Help Google and AI Search Understand Your Website

Start with a page that helps someone finish a real task. Then make that page accessible, clearly sourced and easy to navigate. Crawlability creates an opportunity to be discovered; it does not guarantee indexing, rankings or an AI citation.

Originally published June 6; revised September 6, 2026 against official publisher documentation.

Quick picks

Content: Show useful original work. Add an example, working tool or observation that earns the visit.
Access: Readable HTML. Serve the same substantive page to readers and crawlers.
Measurement: Search Console. Separate crawl and indexing checks from actual search performance.
Markdown: Optional reading format. Maintain it when useful; do not promise a ranking benefit.

What Google asks for

Google says ordinary SEO also applies to its generative search features. Prioritize helpful original material, crawlable pages and a good reading experience. Eligibility requires indexing, snippet eligibility and inclusion through the Search generative AI control.

Avoid mass-producing query variations, rewriting for an imagined AI-only reader, fabricated mentions and unnecessary content chunking. Google Search ignores llms.txt; Markdown is not required.

Give each useful page a descriptive title and relevant internal links.
Keep canonical URLs, sitemap dates and structured data consistent with the page.
Refresh claims when the substance changes; retain the original publication history.

Use the new Search Console controls and reports

In Settings, inspect Search generative AI and its Include or Exclude state. In Performance, the Generative AI report measures impressions from Google AI Overviews and AI Mode. This is separate from traffic or citations in ChatGPT and Claude.

Inspect indexing reasons individually. Redirects and deliberate noindex pages can be correct. For a new important page, use URL Inspection after deployment and submit the current sitemap.

Record the report date and time range when comparing performance.
A submission or successful live test does not mean Google has indexed the page.

Separate search access from model training

OpenAI documents OAI-SearchBot for search discovery and GPTBot for training. Allowing one does not require allowing the other. ChatGPT-User handles user-directed visits.

Anthropic distinguishes Claude-SearchBot, Claude-User and the training crawler ClaudeBot. Set crawler policy deliberately, and check that hosting or firewall rules do not contradict it. These controls do not promise placement in answers.

Make the page usable by a browser agent

Use real links for navigation, labelled form controls, descriptive buttons and visible completion or error messages. Let people review a generated brief before acting on it.

On this site, Mission Control exposes its steps and evidence fields in the page. The CSV inspector produces a report from a user-selected file. Both are useful without claiming to be live AI demonstrations.

Offer alternate formats without duplicating the editorial job

Generate Markdown from the same content source as the page. Link it from the HTML and identify the HTML canonical in an HTTP Link header. An optional reading index can help a tool that chooses to consult it.

Google also supports a preferred-source link or interactive button for eligible publications. Check that your domain appears in its source preferences tool before offering the link. Selection is the reader’s choice.

A practical release check

Open the page on desktop and mobile and complete its main task.
Check a direct URL load, title, canonical, readable content and source links.
Confirm intended redirects and real 404 responses for missing pages.
Inspect robots rules, sitemap URLs and Markdown responses on the public host.
Review Search Console after Google has had time to recrawl. Compare meaningful outcomes, not just page counts.

Copyable prompts

Review one useful page

Review [URL] for a reader trying to [TASK]. Identify what helps, what is unsupported or stale, and any confusing interaction. Then inspect crawlability, title, canonical, internal links and content consistency. Cite current official documentation for technical advice. Separate observed defects from suggestions and unverified assumptions.

Related Power of AI pages

Mission Control: Turn a project into a brief with visible checks.
Working showcase: Try a real local tool.
Sources and standards: How this site labels evidence and illustrative examples.

Sources and official references

Related Power of AI pages

Keep reading with Start here, everyday uses, the tool guide, the writing workshop, and sources and standards.