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AEO Audit: A Seven-Step Quick Start, And How Your Agent OS Re-Runs It Every Week
An AEO audit is a structured check of whether AI answer engines like ChatGPT, Perplexity, Gemini, Claude and Google's AI Overviews name your brand, cite your pages and describe you accurately.
This quick start gives you seven steps to run your first one, then shows how your Agent OS can re-run it every week with very little of your time.
You'll get the crawler checks, the scorecard and the order I'd fix things in.
If you want an expert with you on the first run, book a free SEO strategy session and get a competitor gap analysis.
What an AEO audit is, in one table
AEO stands for answer engine optimisation, which is the work of getting your brand named and cited in AI-written answers.
An AEO audit is the measurement step, because it records what the AI tools say about you before you change anything.
| Part of the AEO audit | What it records | Which agent job owns it |
|---|---|---|
| Prompt panel | Whether ChatGPT, Perplexity, Gemini, Claude and Google's AI name you for real buyer questions. | The prompt runner. |
| Cited sources | Which websites each answer cites as its sources. | The prompt runner. |
| Accuracy | Whether the facts each AI states about you are right. | The fact checker. |
| Crawler access | Whether OAI-SearchBot, PerplexityBot and Googlebot can reach your key pages. | The site checker. |
| Entity facts | Whether your name, services and proof match across the web. | The fact checker. |
| Answer shape | Whether your key pages open with a direct answer and carry FAQs. | The page grader. |
| Trend | How every number changes from one run to the next. | Shared memory. |
A classic SEO audit measures rankings and links, while an AEO audit measures mentions, citations and accuracy.
The reason an Agent OS suits this job is that the audit is mostly repetition, and repetition is exactly what agents do well.
My King of AEO guide explains how I approach answer engines more broadly.
Quick start: run your first AEO audit in seven steps
This is the fastest route from nothing to a scored baseline.
- First, write 20 to 50 buyer prompts across best-of, comparison, problem, brand, alternatives and local questions.
- Second, choose the tools to test, which for most businesses means ChatGPT, Perplexity, Gemini, Claude, Google AI Overviews and Google AI Mode.
- Third, run every prompt at least twice in a fresh chat, because AI answers change from one chat to the next.
- Fourth, log whether you were named, which competitors were named, which sources were cited and whether your facts were right.
- Fifth, check that the AI crawlers can reach your key pages, using the table further down.
- Sixth, grade the first sentence of your ten most important pages, because a direct answer is easy for an AI to lift.
- Seventh, score each area from 0 to 2 and rank the fixes by impact.
Google says AI Overviews and AI Mode can use different models and techniques, so log them as two separate tools.
Google also says AI Overviews often don't trigger at all, so a prompt with no AI Overview is a valid result.
📞 Want my team to go through your first run with you?
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How the AEO audit fits an Agent OS workflow
My Agent OS is a dashboard that runs a crew of AI agents under one shared memory, and it is the same system I teach.
The shared memory is what turns a one-off audit into a running baseline.
Every prompt, answer, citation and score lands in one place, so any agent can compare this month with last month.
| Job | Your Agent OS does it | You do it |
|---|---|---|
| Writing prompts | An agent turns question-shaped Search Console queries into draft prompts. | You approve the final 20 to 50 buyer prompts. |
| Running prompts | An agent asks every prompt in each tool you choose and saves the dated answers. | You spot-check a handful of answers by hand each month. |
| Logging citations | An agent extracts every cited URL and counts domains across the panel. | You decide which sources are worth earning coverage on. |
| Checking facts | An agent compares each answer against your one-page fact file. | You keep the fact file true. |
| Checking crawlers | An agent reads robots.txt and flags rules that block the crawlers you want. | You approve any change to the live site. |
| Grading pages | An agent scores the first sentence and FAQ section of your top pages. | You review every rewrite before it goes live. |
| Reporting | An agent compares this run with the last one and highlights what moved. | You judge it against enquiries and sales. |
The people still own three jobs in that system, which are choosing the prompts, keeping the facts true and approving changes.
I'd never let an agent push changes to a live site without a person reviewing them first.
The crawler check your agents should run every week
An AI search tool can't cite a page its crawler isn't allowed to read.
| Crawler | Owner | What the official docs say |
|---|---|---|
| OAI-SearchBot | OpenAI | It surfaces websites in ChatGPT's search features, and OpenAI recommends allowing it in robots.txt. |
| GPTBot | OpenAI | It crawls content that may be used for model training, and it is a separate setting from OAI-SearchBot. |
| PerplexityBot | Perplexity | It surfaces and links websites in Perplexity's search results, and Perplexity recommends allowing it. |
| Googlebot | Google says crawling must be allowed in robots.txt and by any CDN or hosting setup. |
I read OpenAI's crawler page, Perplexity's crawler page and Google's guide to AI features on 17 October 2026.
OpenAI and Perplexity both say a robots.txt change can take around 24 hours to take effect.
Blocking GPTBot is a choice about training, and it does not block ChatGPT search.
Google says a page must be indexed and eligible to show a snippet to appear as a supporting link in AI Overviews or AI Mode, with no additional technical requirements.
A weekly agent check matters because a CDN or security change can quietly block a crawler months after your audit.
