Bing AI Performance Report: The 5-Minute Visibility Check Most SEO Teams Are Missing
- Katina Ndlovu
- Feb 16
- 3 min read
Bing Webmaster Tools now includes an AI Performance report in beta that shows how AI systems cluster and evaluate your content before deciding whether to surface or cite it. The most actionable feature is called Grounding Queries.
Grounding Queries reveal grouped search representations used by AI when assessing intent scenarios such as product comparisons, service evaluations, and purchase decisions. This data is free inside Bing Webmaster Tools.
Before spending on third-party AI visibility tools, reviewing this report can immediately highlight structural gaps in your content.
Why This Release Changes the AI Visibility Conversation
Many businesses are spending heavily trying to approximate how large language models interpret their sites.
Meanwhile, Microsoft has quietly released a built-in layer of visibility data inside Bing Webmaster Tools.
The AI Performance report is not speculative modelling. It reflects how Bing’s AI systems, including Microsoft Copilot, cluster and interpret search intent before generating responses.
That matters because AI systems do not guess. They search, cluster, and synthesise.
What Are Grounding Queries and Why Should You Care
Grounding Queries are grouped representations of how AI systems phrase and interpret a topic.
Instead of showing a single keyword, the report clusters variations into an intent representation. That grouped language is often broader, clearer, or more commercially precise than the wording used on your page.
When reviewing Grounding Queries, you may notice:
AI phrases your topic differently than you do
Important modifiers are missing
Your page does not address the full purchase scenario
The grouped representation is broader than your current structure
This is not a keyword issue. It is a structural alignment issue.
When AI Triggers Search (And Why Purchase Intent Is the Real Opportunity)
If a user asks a language model a time-sensitive or purchase-intent question, it often triggers a live web search.
Examples include:
Product comparisons
Service recommendations
Pricing scenarios
“Best option for” queries
AI systems pull current results, cluster them, and synthesise answers. If your page clearly matches the clustered scenario, it is more likely to be surfaced or cited.
The opportunity is not informational traffic. It is high-intent coverage.
How to Use the Bing AI Performance report to Align Grounding Queries With Purchase Intent
This takes five minutes.
Open the AI Performance report in Bing Webmaster Tools.
Review a grounding query tied to a priority page.
Search that grounding query in Bing directly.
If you are not ranking in positions 1–3, ask:
Is that language clearly reflected high on the page?
Does the page thoroughly address that scenario?
Often you do not need a new page. You need alignment.
Add clarity. Strengthen the relevant section. Improve internal linking from stronger authority pages.
If the grounding query genuinely represents a different intent, then create a dedicated page and align:
Title
URL
H1
Opening paragraph
Meta description
Authority still matters. If alignment is strong but rankings are weak, strengthen internal links and build external authority toward that specific page.
Why This Matters Beyond Bing
The AI Performance report reflects data tied to Bing AI summaries, Copilot responses, and partner integrations.
LLMs are not isolated ecosystems. Structural improvements in one environment often translate across others because they rely on similar principles:
Clear topic ownership
Structured intent alignment
Strong authority signals
If you correct structural weak spots identified in Bing’s AI layer, you are likely strengthening visibility across AI systems more broadly.
Structural Alignment vs Content Volume
Many teams assume the solution to weak AI visibility is more content.
In practice, the faster win is structural alignment:
Reflect intent language clearly in headings
Expand sections to fully cover the decision scenario
Strengthen contextual internal linking
Ensure authority pages support high-intent pages
AI systems reward clarity, not noise.
FAQs
What is the Bing AI Performance report
It is a beta feature in Bing Webmaster Tools that shows how AI systems interpret and group search intent related to your content.
What are Grounding Queries
Grounding Queries are clustered search representations AI uses when evaluating whether your page matches a user’s intent.
Does this replace keyword research
No. It complements it by revealing how AI systems cluster and interpret real-world intent beyond single keywords.
Should businesses create new pages for every grounding query
Not necessarily. Often structural alignment within an existing page is sufficient.
Does this only impact Bing
No. Improvements in structured intent alignment can strengthen visibility across AI-driven search systems more broadly.
Is this relevant for service businesses
Yes. Purchase-intent and comparison queries are highly relevant for service-based decision journeys.
About the Author
Katina Ndlovu is a marketing strategist and founder of Katina Ndlovu Agency, specialising in SEO, AEO-driven content systems, and authority-focused digital visibility. Her work focuses on helping service brands align structure, intent, and trust so search engines and AI systems can surface them in high-value decision contexts.
Links
Grounding Queries in Bing Webmaster Tools
Read more:
SEO and online visibility
marketing strategy and SEO case studies
discuss marketing strategy
Comments