MAICON 2026 · Cleveland

Measuring AI Search: The KPIs we actually trust

Alisa Scharf, Chief AI Officer, Seer Interactive

Your CEO is going to ask if AI search is working. Clicks are going away, so the old scoreboard can't answer it. Here are six numbers that can.

Be Seen. Be Believed. Be Chosen.

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AI search is your brand, on a screen, in front of a customer. Here are the slides and the links below.

Measure it like any other screen: who saw it, what stuck, and whether it changed what people bought.

THE KPI MENU

Six numbers your board already understands

Two per stage: one your board already trusts, and one that shows you're winning. Pick the one your boss trusts and lead with it.

1BE SEEN

When they ask, are we in the answer?

Board metric

Share of voice

How often does AI name us?

How to measure: Answers that name you ÷ all tracked answers to your buyers' questions.

Winning metric

AI shortlist rate

Are we on AI's list before it reads a page?

How to measure: Fan-out searches that name you ÷ all fan-out searches behind your buyers' questions.

2BE BELIEVED

When we're in the answer, does it get us right?

Board metric

Message pull-through

Is AI telling our story?

How to measure: Answers that repeat your key messages ÷ answers that mention you.

Winning metric

Brand accuracy

Is AI getting the facts right?

How to measure: Answers that get you right ÷ answers that mention you.

3BE CHOSEN

When it gets us right, does it lead to a purchase?

Board metric

Pipeline contribution

Is demand following?

How to measure: Branded search, direct traffic and demo requests, read against your AI metrics over time. Correlation, not last click.

Winning metric

Recommendation rate

When AI makes a pick, is it us?

How to measure: Answers that pick you ÷ all answers to your buyers' questions.

THE TALK

Flip through the slides

Alisa Scharf

Heard Alisa talk? Catch her latest.

A few of her posts that go deeper on the talk.

Which AI visibility tracker is right for you? The AI search maturity model

Read the post

Stop chasing AI rankings before you fix how LLMs see your brand

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The AI search landscape, beyond the SEO vs. GEO hype

Read the study

Finance giants can't rely on authority anymore. Clarity of content is the new edge

Read the study

How to get your brand into ChatGPT's training data

Read the post
More about AlisaAll of Alisa's posts

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