TL;DR
Getting cited by AI assistants starts with basics you can check: AI crawlers can reach your pages, each page answers a question in its first lines, structured data describes who you are, your brand is consistent across the web and you measure the results every month. No AEO checklist guarantees a citation, but skipping these steps makes one unlikely.
An AEO checklist is a step-by-step list of what a website needs so AI assistants such as ChatGPT, Perplexity and Gemini can find, understand and cite it. It covers technical access for AI crawlers, content written as direct answers, structured data, brand signals across the web and a simple way to measure results.
1. Technical access: let AI tools reach your content
- Make sure your key pages are indexable: no accidental noindex tags, correct canonical URLs and an XML sitemap submitted to Google Search Console and Bing Webmaster Tools.
- Review robots.txt. Allow the search crawlers of the assistants where you want to appear, such as OAI-SearchBot (ChatGPT search), PerplexityBot, Googlebot and Bingbot, since the Bing index powers Microsoft Copilot.
- Decide on training crawlers separately. GPTBot collects data for OpenAI models, and Google-Extended controls whether your content is used for Gemini models. Blocking Google-Extended does not remove you from Google Search or AI Overviews, which rely on Googlebot.
- Put important information in HTML text. Content that only appears after heavy JavaScript, or lives inside images and PDFs, is harder for some AI crawlers to read.
- Keep pages fast and free of barriers such as forced logins or bot protection that blocks legitimate crawlers.
- Optionally, publish an llms.txt file that points to your most useful pages. It is a proposed convention, not a standard, and support varies, so treat it as a low-cost extra.
2. Content: write answers, not just pages
- Answer the main question of each page in the first two or three sentences, then add the detail.
- Use the real questions your customers ask as H2 and H3 headings.
- Add a short FAQ with the follow-up questions buyers ask before deciding.
- Show a visible “last updated” date and keep facts current.
- Show who wrote the content and why they are qualified, with a short author bio.
- Use lists, steps and tables where they help, and state specific facts: services, locations, integrations, timelines and how pricing works.
- Cover one main topic per page and link related pages to each other.
If you would rather have a team write and restructure this content, our AEO content service does exactly that.
3. Structured data: describe your business for machines
- Add Organization and WebSite schema with your name, logo, URL and official profiles.
- Mark up services, articles, FAQs and breadcrumbs with the matching schema types.
- Keep every fact in the markup consistent with the visible content.
- Validate with Google Rich Results Test and the Schema Markup Validator.
For the structured data step of this AEO checklist, we explain which types matter and why in our guide to schema for AEO.
4. Brand signals beyond your site
- Keep your company name, description, address and phone consistent across Google Business Profile, directories and social profiles.
- Collect genuine reviews on the platforms that matter in your industry.
- Earn mentions in industry media, partner sites, roundups and communities where your buyers spend time.
- Describe what you do with the same words everywhere, so assistants get a single, clear picture of your brand.
5. Measurement: know whether it is working
- Write a fixed list of the questions your buyers ask and check them every month in ChatGPT, Perplexity, Gemini and AI Overviews.
- Track AI referral traffic in GA4 with a custom channel group.
- Add an “AI assistant” option to your “How did you hear about us?” field.
The details are in our guide on how to measure AEO.
What an AEO checklist cannot do
No checklist guarantees a citation. AI tools decide what to show, and their answers change with models, sources and wording. What an AEO checklist does is remove the obstacles that keep good content out of those answers. If you want a team to work through it with you, see our AEO and SEO services.
Reference: OpenAI: overview of OpenAI crawlers
Frequently asked questions about the AEO checklist
How do I get cited by ChatGPT?
Allow OAI-SearchBot in your robots.txt, make sure your pages are indexed and readable as HTML text, and answer specific questions directly in the first lines. Add structured data and keep your brand information consistent across the web. No one can guarantee a citation, but these steps make your content eligible and easy to quote.
Do I need an llms.txt file for AEO?
It is optional. llms.txt is a proposed convention for pointing AI tools to your most useful content, and support across assistants is limited and uneven. It is quick to create, so it can be a reasonable extra, but it does not replace crawlable pages, clear answers, structured data and a well organized site.
Should I block GPTBot or Google-Extended?
That is a business decision about how your content is used to build AI models, not about visibility in answers. Search crawlers such as OAI-SearchBot and Googlebot control whether you can appear in ChatGPT search and Google results. Many brands allow search crawlers and review training crawlers with their legal team.
Key takeaways
- Technical access comes first in any AEO checklist: AI crawlers must be able to reach and read your pages.
- Answer each question in the first lines, with clear headings and a short FAQ.
- Structured data and consistent brand signals remove doubt about who you are.
- Measure every month, because no AEO checklist guarantees a citation.
