🔍 How query types are handled
Search Atlas separates queries into two groups:
- Branded queries: Searches that mention your company, product, or brand name.
- Non-branded queries: General searches that do not mention your brand.
Both query types help measure how AI systems mention your business. However, they are used differently in reporting.
📈 How Overall Visibility % is calculated
Overall Visibility % is calculated only from non-branded queries. This shows how visible your business is when people search for general topics without already naming your brand.
Branded queries are excluded from this percentage so the result reflects discovery by new or broader audiences. Branded queries still contribute to citation tracking and sentiment analysis.
💬 Why branded queries still matter
Branded queries help Search Atlas evaluate whether AI answers mention your business when users search for it directly. They can affect:
- AI citations and brand mentions
- Sentiment associated with your brand
- The context and accuracy of AI-generated answers
These results may appear in query-level details even though they do not change Overall Visibility %.
📄 Why the dashboard and report can differ
The dashboard and exported or delivered report may not match immediately because they can be generated at different times. The dashboard may display newly processed query results while a report is still using the previous completed data set.
Differences can also occur when comparing Overall Visibility % with detailed branded-query results. The percentage includes only non-branded queries, while detailed results may include both branded and non-branded queries, along with citations and sentiment.
⏱️ Why processing can take 24–48 hours
AI visibility data requires Search Atlas to run queries, collect responses, identify citations, classify branded and non-branded results, and analyze sentiment. Reports are delivered after this processing is complete.
Allow up to 24–48 hours for new data, updates, or a report to finish processing. During this period, the dashboard and report may temporarily show different information. After processing completes, compare the same date range, query set, and metric.
✅ What to check
- Open AI Visibility from the left sidebar.
- Confirm the date range and selected project are the same in the dashboard and report.
- Check whether you are comparing Overall Visibility % with branded-query results, citations, or sentiment.
- Wait up to 48 hours for recently submitted or updated data to finish processing.
If you need further assistance, open the chat widget in the bottom-right corner of the platform and type human teammate to be instantly connected with a member of our team.