Ciny AI

AI Search Readiness Scorecard: twelve questions, one clear plan.

A free self-assessment of how ready your website is for AI search, with a score out of 100 and the fixes to make first.

Start the scorecardSee the twelve questions

A self-assessment from your own answers, not an audit of your site. Your answers are saved in this browser only.

The scorecard

Score your site in twelve questions.

Answer yes, partly or no. Skip anything you are not sure about, and check it later.

How the score works

Area 1 of 4Crawling and indexing

Question 1 of 12 Have you checked in Google Search Console that your main service pages are indexed?

Why it matters. Google says a page must be indexed, and able to show a snippet, to appear as a supporting link in AI Overviews or AI Mode.

Indexing, definedGoogle Search Console

The twelve questions

Four areas, twelve questions.

Each question restates Google's own guidance or our glossary, with the reason it matters.

Browse the glossary

Crawling and indexing

Whether search engines can find, read and store the pages you want found.

  1. Have you checked in Google Search Console that your main service pages are indexed?

    Google says a page must be indexed, and able to show a snippet, to appear as a supporting link in AI Overviews or AI Mode.

    Indexing, definedGoogle Search Console

  2. Can crawlers reach those pages, with no robots.txt block, noindex tag or login in the way?

    A robots.txt block stops Google reading a page, and a noindex tag keeps it out of results, including AI Overviews and AI Mode.

    robots.txt, explainedCrawling, defined

  3. Does every page you want found have a link from at least one other page on your site?

    Google finds and understands pages through links, and says every page you care about should be linked from another page on your site.

    Internal linking, explained

Content and answers

Whether your pages answer real buyer questions clearly, with detail only you can give.

  1. Does each key page answer its main question in plain text within its opening lines?

    Answer engines and readers both look for a direct answer, so a page that states it plainly gives them something accurate to use.

    AEO, definedSEO for AI search guide

  2. Do your pages also answer the follow-up questions buyers ask next, such as cost, timing and fit?

    Google says AI Overviews and AI Mode may run several related searches to build one response, a technique called query fan-out.

    Query fan-out, explained

  3. Do your pages include detail only your business can give, such as your process, scope or real examples?

    Google's own content questions ask whether a page offers original information and analysis beyond the obvious.

    AI content quality guideE-E-A-T, explained

Entity and trust signals

Whether search engines and readers can tell who you are and why to believe you.

  1. Do your website and business profiles describe you with the same name, services and contact details?

    GEO depends on facts that stay consistent wherever your business appears, so answer engines can describe you accurately.

    GEO, defined

  2. Do your guides and articles show who wrote or reviewed them, and how the information was checked?

    Google's people-first guidance asks sites to make clear who created content and how, and it names trust as the most important part of E-E-A-T.

    E-E-A-T, explainedOur editorial standard

  3. Does your structured data describe only what visitors can see, such as your organisation and breadcrumbs?

    Structured data helps search engines classify a page, but Google says it is not required for its AI features and must match the visible content.

    Structured data, explained

Measurement and leads

Whether you can see what search sends you and turn those visits into enquiries.

  1. Do you review Search Console regularly, including its Generative AI performance report?

    Search Console is Google's own record of clicks and impressions, and the Generative AI report shows impressions from AI Overviews and AI Mode.

    Google Search ConsoleMeasuring AI search

  2. Can you tell which enquiries came from organic search, separately from ads, referrals and direct visits?

    Enquiries are the measure that search and content work should answer to, ahead of rankings or traffic.

    Lead generation, definedConversion rate, explained

  3. Does each key page give visitors a clear next step, such as a contact form that works on a phone?

    A visit becomes an enquiry only when the next step is clear, so the contact route needs to work as well on a phone as on a desktop.

    Landing page, definedConversion rate, explained

Method

How the score
is worked out.

Simple arithmetic on your own answers, so you can check every number yourself.

What it cannot tell you

It does not crawl your site, check your rankings or see AI answers. Two sites with the same score can need different work. For evidence from your own Search Console data, an audit is the next step.

The SEO Audit
Each answer
Yes earns full marks, partly earns half, and no or not sure earns nothing. A skipped question counts as not sure.
Each area
An area's score is the share of its three questions' marks, out of 100.
Overall
Your overall score is the share across all twelve questions, out of 100, so each area carries equal weight.
The plan
Steps are ordered by our judgement of impact. Anything that stops a page being found comes before refinements.
What the score means
ScoreLabelIn short
75 to 100Strong foundationMost of the basics are in place. Keep them checked as the site changes, and work on any area below 100.
45 to 74Getting thereSeveral foundations are in place, with clear gaps. Your plan starts with the fixes that matter most.
0 to 44Needs workImportant foundations are missing or unchecked. Start with the first step in your plan, because later work depends on it.

Questions

Questions about
the scorecard.

Prefer to talk it through? Email hello@ciny.ai.

Is this an SEO audit?

No. It is a self-assessment built from your own answers. It does not crawl your site, read your Search Console data or check AI answers, so the score is only as accurate as the answers you give.

Does a high score mean AI Overviews will cite my site?

No. Google says that meeting its requirements does not mean a page will be crawled, indexed or shown, and it shows an AI Overview only when its systems judge that one adds to the usual results. A high score means the basics this scorecard covers are in place.

Do I need llms.txt or special schema for AI search?

Not for Google. Google says llms.txt is not needed for Google Search, and that structured data is not required for its generative AI features. Other services may use llms.txt differently.

What happens to my answers?

They are saved in this browser only, so you can leave and carry on later. If you allow analytics, it records only that the scorecard was started, finished, copied or restarted, the score band, and whether you started, prepared or sent the letter. Nothing reaches Ciny unless you send the letter yourself.

What happens if I ask Ciny for help?

We read your plan, then discuss your priorities, the work involved and whether Ciny is the right fit. Delivery scope is agreed before any work starts, and some fixes may be quicker for your own team to make.

Want a second opinion on your plan?

Send us your scorecard plan or tell us about your site. We will discuss the work involved and whether Ciny is the right fit.

Talk to our teamThe AI Search service