The scorecard your agents fill in
This is the scorecard I'd have an agent fill in after every run, with a person checking it.
| Area | What a 2 looks like | Score 0 to 2 |
|---|---|---|
| Prompt panel visibility | You are named in most best-of and comparison prompts. | Add yours. |
| Citation share | Your pages or coverage about you are cited often. | Add yours. |
| Accuracy | Every fact the AI states about you is correct. | Add yours. |
| Crawler access | The crawlers you want can reach every key page. | Add yours. |
| Entity facts | Your facts match on the site, profiles and listings. | Add yours. |
| Third-party coverage | You appear on the sources the AI cites most. | Add yours. |
| Answer shape | Key pages open with the answer and carry FAQs. | Add yours. |
| Measurement | A dated baseline exists and the next run is scheduled. | Add yours. |
A total of 16 means every area is solid, so don't be surprised if your first run scores under half that.
I rank the fixes by impact first and effort second.
- Fix any crawler or indexing block first, because nothing else works until the AI can read your pages.
- Fix wrong facts next, because they are cheap to correct and they hurt every answer they appear in.
- Rewrite your top pages so the first sentence answers the question in under fifty words.
- Add FAQ sections with FAQPage schema that matches the visible text.
- Start earning coverage on the third-party sources the AI cites most.
🔥 Want the exact AI SEO setup I run inside my Agent OS?
Inside the AI Profit Boardroom you get the installable Agent OS, step-by-step video tutorials, four coaching calls a week and 3,400+ members building real automations.
Why third-party coverage is the part agents can't do alone
Your agents can find the gap, but they can't earn the coverage for you.
My strategy session page explains why that gap matters, because it says AI platforms don't recommend brands simply because those brands publish more on their own websites.
It says they look for consistent signals across the wider web, such as trusted publications, expert articles, independent reviews, comparisons and credible third-party references.
Your agents can list which of those sources appear in your answers and which ones you're missing.
Earning a byline, a review or a place in a comparison still takes a person, a relationship and time.
📞 Want help with the coverage your agents can't earn?
Grab a free SEO strategy session with Goldie Agency and we will map the bylines, reviews, comparisons and research that fit your market.
How I measure the audit over time
The prompt panel is the main measure, and my agents re-run it every month.
Google counts AI Overviews and AI Mode traffic inside the "Web" search type of the Search Console Performance report.
Bing Webmaster Tools added an AI Performance report in public preview on 10 February 2026.
Microsoft says that report shows how often your pages are cited in Microsoft Copilot, AI-generated summaries in Bing and select partner integrations.
I have an agent pull those numbers into the same memory as the prompt log, so the trend sits in one place.
How my own AI SEO pipeline uses the audit
This is how the audit feeds my own content system, which I document in my live guides on this site.
- My keyword skill scores my real Search Console queries in one pass, and on one live run it scored 184 queries at once.
- The question-shaped queries become prompts, and the gaps become the next batch of pages.
- Every page opens with the answer in the first sentence, carries an FAQ section and gets Article and FAQPage schema.
- New URLs go straight to an indexing service instead of waiting for a crawler.
- Every week I check pages sitting in positions 8 to 15, because Google already likes them.
- At the end of each batch the skill grades itself and writes new rules back into its own file.
My Claude AI SEO rank one guide shows a brand new page reaching Google page one in 14 hours, which is my own result and not a promise for yours.
What an AEO audit can't promise
Nobody can guarantee what a model says, and that includes me and my agency.
An AEO audit shows you the footprint the models read and how they describe you today.
It can't control the answer, the timing or the revenue, so be wary of anyone who promises a mention.
Google also says you don't need new machine-readable files, AI text files or special schema.org markup to appear in AI Overviews or AI Mode, so don't pay for those as the secret fix.
Where to go next
My sibling guide on the free AEO audit covers the no-cost ways to get one.
My guide to the free AEO report shows how to write the results up for a client or a boss.
If you'd rather hire help, my AI SEO optimization agency quick start lists the questions to ask.
Also On Our Network
FAQ
What is an AEO audit?
An AEO audit is a structured check of whether AI answer engines like ChatGPT, Perplexity, Gemini, Claude and Google's AI Overviews name your brand, cite your pages and describe you accurately. It also checks crawler access, entity facts, third-party coverage and answer-shaped content.
How can an Agent OS help with an AEO audit?
Agents can run your buyer prompts on a schedule, save dated answers and cited sources in shared memory, check robots.txt and grade your key pages. People still choose the prompts, keep the facts true and approve every change.
Which crawlers should an AEO audit check?
Check OAI-SearchBot for ChatGPT search, PerplexityBot for Perplexity search and Googlebot for Google. GPTBot is a separate OpenAI setting for model training, so blocking it does not block ChatGPT search.
Do I need an AI text file or special schema for an AEO audit?
Google says you don't need new machine-readable files, AI text files or special schema.org markup to appear in AI Overviews or AI Mode. Valid structured data that matches the visible text is still a good basic check.
How often should I re-run an AEO audit?
Re-run the prompt panel every month and have an agent check crawler access every week. A full review of facts and coverage every quarter is enough for most businesses.
Can an AEO audit guarantee a mention in ChatGPT?
No. Nobody can guarantee what a model says. The audit shows what the AI says today and what you can improve, and your dated log shows whether the work helped.
Final word on the AEO audit
Run the seven steps once, let your agents keep the baseline and fix the cheap blocks first.
If you'd like my team to look at your results, book a free SEO strategy session and leave with a plan for traffic, mentions and leads.
That is how I'd run an AEO audit.
About Julian
I'm Julian Goldie, an AI entrepreneur, SEO expert and the founder of the AI Profit Boardroom, which has 3,400+ members.
I help business owners scale with AI agents, automation and SEO.
My YouTube channel has 400,000+ subscribers, and I run Goldie Agency, a seven-figure SEO agency.
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