AI SEARCH · 2026
1/9
35%
of buyers now start product discovery in AI, not Google
Similarweb US panel, Jan 2026 · search engines: just 13.6%
The score that tells you if your brand shows up. Inside:
swipe →
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DEFINITION
2/9
What the score actually is
A 0–100 metric: how often — and how prominently — AI assistants mention your brand when users ask about your category
Measured across: ChatGPT · Perplexity · Gemini · AI Overviews
Think of it as rank tracking for the part of search your SEO dashboard can't see.
Definition per HubSpot & industry guides, 2026
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THE MATH
3/9
The base formula
mentions ÷ prompts × 100

Test 100 buyer prompts ("best CRM"…)

Your brand is named in 22 answers

→ your visibility score: 22

Same idea as share of voice — measured inside AI answers.
Formula: Search Engine Land (2025) · LLM Pulse (2026)
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THE NUANCE
4/9
Position changes everything
Weighted versions score WHERE you appear:
Named first
≈100 pts
Named second
≈50–90 pts
Named eighth
scraps
Caveat: no universal standard yet — every tool weights differently. Compare trends, not scores across tools.
Weighting examples: LLM Pulse, Advanced Web Ranking, 2026
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THE COMPONENTS
5/9
A full score blends 5 signals
1
Mention rate
How often you're named at all
2
Citation rate
How often AI links your content
3
Position
First pick vs afterthought
4
Sentiment
Recommended, or just listed?
5
Consistency
Stable across engines & weeks
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BENCHMARKS
6/9
What "good" looks like
20%+
citation rate across 50 buyer-intent prompts = strong visibility (2026 benchmark)
22%
of marketers actively track AI visibility at all — most brands are flying blind on this channel
Benchmark: AuthorityTech 2026 · tracking gap: 2026 marketer surveys
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THE PAYOFF
7/9
Why the score pays
4–5×
higher conversion than organic search (multi-study)
~1%
of total traffic today — you're still early
8× / 13×
YoY growth: AI sessions / AI orders (Shopify data)
Tiny channel. Outsized value. Compounding fast.
Pixis/RankScience conversion studies · Conductor · Shopify, 2026
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PLAYBOOK
8/9
How to raise your score
✓
Test 50 buyer prompts, monthly
✓
Win listicles — cited 25% vs 11%
✓
Show up where AI reads: Reddit, forums
✓
Publish original data — AI over-cites it
Screenshot this for your next content planning call.
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THANKS FOR READING
9/9
Follow for more research like this
New data-backed breakdowns every week
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