Start with search evidence
Verified bots, AI Search bots, AI Crawlers, and search engine crawler categories all show that websites can no longer treat bot traffic as one bucket.
A global AI site should separate Googlebot, OAI-SearchBot, training crawlers, and abnormal probes before making traffic decisions.
Visibility is not demand
The useful question is not whether the page appeared somewhere; it is whether the search term, page promise, and next action fit the same reader job.
Check the page path
- Add verified bot categories, abnormal paths, 404/504, and country patterns to the weekly traffic review instead of looking only at total requests
- Keep the test narrow: one priority page with clear topic, source links, internal links, and a conversion action
What still needs proof
Blocking everything or allowing everything both create bad decisions when bot roles are mixed together. Keep the original source open so the announcement, the evidence, and this site's interpretation stay separate.