its source.	The main text is in the page source.

Clear facts

Tools name a business they can describe with confidence.

Clear facts: 3 items.
Item	Why it matters	How to check	Done when
One name and one description	Different names and descriptions make a business harder to place.	Read your homepage, About page and profiles side by side.	The same name and one-line description everywhere.
Prices on the page	A buyer question about cost needs a price to answer with.	Search your site for your prices.	Prices are visible text, with the date they were checked.
Where you work	Location is part of how a business is described.	Check your contact and About pages.	A real place and working hours, stated plainly.

Answer-first pages

A page that answers at the top is easy to quote.

Answer-first pages: 3 items.
Item	Why it matters	How to check	Done when
The answer first	The opening is what gets lifted into an answer.	Read the first 60 words of each key page.	Each says what it is, who it is for and the next step.
Questions as headings	Each section can be quoted alone.	Read the H2s on their own.	They read as the questions buyers ask.
Short paragraphs	One idea per paragraph is easier to use whole.	Skim a page for long blocks.	Three sentences or fewer per paragraph.

Sources and dates

Numbers without a source are hard to trust, for people and for tools.

Sources and dates: 3 items.
Item	Why it matters	How to check	Done when
Every number sourced	A dated, sourced number can be checked.	Find each number on a page and its source.	Every number shows its source and date.
First-hand content	Google asks for a unique point of view, not recycled content.	Ask what each page shows that no one else can.	Key pages carry your own data, method or examples.
Honest dates	An “updated” date that never changes means nothing.	Compare the date with the last real change.	Dates move only when the content really changed.

Profiles and reviews

Sites you do not control show who you are from the outside.

Profiles and reviews: 2 items.
Item	Why it matters	How to check	Done when
Directory profiles	Profiles on directories describe you in other places.	Search for your brand name.	Real profiles with the same facts as your site.
Reviews	Reviews on sites you do not control carry weight.	Check the review sites in your field.	Real reviews, from real clients, with their OK.

Tracking buyer questions

AI answers change, so only dated records show progress.

Tracking buyer questions: 3 items.
Item	Why it matters	How to check	Done when
A list of buyer questions	You cannot track what you have not written down.	Write the questions your buyers ask before they buy.	A fixed list, saved with the date.
A dated baseline	Every later check needs a fixed start.	Ask each question in the AI tools your buyers use. Save the answers.	Answers saved with the date: who is named, which pages are cited.
Regular re-runs	One run shows a moment, not a trend.	Repeat the same questions on a set day.	Each run compared with the baseline.

Version 1, 22 October 2026. First version.

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A worked example

Demo data The access and tracking groups for example.com, a demo software company

Item	Finding	Done?
Search crawlers allowed	robots.txt blocks every crawler except Googlebot.	No
Indexed, with a snippet	9 of 11 key pages indexed. Demo data	No
A list of buyer questions	25 questions saved on 1 October. Demo data	Yes
A dated baseline	Named in 3 of 25 answers on 1 October. Demo data	Yes

Made-up numbers for a demo site. Not a client result.

How to use the AI search checklist

Make a copy, or work from this page. Write today’s date at the top.
Start with access. A page tools cannot reach will not be cited.
Mark each item done or not, with what you saw and the date.
Fix access and clear facts first. They are quick, and everything else depends on them.
Rework your key pages to answer first, with sources and dates.
Write your buyer questions, save a dated baseline, then re-run it on a set day.

Mistakes to avoid

Blocking search crawlers by accident. A rule meant for training crawlers can shut out search ones too.
Buying mentions. Google’s guide says inauthentic mentions are not as helpful as they might seem.
Treating llms.txt as a ranking factor. Google says Google Search ignores the file.
Judging by one run. AI answers change from day to day. Compare dated runs.

All free templates and tools

Sources

OpenAI: Overview of OpenAI crawlers. Checked 22 October 2026.
Google Search Central: AI features and your website, last updated 10 December 2025. Checked 22 October 2026.
Google Search Central: Optimizing your website for generative AI features on Google Search, last updated 10 July 2026. Checked 22 October 2026.
Search Console Help: Page indexing report. Checked 22 October 2026.

AI search checklist: questions

Is the checklist free?

Yes. Make a copy or use it from this page. No sign-up and no email.

Is this checklist for AEO or GEO?

Both. The work overlaps: pages that can be reached, clear facts, answers first and sources. Read AEO vs SEO for the difference.

Do I need llms.txt?

Not for Google. Its guide says Google Search ignores the file. Some other AI services may read it. Our llms.txt generator builds one if you want it.

How often should I re-run the buyer questions?

On a set day, at the same interval, so the runs compare. We report on them in every monthly report.

Written by Dimitar Srbinoski, founder. AI helped with the outline and the first draft. Checked by Dimitar Srbinoski, founder. Published 22 October 2026. Last checked 22 October 2026.

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