7 Actionable Recommendations for AI Visibility: A Guide

Introduction: Beyond Data Overload

For many small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs), the world of digital analytics feels like a flood of data with very few clear directions. You have dashboards for everything, but they often raise more questions than they answer. Now, a new frontier is opening up: AI-generated search answers. This shift requires more than just data; it demands a plan. Welcome to the discipline of AI visibility.

AI visibility is the practice of ensuring your brand is accurately and positively represented in the answers generated by models like ChatGPT, Google AI Overviews, and Perplexity. It differs from traditional SEO, which focuses on ranking a list of blue links. Instead, AI visibility is about becoming a citable, trusted source that AI models use to synthesize direct answers for users. This emerging field is also known as Generative Engine Optimization (GEO) or AI Search Optimization (AISO).

But knowing you need to improve your AI visibility is one thing; knowing how is another. A true AI visibility platform doesn't just report on your current standing. It delivers a prioritized list of practical recommendations to improve it. This guide outlines the seven essential types of actionable insights you should expect from a platform dedicated to improving your presence in AI answers.

1. Technical Website Fixes

Definition: Technical website fixes are foundational health checks that ensure AI crawlers can easily access, understand, and trust your site's content. Before an AI model can cite your brand as an authority, it must first be able to crawl your website efficiently and verify its legitimacy.

Think of this as building a house on a solid foundation. Without good technical health, any content you build on top is at risk of being ignored. This includes fundamentals like site security (HTTPS), a logical site structure, and mobile-friendliness. Page speed is a critical factor for both user experience and search engine crawlers [1]. A slow, clunky site sends negative signals that can diminish the trust AI models place in your content. Building this trust is a prerequisite for AI visibility, as we've previously covered.

Hypothetical SMB Example: For a local bakery, a practical recommendation might be: 'Improve mobile page load speed on your menu page from 4.2 seconds to under 2.5 seconds. This will reduce user friction and improve crawlability for AI and search engine bots.'

2. Existing Content Updates

Definition: These are specific instructions for enhancing current pages to make them more comprehensive, citable, and optimized for AI synthesis. AI models don't read entire pages; they break them down into passages or "chunks" for retrieval. Your content needs to be structured to perform well at this chunk level.

This means making sections more self-contained and adding signals of Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, and Trustworthiness (E-E-A-T). The addition of "Experience" to Google's quality guidelines signals the importance of content created by someone with first-hand knowledge [2]. Actionable recommendations in this category focus on refining what you already have, such as adding expert bylines, updating statistics, or expanding sections to provide more depth and answer user questions more directly.

Hypothetical SMB Example: For a B2B software company, a recommendation could be: 'Update your 'Features' page. Add a new section titled 'Who is this feature for?' with specific use cases for each user persona (e.g., 'For Project Managers,' 'For Team Leads'). This improves topical depth and helps your content match intent-based queries.'

3. New Content Briefs

Definition: These are fully-formed outlines for new articles, blog posts, or landing pages designed to fill critical content gaps. A powerful AI visibility platform can identify the questions your customers are asking AI models where your brand isn't appearing in the answers.

These briefs are far more than just a list of keywords. They are strategic blueprints that specify the target audience, key questions to answer, recommended structure, and internal links to include. The goal is to create content that is purpose-built to be a definitive source for a specific topic. This process turns AI-driven insights directly into an actionable content plan that your team can execute.

Hypothetical SMB Example: For an e-commerce store selling sustainable products, a new content brief could be: 'Create a blog post titled 'How to Vet a Brand's Sustainability Claims.' The post should cover material sourcing, common certifications (like B Corp and Fair Trade), and questions to ask about labor practices to capture high-intent informational queries.'

4. Schema and Structured Data Implementation

Definition: This involves adding specific code (structured data) to your website that explicitly tells AI models and search engines what your content is about. It acts like a translator, making it easier for machines to parse your information and feature it in rich results and synthesized answers.

While this is a technical task, it's distinct from general website fixes because of its direct impact on how content is interpreted and displayed. For example, adding FAQPage schema can make your questions and answers eligible to appear directly in search results, a capability outlined in Google's developer documentation. This is one of the most effective ways to improve visibility for question-based queries.

Hypothetical SMB Example: For a consulting firm, a specific recommendation might be: 'Add FAQPage schema to your main services page. Include the top 5 questions about your process, pricing, and timeline to increase the chance of being featured in AI-generated summaries about consulting services in your niche.'

