How to Monitor Which Websites AI Models Are Recommending – and Track Competitor Brand Mentions

The New Reality of Brand Discovery

When someone asks ChatGPT, “What’s the best AI visibility tracking tool?” or searches in Gemini for “top website monitoring platforms,” they’re not scrolling through search results-they’re trusting AI recommendations.

If your brand isn’t being recommended by AI models, you’re invisible at the moment of decision.

This guide shows you how to:

• Monitor which websites AI models recommend across ChatGPT, Perplexity, Google AI Overview, Gemini, Claude and other models
• Track competitor brand mentions across different models
• Turn AI visibility into a measurable competitive advantage

AI Recommendations vs. Traditional Search: What’s Different?

Google Search (Traditional)

• Returns 10+ ranked results
• Users scan and compare options
• You compete for clicks

AI Models (ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, Perplexity)

• Generate 2-3 direct recommendations
• Users accept without comparison
• AI is the gatekeeper of exposure

Critical insight: Being mentioned by AI ≠ Being recommended

Only recommendations influence buying decisions.

Why Manual Checking Fails

Many marketers try this approach:

1. Type prompts into ChatGPT
2. Copy results to spreadsheets
3. Repeat across AI models

The problem?

❌Inconsistent – AI answers vary between sessions
❌Not scalable – 50 prompts × 4 AI models = 200 manual checks
❌No historical data – Can’t measure trends or improvements
❌No competitor intel – You miss what competitors are doing

Manual checking gives you a snapshot. Strategy requires systematic tracking.

The 5-Part Framework for AI Visibility Tracking

1. Multi-Model Coverage

Track recommendations across all major AI platforms:

• ChatGPT – Largest user base, conversational queries
• Claude – Enterprise adoption, nuanced responses
• Gemini – Google ecosystem integration, factual queries
• Perplexity – Real-time web citations, research focus

Why different models? Your brand might appear in ChatGPT but be completely invisible in Gemini-while your competitor dominates Perplexity.

Each AI model has different:

• Training data sources
• Retrieval mechanisms
• User bases and use cases

2. Prompt-Level Monitoring

Track prompts across four categories:

Brand Intent Prompts

• “What is [YourBrand]?”
• “How does [YourBrand] work?”

Generic Buying Prompts

• “Best AI visibility tracking tools”
• “Top website monitoring platforms 2026”

Competitor Comparison Prompts

• “[YourBrand] vs [Competitor]”
• “Alternatives to [Competitor]”

Problem-Solution Prompts

• “How to track brand mentions in ChatGPT”
• “Monitor AI recommendations.F”

What to track for each:

• Which AI models recommend you
• Your position (1st, 2nd, 3rd)
• Recommendation context and sentiment
• Citation sources used

This creates a measurable AI Share of Voice for your brand.

3. Competitor Benchmarking

AI visibility is competitive. You need answers to:

• Who gets recommended instead of us?
• What’s our AI Share of Voice vs. competitors?
• Which prompts never mention us?
• What sources does AI cite for competitors?

Example:

Prompt: “Best website monitoring for enterprises.”

Insight: You’re invisible in Gemini for enterprise queries

Action Ex: Check what AI model has picked up and then build something similar, most of the time, enterprise case studies get featured in enterprise publications. 

4. Track Competitor Mentions Systematically

Step 1: Identify Competitors

• Direct competitors – Same product category
• Category competitors – Different approach, same problem
• Aspirational competitors – Where you want to be

Step 2: Create Competitor-Focused Prompts

• Comparison: “[YourBrand] vs [Competitor]”
• Alternatives: “Alternatives to [Competitor]”
• Category: “Best [category] tools”

Step 3: Measure Competitor Patterns

For each competitor, track:

• Recommendation frequency (% of prompts)
• Position (1st, 2nd, 3rd)
• Features AI highlights
• Authority signals mentioned
• Citation sources

Step 4: Competitive Gap Analysis

5. Longitudinal Trend Analysis

Track month-over-month:

• Recommendation frequency changes
• Position improvements/declines
• New competitors entering the space
• Impact of content and PR efforts

Example:

Result: +78% increase, position improved 25%
Cause: Recent press coverage + customer case studies

Why Different AI Models Recommend Different Websites

ChatGPT (OpenAI)

• Emphasises: User reviews, social proof, how-to content
• Optimise for: G2/Capterra reviews, tutorials, recent publications

Claude (Anthropic)

• Emphasises: Authoritative sources, technical depth, accuracy
• Optimise for: Technical documentation, thought leadership, comprehensive guides

Gemini (Google)

• Emphasises: Domain authority, factual accuracy, structured data
• Optimise for: Traditional SEO, E-E-A-T signals, Knowledge Graph

Perplexity

• Emphasises: Recent sources, explicit citations, research quality
• Optimise for: Fresh content, strong backlinks, authoritative publications

How SiteSignal Solves the AI Visibility Problem

Manual tracking collapses at scale. SiteSignal provides systematic AI visibility monitoring.

