Phase 1: Client intake (Week 1)
Collect brand information
Brand name (exact, including alternate spellings), website URL, primary product/service category, geographic focus (local, national, or global), target audience description.
Why: AI models respond to exact brand name queries - small variations matter. Geographic focus determines which location-qualified queries to include.
Identify 3–5 direct competitors
Get the client's input on who they consider their main competitors - not just your assessment. Clients often know about newer or more niche competitors you might miss.
Why: The competitive comparison is often the most motivating part of the monthly report. Getting the right comparators matters.
Understand the ICP and buying journey
Who searches for this brand? What problems are they trying to solve? What language do they use when searching? What are the 2–3 most important query types for this client's business?
Why: The query set needs to reflect actual buyer language, not marketing language. A CRM software company's buyers ask "CRM for small sales teams" not "revenue acceleration platform."
Review existing third-party presence
Check current G2, Trustpilot, Google Reviews status. Note review volume and rating. Identify gaps (claimed profiles vs. unclaimed, low volume).
Why: Review platform status is often the most actionable early opportunity. Identifying gaps on day 1 means you can address them in month 1.
Phase 2: ArtificialPulse setup (Week 1)
Create brand profile in ArtificialPulse
Add brand name, website URL, and business category. This establishes the entity ArtificialPulse will track.
Add competitor brands (3–5)
Add each competitor to the tracking dashboard. All competitor AI Visibility Scores will be tracked on the same query set as the client brand.
Build custom query set
Start with ArtificialPulse's auto-generated query set for the category. Add 5–10 custom queries based on the ICP research: use-case queries, comparison queries, and location-specific queries if relevant.
Run initial baseline audit
Generate the first AI Visibility Score. This is the baseline - every future score is compared against this. Screenshot and save it.
Configure report white-labeling
Upload agency logo, set brand colors, confirm contact information. First report should be ready to deliver within the month.
Phase 3: Baseline analysis (Week 2)
Interpret the baseline score
Where does the client score relative to competitors? Which platform has the biggest gap (ChatGPT vs. Perplexity vs. Google AIO)? Which query types are they appearing in vs. missing?
Identify the highest-impact opportunity
Usually one of: review platform volume deficit, missing from "best of" articles, entity clarity issues, or platform-specific gap. This becomes the Month 1 focus.
Prepare the onboarding presentation
A 15-minute presentation covering: what AI visibility is, your client's baseline score, the competitive landscape, and the Month 1 plan. Set expectations: results are visible within 60 days of focused effort.
Phase 4: Month 1 optimization setup (Week 2–4)
Review platform gap remediation
If G2, Trustpilot, or Google Reviews have volume gaps, launch the review velocity campaign in Month 1. Brief the client on the ask-for-review process, timing, and expected response rate.
Wikidata entity check
Search Wikidata for the brand entity. If no entry exists, create one. This is a 20-minute task with meaningful AI visibility impact - low effort, quick win.
Third-party coverage audit
Search for "best [category]" and related queries to identify existing articles that don't include the client. Build an outreach list of 10–15 publications/authors to pitch in Month 2.
Set Month 1 score target
Based on the baseline and planned actions, set a realistic Month 1 target score. Communicate it to the client - it becomes the benchmark for the first monthly report.
Onboarding timeline summary:
The tool that makes onboarding faster
ArtificialPulse automates the baseline audit, query set generation, and weekly tracking - so your onboarding focuses on strategy, not data gathering.