When a shopper asks an AI what to buy, you are either in the answer or you are not.

Prepared for Shannon Carey at Dollar General.

We read the answer the way a shopper sees it, record every name in it and every page behind it, and repeat it on a schedule so you can see the wording move. Nothing here is modelled or estimated. Every number opens the answer it came from.

What you give us

A question list and a brand list

These are the questions we asked for Dollar General, in small-format value retail. No question in the headline set names you: the measurement is whether the engine reaches for you unprompted.

where-to-buyWhere can I buy household basics cheaply in Nashville?
where-to-buyWhere can I buy household basics cheaply in Birmingham?
where-to-buyWhere can I buy household basics cheaply in Little Rock?
where-to-buyWhere can I buy household basics cheaply in Jacksonville?
priceWhat is the cheapest store for everyday essentials in Nashville?
priceWhat is the cheapest store for everyday essentials in Birmingham?

16 questions in the headline set, plus 4 that name you directly and are reported separately. Adding a question, or a brand, is one line.

AldiBig LotsCVSDollar TreeFamily DollarFive BelowFood LionKrogerPiggly WigglyPublixSave A LotTarget+2 more tracked

The template library

One template per answer engine

Engine	This run	Note
ChatGPT	Ran	Full question set, with web search.
Google AI Overviews	Ran	Core question subset, captured from the Google results page.
Gemini	Available	Available and returning citations. Not run here to keep this capture to one morning; it is a question-set change, not a build.

Adding an engine is a question-set change, not a new build: the same questions go to whichever engines you want covered. An engine that did not answer is listed as not run, with the reason, and is never reported as the market having no answer, because those are different facts.

What we extract

One question, captured whole

Where can I buy household basics cheaply in Nashville?

Dollar Tree, Ollie's Bargain Outlet, Dollar General If you’re trying to keep the cost down in Nashville, I’d split your shopping like this: • Dollar Tree — Great for cleaning supplies, sponges, dish soap, storage items, paper goods, kitchen odds and ends, and other small household basics. Dollar Tree specifically lists cleaning, storage, kitchen and dining among its departments. Dollar Tree • Ollie's Bargain Outlet — Worth checking for larger household items, bedding, kitchenware, storage, rugs and home goods. Its inventory is closeout/overstock-oriented, so selection changes. • Dollar General — Convenient for basics like laundry supplies, paper products, cleaning products and toiletries; coupons can make certain items cheaper. Family Dollar • Southeastern Salvage Home Emporium — Good for discounted home-improvement materials, kitchen/home goods, rugs and other furnishing items, particularly if you’re setting up a place. • Habitat for Humanity ReStore Nashville — Particularly useful for inexpensive furniture, appliances, hardware and home-improvement materials. Inventory is donated/rotating. • Goodwill Outlet Store — The “bins” location can be exceptionally cheap for miscellaneous household goods because items are sold by weight, although you have to dig through inventory. For a basic apartment move-in, I'd start with Dollar Tree for little essentials, Ollie's for bedding/kitchen/storage, and ReStore or Goodwill Outlet for furniture and larger items. One caveat: don't assume a dollar-store item is cheapest per unit—the packages can be smaller, so compare price per ounce/count when possible. First Home Love Life If you tell me roughly what you need (e.g. cleaning supplies, kitchen stuff, bedding, toiletries, furniture) and your Nashville neighborhood, I can narrow it down to the cheapest places nearby.

Pages the engine cited

Dollar Tree Store at Nashville (Charlotte Pike) in Nashville, TN(locations.dollartree.com)
Family Dollar Store in Nashville, TN(locations.familydollar.com)
25 Things That Are Cheaper at Dollar Tree Than Walmart - First Home Love Life(firsthomelovelife.com)

The result

A scorecard you can run every week

What it tracks

Named or not, and in what position
Share of recommendation against rivals
Which pages drive the answers
How you are described when named

One run

16 questions across your categories, every engine that answers, repeated on a schedule. Adding the next brand is one line, not a new project.

Where it lands

A hosted page like this one
Your own warehouse, when you want it
The raw record, from the first run