What SiteSignal Does:

Multi-Model Monitoring

• Automated tracking across ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, Perplexity
• Consistent, repeatable methodology
• Scalable to hundreds of prompts

Competitor Benchmarking

• Track exactly where competitors are recommended
• Measure relative AI Share of Voice
• Identify competitive gaps and opportunities

Prompt-Level Analytics

• Monitor position, context, and sentiment
• Track hundreds of prompts simultaneously
• Measure visibility trends over time

Citation Analysis

• Understand which sources AI models cite
• Identify content that drives recommendations
• Optimise based on actual data

Actionable Insights

• Why are competitors recommended more?
• Which prompts are you invisible for?
• What content gaps need filling?

Real-World Results

Enterprise SaaS Company

Problem: “We rank well in Google but ChatGPT never recommends us”

Findings:

• Visible in only 12% of buying-intent prompts
• Competitor: 78% visibility
• Root cause: Competitor had 400+ G2 reviews vs. 23

Action: Review gathering campaign
Result: +156% increase in AI recommendations in 60 days

Marketing Agency

Problem: “We don’t know how AI perceives our brand”

Findings:

• ChatGPT cited outdated service descriptions
• Gemini had no knowledge of recent rebranding
• Claude recommended competitors for services agency offered

Action: Published updated positioning content, secured industry mentions
Result: +89% increase in accurate recommendations

Startup vs. Established Players

Problem: “How do we compete against brands with 10x our budget?”

Findings:

• Large competitors dominated generic prompts (73%)
• But niche use cases: only 34% visibility
• Opportunity: Own specific problem-solution prompts

Action: Created hyper-targeted content for underserved prompts
Result: Became #1 recommendation for 3 high-intent categories

Your 4-Week Action Plan

Week 1: Baseline Assessment

• Manually test 10-15 core prompts in ChatGPT and Gemini
• Document findings (mentioned? recommended? position?)
• Note competitors that appear
• Sign up for SiteSignal to automate tracking

Week 2: Systematic Monitoring

• Set up comprehensive prompt list (20-50 prompts)
• Configure competitor tracking
• Let data accumulate across all AI models
• Review preliminary findings

Week 3: Analysis & Strategy

• Identify where competitors outperform you
• Find prompts where you’re invisible
• Determine content gaps
• Create action plan (fix gaps, defend strengths, attack opportunities)

Week 4: Optimisation

• Publish content addressing visibility gaps
• Launch review gathering campaigns (G2, Capterra, Trustpilot)
• Get featured in publications AI models cite
• Monitor week-over-week improvements

Advanced Optimisation Strategies

The Citation Optimisation Loop

1. Identify which sources AI cites most often
2. Get your brand featured in those sources
3. Monitor if citations increase
4. Double down on what works

Example: If ChatGPT cites G2 reviews frequently → Prioritise G2 review gathering → Higher recommendation rate

The Authority Stacking Method

AI models favor multi-source authority:

• Weak: Only your website
• Medium: Website + customer reviews
• Strong: Website + reviews + press coverage
• Strongest: Website + reviews + press + publications + case studies + social mentions

Action: Build authority across multiple channels simultaneously.

The Competitive Displacement Strategy

1. Find where competitor is consistently recommended
2. Analyse what sources AI cites for them
3. Build equivalent (or better) authority signals
4. Monitor displacement progress

Example progression:

• Month 1: Competitor 87%, You 12%
• Month 2: Competitor 79%, You 23% (review campaign)
• Month 3: Competitor 71%, You 34% (case studies)
• Month 4: Competitor 58%, You 49% (press features)
• Month 5: Competitor 52%, You 54% ✅

Common Mistakes to Avoid

❌ Only tracking one AI model – You get incomplete visibility picture
❌ Checking randomly without system – No historical data or trends
❌ Ignoring competitor intelligence – Can’t compete strategically
❌ Only tracking brand prompts – Miss where new prospects discover you
❌ Not tracking citation sources – Can’t optimise effectively

The Bottom Line

Traditional SEO tells you where you rank.
AI visibility tracking tells you whether you exist in AI-driven buyer journeys.

If your brand is serious about:

• Being recommended by AI assistants
• Competing in AI-mediated discovery
• Protecting long-term digital visibility

Then monitoring AI recommendations is no longer optional.

SiteSignal transforms AI visibility from guesswork into strategy.

Instead of wondering what AI says about your brand, you know:

• Which AI models recommend you
• Which competitors dominate specific prompts
• Where you’re invisible and why
• How to systematically improve
• Whether your efforts are working

Get Started Today

Option 1: Manual Baseline (Free)

Test 10 prompts in ChatGPT and Gemini today. Document what you find.

Option 2: Systematic Tracking (Recommended)

Sign up for SiteSignal and start measuring your AI Share of Voice across all major models.

Option 3: Free AI Visibility Audit

Request a free audit to get:

• Your current AI visibility analysis
• Competitor comparison
• Specific gaps and opportunities
• Recommended action plan

The AI revolution in discovery has already happened. Start tracking your visibility today.

Get Started with SiteSignal →