/ai-search-visibility

name: memstack-seo-ai-search-visibility
description: "Use this skill when the user says 'AI search', 'AI visibility', 'ChatGPT ranking', 'Perplexity optimization', 'GEO', 'generative engine optimization', or needs to optimize content for AI-powered search engines and LLM citations. Do NOT use for traditional SEO audits or Google Ads."
version: 1.0.0
license: "Proprietary, MemStack™ Pro by CW Affiliate Investments LLC. See LICENSE.txt"

🤖 AI Search Visibility: Optimizing for AI search engines...

*Evaluates and optimizes content for citation by AI search engines (ChatGPT, Perplexity, Google AI Overview, Claude): checking crawler access, content structure, llms.txt, and AI-friendly patterns.*

Activation

When this skill activates, output:

`🤖 AI Search Visibility: Analyzing AI search readiness...`

Then execute the protocol below.

| Context | Status | |---------|--------| | User says "AI search" or "GEO" or "generative engine optimization" | ACTIVE | | User says "ChatGPT ranking" or "Perplexity" or "AI overview" | ACTIVE | | User says "llms.txt" or "AI visibility" | ACTIVE | | Optimizing content for AI-generated citations and references | ACTIVE | | Traditional SEO (meta tags, keywords) | DORMANT, use site-audit or meta-tag-optimizer | | Building AI products (not optimizing for AI search) | DORMANT |

Anti-patterns

| Trap | Reality Check | |------|---------------| | "SEO is enough for AI" | AI search engines process content differently than Google. They need direct answers, not keyword-optimized copy. | | "Block all AI crawlers" | Blocking AI crawlers means your content never appears in AI search results. Block selectively if at all. | | "AI will find our content naturally" | AI systems prioritize structured, authoritative content. Unstructured marketing copy gets skipped. | | "GEO is just a fad" | AI search usage is growing 10x year over year. Perplexity, ChatGPT search, and Google AI Overview are mainstream. | | "We can't measure AI visibility" | You can check crawler logs, search your brand in AI tools, and track referral traffic from AI sources. |

Protocol

Step 1: Check AI Bot Crawler Access

Verify which AI crawlers can access your site:

# Check robots.txt for AI bot rules
cat public/robots.txt 2>/dev/null | grep -i "gptbot\|chatgpt\|perplexity\|claude\|anthropic\|cohere\|google-extended\|ccbot\|bytespider"

**Known AI crawler user agents:**

| Bot | Company | User-Agent | Purpose | |-----|---------|-----------|---------| | GPTBot | OpenAI | `GPTBot` | ChatGPT search, training | | ChatGPT-User | OpenAI | `ChatGPT-User` | ChatGPT browsing feature | | PerplexityBot | Perplexity | `PerplexityBot` | Perplexity search | | ClaudeBot | Anthropic | `ClaudeBot` | Claude web access | | Google-Extended | Google | `Google-Extended` | Gemini, AI Overview | | CCBot | Common Crawl | `CCBot` | Open dataset used by many AI | | Bytespider | ByteDance | `Bytespider` | TikTok/AI training | | Cohere-ai | Cohere | `cohere-ai` | Cohere models |

**Recommended robots.txt strategy:**

# Allow AI crawlers for search visibility
# (Block only if you have specific content protection concerns)

# Allow all AI search bots
User-agent: GPTBot
Allow: /

User-agent: ChatGPT-User
Allow: /

User-agent: PerplexityBot
Allow: /

User-agent: ClaudeBot
Allow: /

User-agent: Google-Extended
Allow: /

# Block paths you don't want AI to index
User-agent: GPTBot
Disallow: /admin
Disallow: /api
Disallow: /dashboard

**Decision matrix:**

| Goal | Strategy | robots.txt | |------|----------|-----------| | Maximum AI visibility | Allow all AI bots | `Allow: /` for each | | Selective visibility | Allow search bots, block training bots | Allow ChatGPT-User, block GPTBot | | Content protection | Block all AI crawlers | `Disallow: /` for each | | Balanced | Allow crawling, block specific paths | Allow root, disallow sensitive paths |

Step 2: Analyze Content for AI Citation Likelihood

AI systems cite content that directly answers questions clearly. Scan your content for AI-friendly patterns:

# Check for definition-style paragraphs (strong AI citation signals)
grep -rn "^[A-Z].*is a\|^[A-Z].*refers to\|^[A-Z].*means" --include="*.md" --include="*.mdx" --include="*.tsx" . | grep -v node_modules | head -10

# Check for numbered/bulleted lists (AI loves structured content)
grep -rn "^[0-9]\.\|^- \|^\\* " --include="*.md" --include="*.mdx" . | wc -l

# Check for Q&A patterns
grep -rn "^##.*\?\|^###.*\?" --include="*.md" --include="*.mdx" . | grep -v node_modules | head -10

**Content patterns that AI systems cite:**

| Pattern | Example | Why AI Cites It | |---------|---------|----------------| | **Direct definition** | "RLS is a PostgreSQL feature that restricts row access based on user identity." | Answers "what is X" queries directly | | **Numbered steps** | "1. Create the table. 2. Enable RLS. 3. Add policies." | Answers "how to X" queries | | **Comparison table** | "Feature \| Tool A \| Tool B" | Answers "X vs Y" queries | | **Statistic with source** | "According to [source], 73% of developers..." | Provides citable, authoritative data | | **FAQ format** | "Q: How does X work? A: X works by..." | Direct Q&A match | | **Expert statement** | "Based on 10 years of experience with..." | Authority signal |

**Content patterns AI systems skip:**

| Pattern | Why It Gets Skipped | |---------|-------------------| | Marketing superlatives | "The best, most amazing, incredible tool": no information content | | Vague descriptions | "We help businesses grow": not citable, not specific | | Gated content | Behind login/paywall, AI can't access or cite it | | Image-only information | Charts, infographics without text summaries, AI can't read images | | Heavy JavaScript rendering | Content that requires JS execution to appear, many bots don't render JS |

Step 3: Optimize Content Structure for AI

Transform existing content to be more AI-citation-friendly:

**For each key page, ens