5. Digital Mention and PR Targets

Definition: This is a prioritized list of external websites, forums, and publications where your brand should be mentioned to build third-party validation. AI models don't just look at your website; they scan the entire web to determine your brand's authority and credibility.

Mentions on reputable, relevant sites act as votes of confidence. An effective AI visibility strategy includes identifying and pursuing these opportunities. This could involve answering questions on Quora or Reddit, contributing guest posts to industry blogs, or getting featured in online publications. These digital mentions are a powerful way to build the trust signals that AI models rely on.

Hypothetical SMB Example: For a fintech startup, a target list might include: 'Engage in discussions on the r/fintech subreddit and answer questions on Quora related to personal budgeting tools. Additionally, pitch a guest post to a mid-tier finance blog on the topic of '5 Common Budgeting Mistakes Young Professionals Make' to build grassroots authority.'

6. Internal Linking and Topical Authority

Definition: These are strategic recommendations for linking related content within your own website to create topic clusters. This practice demonstrates your breadth and depth of expertise on a subject to both users and AI models.

A topic cluster consists of a central "pillar" page covering a broad topic, which links out to more detailed "cluster" pages on related subtopics [3]. This structure helps AI understand the relationship between your content pieces, reinforcing your site as an authority on a core subject. A good AI visibility platform will identify opportunities to strengthen these clusters.

Hypothetical SMB Example: For a marketing agency, a recommendation could be: 'Strengthen your 'Local Marketing' topic cluster. From your new 'Guide to Local SEO' blog post, add internal links to your existing pages on 'Google Business Profile Optimization' and 'Customer Review Management.' This signals to AI that you have comprehensive expertise in this area.'

7. Competitor Gap Analysis Actions

Definition: These are actionable insights derived from analyzing why competitors are being mentioned or cited in AI answers where you are not. This involves reverse-engineering their success to create a targeted strategy for your own brand.

If a competitor is consistently sourced for a specific topic, an AI visibility platform should be able to tell you why. Is their content more comprehensive? Do they have better structured data? Are they mentioned on an authoritative site that you are not? These insights lead to highly specific and effective recommendations designed to close the gap.

Hypothetical SMB Example: For a boutique hotel, an action might be: 'Competitor X is consistently cited for 'pet-friendly amenities' in AI answers. To compete, create a dedicated page on your site detailing your pet policies, available amenities (like water bowls and beds), and nearby dog-friendly parks. Then, update your homepage and booking engine to prominently feature this new page.'

The Execution Challenge: From Insight to Impact

A list of recommendations, no matter how practical, is only half the battle. For most SMBs, the biggest hurdle is execution. Finding the time, budget, and technical expertise to implement these changes is a significant challenge. A technical fix might require a developer, content updates need a writer, and a digital PR push demands outreach skills.

This is the gap where many strategies fail. The hidden costs and time commitment of a purely do-it-yourself (DIY) approach can quickly become overwhelming, leaving valuable insights sitting untouched in a dashboard. As explored in the DIY vs. Hybrid model, understanding this execution challenge is critical for any business serious about improving its AI visibility.

How Searchify Bridges the Actionability Gap

Recognizing that insight without execution is meaningless, Searchify is built to bridge this gap. The platform's Action Center is designed to organize all seven types of recommendations into a single, prioritized, step-by-step plan. It transforms raw data into a clear roadmap, telling you exactly what to do next to improve your AI visibility.

Furthermore, Searchify offers an optional full-service add-on for SMBs who need to offload the work. This allows you to hand off the implementation of technical fixes, content creation, and digital outreach to our team of experts. It provides the value and expertise of a dedicated agency at a fraction of the cost, directly solving the execution challenge and ensuring your action plan turns into real-world impact.

Conclusion: Start Taking Action Today

Visibility in the AI era depends on consistent, strategic action, not just passive data monitoring. To succeed, you need a platform that provides practical recommendations across all facets of your digital presence—from technical health and on-page content to your brand's reputation across the web.

By understanding these seven types of actionable recommendations, you are now equipped to evaluate any AI visibility tool and demand more than just data. The first step is to understand where you stand today.

See what actionable recommendations you're missing. Get your free AI visibility one-pager from Searchify and receive a prioritized plan to improve your brand's presence in AI answers.