[ AUDIT WORKFLOW ]
How to Run an LLM Visibility Audit
Learn how to run an LLM visibility audit by choosing buyer prompts, checking AI citations, recording evidence, and identifying missed opportunities. See how Cited makes the workflow repeatable.
Most LLM visibility audits are too vague. They ask a few prompts, take screenshots, and call it strategy. A better audit preserves evidence.
An LLM visibility audit should not be a vibes report. It should be a repeatable evidence workflow.
What an LLM visibility audit is
An LLM visibility audit is a structured review of selected AI-search prompts to see whether your brand or domain appears, gets cited, gets recommended, or is absent beside competitors.
It sits inside AI citation monitoring. The audit is the method. Monitoring is how the method stays current.
What a good audit should answer
- Are we cited?
- Are we mentioned?
- Are competitors cited instead?
- Which prompts matter?
- Which pages are cited?
- Which topics are missing?
- What evidence should we preserve?
Step 1: Choose buyer-like prompts
Start with prompts that sound like real research, not vanity queries.
- best [category] software for [audience]
- how to solve [problem]
- alternatives to [competitor]
- tools for [job]
- what is [brand]
- who should I use for [job]
Keep the set focused. Eight to fifteen strong prompts beat fifty vague ones. Guidance on prompt design lives in monitored prompts.
Step 2: Define the surfaces
Decide which supported AI-search surfaces you will check. Do not overpromise providers that are not enabled in your product config. Answers can vary by surface, so treat each surface as its own evidence lane.
Step 3: Verify the domain and aliases
Domain verification keeps attribution honest. Brand aliases help catch mentions that do not include a clean source link. Without verification, you are guessing which domain the answer meant.
Cited’s setup path is documented under domain verification.
Step 4: Record citation evidence
- Prompt
- Answer snapshot
- Source URL
- Timestamp
- Surface
- Location
- First seen
- Last observed
[ SOURCE SLIP ]
- “best AI citation monitoring tools for SaaS marketers”
- Supported AI-search surface
- A verified domain appeared as a cited source beside two competitor domains in the monitored result.
- prompt · surface · source · timestamp · occurrence history
Step 5: Separate citations from mentions
A citation includes your verified domain as a source or linked reference. A mention names the brand without that attributable link. Mixing them inflates the report and confuses the next action. Use citations vs mentions as the shared vocabulary.
Step 6: Identify missed opportunities
A missed opportunity is simple: a relevant monitored answer cites a configured competitor while your verified domain is absent. That is the signal worth routing into content or site work.
Step 7: Repeat the audit
One-off audits become stale. Monitoring creates history. First seen and last observed matter more than a single lucky screenshot.
Step 8: Turn evidence into action
Cited shows the signal. Learn Domains or internal content work can help improve pages, internal links, and topical authority. The evidence layer and the action layer are different jobs. Keep them that way.
Manual audit template
best tools for AI citation monitoring
- Supported surface
- Yes / No
- Yes / No
- Yes / No
- URL or note ID
- What appeared
- Content / site / watch
alternatives to [competitor]
- Supported surface
- Yes / No
- Yes / No
- Yes / No
- URL or note ID
- Who got cited
- Compare pages
what is [brand]
- Supported surface
- Yes / No
- Yes / No
- Yes / No
- URL or note ID
- Brand accuracy
- Clarify source pages
| Prompt | Surface | Cited? | Mentioned? | Competitor? | Evidence | Notes | Next |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| best tools for AI citation monitoring | Supported surface | Yes / No | Yes / No | Yes / No | URL or note ID | What appeared | Content / site / watch |
| alternatives to [competitor] | Supported surface | Yes / No | Yes / No | Yes / No | URL or note ID | Who got cited | Compare pages |
| what is [brand] | Supported surface | Yes / No | Yes / No | Yes / No | URL or note ID | Brand accuracy | Clarify source pages |
How Cited makes this repeatable
- Prompt monitoring on a schedule you choose
- Evidence inbox instead of screenshot folders
- Occurrence history for the same event
- Alerts and digests when something changes
- Notebook for annotations
- Exports for reports and handoffs
See the inbox shape in the demo, compare plans, or read what Cited monitors and alerts and digests. For the ChatGPT-specific check, use how to know if ChatGPT cites your website.
FAQ
How many prompts should an LLM visibility audit include?
Start with a focused set of high-intent buyer prompts, often 8 to 15. Add more only when you can review the evidence without creating noise.
How often should I rerun the audit?
One-off audits go stale. Weekly or twice-weekly monitoring creates useful history for most teams. Increase cadence around launches.
Is this the same as SEO?
No. An LLM visibility audit reviews selected AI-search answers for citation evidence. SEO covers rankings, crawlability, content, and traffic systems.
Can I audit competitors?
Yes. Configure competitor domains and review whether monitored answers cite them while your verified domain is absent.
Can Cited guarantee future visibility?
No. Cited preserves evidence from monitored checks. It does not guarantee future inclusion, ranking, or citation in any AI answer.
A useful audit is a record
A useful audit is not a screenshot. It is a record. Run the first check. Keep the evidence. Repeat on purpose.
[ NEXT STEP ]
Evidence beats guessing.
Start with the buyer prompts that matter. Cited turns monitored AI-search checks into citation notes you can revisit, annotate, and export.
Related field notes
What Is AI Citation Monitoring?
AI citation monitoring helps teams track when selected AI-search prompts cite, mention, recommend, or miss their website. Learn what it is, what it is not, and how Cited works.
Open field note →
How to Know If ChatGPT Cites Your Website
Learn how to check whether ChatGPT and other AI-search surfaces cite your website, what counts as citation evidence, and how Cited turns monitored answers into a clean citation inbox.
Open field note →