What does AI say about your firm right now? A 20-minute self-audit

You don't need software or an agency to get a first read on your AI visibility. You need 20 minutes, a spreadsheet and a private browser window. This walkthrough is written for law firms, but the same steps work for any local business.

By the end you will know three things: whether AI tools name your firm, which firms they name instead, and which websites they rely on to decide.

Before you start

Set up a simple sheet with these columns: question, AI tool, run number, firms named, your firm named (yes or no), sources cited, and anything wrong it said about you. You will fill in one row per answer.

Step 1: open a logged-out or private window

AI tools personalize answers to the person asking. If you're logged in, the tool may already know your firm, your location and what you've searched before. A private or incognito window, logged out, gets you closer to what a stranger sees. Some tools ask you to sign in. Where that happens, use a fresh account with no history.

Step 2: write 10 questions your clients actually ask

Use the form "best [case type] lawyer in [city]" for most of them, and add a few that sound like a person in trouble rather than a person shopping. For example:

• Best car accident lawyer in [city]
• Who should I call after a truck accident in [city]?
• Do I need a lawyer for a dog bite in [city]?
• Motorcycle accident lawyer in [city] with a free consultation
• Is [your firm name] a good law firm?

That last one matters. It tells you what AI says about you when someone already knows your name.

Step 3: ask each question on 4 AI tools

Use ChatGPT, Gemini, Perplexity and Google's AI answers. They don't agree with each other. In our own captures on 1 Nov 2026, ChatGPT and Perplexity named mostly different firms for the same Houston and Phoenix questions. A firm that shows up on one tool can be missing on the next.

Step 4: run each question 3 times

AI answers change from run to run, even minutes apart. One answer that names you, or leaves you out, proves very little. Ask the same question three times on each tool, in a new chat each time, and count how often you appear. "Named in 2 of 3 runs" is a much more useful number than a single screenshot.

Step 5: screenshot the answers and log the sources

Take a screenshot of every answer. Then write down the websites each answer cites. Some tools show sources as links or small labels under the answer. Look for patterns. You will usually see a mix of legal directories, "top 10" list sites, local news roundups and firms' own pages.

The sources column is the most useful part of this whole exercise. It tells you where the AI is getting its names. If one directory or one local list keeps appearing, that is the first place to check whether your firm is listed, and how.

Step 6: check for wrong information

Read every answer that mentions you and compare it with reality. Common problems:

• An old office address or a phone number that no longer works
• A practice area you stopped taking, or one you never did
• An attorney who left the firm, or one who is missing
• Wrong hours, or no mention of free consultations if you offer them

Wrong facts usually come from somewhere: an outdated directory profile, an old press mention, a stale map listing. Note what is wrong so you can trace it.

Step 7: check your directory profiles

Search for your firm on the directories that showed up in step 5, plus the usual ones for lawyers: Avvo, Justia, Super Lawyers, Martindale and the BBB. For each, note whether the profile exists, whether it's claimed, and whether the name, address, phone number and practice areas match your website exactly.

Step 8: check how recent your reviews are

Look at the date of your newest reviews on Google and the directories. According to BrightLocal's 2026 survey, as reported by Rankings.io, 74% of consumers trust only reviews from the past 3 months. Older reviews still count, but a steady flow of new ones keeps your profiles current for people and for the tools that summarize them.

Ask for reviews in a way your state bar allows, never offer anything in exchange, and never write or buy them. Not legal advice.

Reading your results

Add up how often you were named across all runs and tools, then look at who was named most instead. Compare their directory profiles and listings with yours. The gap between their profiles and yours, and between the sources AI cited and the sources you appear on, is your starting to-do list.

Run the same questions again next month, the same way, and compare. Change is slow and noisy, so the trend matters more than any single result.

Want us to do it for you?

Our free AI scan runs 10 questions across 4 AI tools, checks for wrong information and sends you a recorded walkthrough within 2 business days. No call needed.