AI search optimization for software companies
When a buyer asks ChatGPT, Perplexity, Gemini, Claude, or Google which tool to use, I want to know whether you are named, what is said about you, and which sources get cited instead. Then I fix what can be fixed.
What is AI search optimization?
AI search optimization is the work of getting a brand named and cited accurately when people ask AI assistants and AI search features for recommendations. It covers whether AI crawlers can read your pages without JavaScript, whether your brand is described consistently across the web, which competitor pages get cited instead of yours, and the structured data and third party mentions assistants rely on. Ravana Solutions runs AI search optimization for software companies across the US from Norfolk, Virginia, measured with a fixed prompt set tracked monthly across ChatGPT, Perplexity, Gemini, Claude, and Google AI Overviews. No one can guarantee an AI citation, so the work is measured rather than promised.
What it is
AI assistants do not return ten links. They return an answer that names a few products and cites a handful of sources. That answer is built from pages the assistant can read, sources it trusts, and how consistently the web describes you.
Most AI visibility reports are a screenshot of one lucky answer. I run the same prompt set every month across the major assistants and record mentions, citations, position, and the sources cited, so a change in the numbers means something.
Who it is for
AI answers now shape the shortlist in each of these verticals.
- SaaS
Buyers ask an assistant for a shortlist before they search.
- Developer tools
Developers ask coding assistants which library to use.
- Digital health
AI Overviews appear on many health searches.
- Marketplaces and directories
Assistants answer "best provider in this city" questions from directories.
What the work covers
Scoped up front, delivered in writing, and walked through live with your team.
A fixed prompt set
The questions your buyers would type, agreed with you up front and kept stable so month to month comparisons hold.
Mentions and citations across assistants
ChatGPT, Perplexity, Gemini, Claude, and Google AI Overviews and AI Mode: who is named, in what order, and which pages are cited.
AI crawler readability
Whether the major AI crawlers can fetch and read your key pages without running JavaScript, and whether robots rules block them.
Entity consistency
Your name, category, and core claims checked across your site, docs, registries, review sites, and profiles, so assistants describe you the same way.
Citation gaps against competitors
The pages and third party sources cited for competitors and not for you, turned into a list of pages to build and sources to earn.
Structured data and third party mentions
Organization and product markup that matches the page, plus the reviews, comparisons, and community sources assistants lean on.
Built on my own tooling and research
I do not rent the audit. Raptor is the open source SEO crawler I wrote in Rust, with 128 checks covering rendering, indexation, structured data, and performance. My field report on generative engine optimization uses data from a live client, a regional veterinary practice, to show how ChatGPT and Google AI Mode choose the sources they cite.
Checks in Raptor, the open source crawler I wrote in Rust.
AI search engines on every prompt set: ChatGPT, Perplexity, Gemini, Claude, and Google, where I check both AI Overviews and AI Mode.
Senior person on your account. Me, from the first crawl to the monthly report.
searches where Google AI Overviews cite Red Rock Veterinary Health as a source
The method, on a client outside software
Red Rock Veterinary Health is a veterinary practice in Colorado Springs, not a software company, and I say so plainly. The method is the same one I use for software: readable pages, direct answers, and consistent entity details. My first software case studies will come from the founding client program.
How the work runs
Agree the prompt set
We pick the prompts that matter for revenue and the competitors to compare against.
Baseline
Every prompt run across every assistant, with mentions, citations, and sources recorded, plus a crawler readability check.
Fix list
A prioritized list: pages to make readable, pages to build, entity details to correct, and sources to pursue.
Track monthly
On a retainer, the same prompt set runs every month and the report shows what moved and why.
Pricing
Start with a snapshot to see where you stand. The Advisory retainer includes monthly AI visibility tracking.
AI Search Visibility Snapshot
Baseline of brand mentions and citations across the major AI assistants for a defined prompt set. Competitor comparison. AI crawler readability check. Prioritized fix list.
Best for: Teams curious where they stand in AI search
Technical SEO + AI Search Audit
Full crawl and render analysis. Indexation, site architecture, and structured data review. AI visibility snapshot. Developer ready tickets. 60 minute walkthrough. 30 days of follow up questions.
Best for: Sites up to about 10,000 URLs
Advisory retainer
Monthly strategy. Two calls a month. Async support. Review of dev tickets and PRs. Monthly AI visibility tracking.
Best for: Teams with in house developers and writers
What this is not
- Not a content mill. I write briefs and strategy; your team or a writer you choose writes the content.
- No guaranteed rankings or AI citations. I measure and report instead.
- No link schemes and no bought mentions.
Frequently asked questions
Related work: Technical SEO, Programmatic SEO, and the research behind it.
What is AI search optimization?
AI search optimization is the work of getting a brand named and cited accurately when people ask AI assistants and AI search features for recommendations. It covers whether AI crawlers can read your pages without JavaScript, whether your brand is described consistently across the web, which competitor pages get cited instead of yours, and the structured data and third party mentions assistants rely on. Ravana Solutions runs AI search optimization for software companies across the US from Norfolk, Virginia, measured with a fixed prompt set tracked monthly across ChatGPT, Perplexity, Gemini, Claude, and Google AI Overviews. No one can guarantee an AI citation, so the work is measured rather than promised.
Can you guarantee that ChatGPT or Google will cite us?
No, and anyone who promises that is guessing. AI answers change between runs and between users. What I can do is measure where you stand on a fixed prompt set, fix what makes your pages hard to read or cite, and show you the trend every month.
Which AI assistants do you track?
ChatGPT, Perplexity, Gemini, Claude, and Google AI Overviews and AI Mode. The prompt set stays the same across all of them, so you can compare engines as well as months.
Is AI search optimization different from SEO?
It overlaps heavily. Readable pages, clear structure, and real authority help both. The differences are in measurement and in which sources matter: assistants lean on review sites, community threads, and documentation in ways a rank tracker never shows.
Does llms.txt help with AI search?
I have not seen it change citations in client work. It can help agents that fetch documentation directly, which matters for developer tools. For most sites, server rendered HTML, direct answers, and consistent entity details matter far more.
How much does AI search optimization cost?
The AI Search Visibility Snapshot is $1,500 and takes 1 to 2 weeks. Ongoing monthly tracking is part of the Advisory retainer at $2,500 a month. Every price is published on the consultation page.
Start with a free 30 minute call
Tell me the three or four questions you most want an assistant to answer with your name. If there is a fit, you get a scoped proposal within 2 business days, usually starting with the snapshot.