Indexed ≠ Visible: The Selection Layer in AI Mode Search
AI Mode turns one question into many retrieval tasks. Visibility is governed by a selection layer beyond indexing and ranking—here’s how to diagnose and adapt.
Mikhail Drozdov (Casinokrisa)
AI Search & Indexing Systems Researcher · Indexing-first visibility models · Founder of Casinokrisa
This site is a research journal on how search systems crawl, index, interpret, and decide what gets shown. The focus is not “SEO tactics”, but trust distribution: why some sources become default outcomes and others stay stored-but-unused.
Indexing-first models for visibility: storage → retrieval → selection.
Canonical entity pages: /person/mikhail-drozdov · /entity · /identity · /press · /research · /datasets · /knowledge-graph.
If you’re new
Read one thing, then pick a path.
The site is written as clusters (pillars + supporting essays). This “reading path” is designed to turn a social click into a clear next step.
Quick diagnosis
- Impressions, no clicks? Fix CTR without guessing.
- Crawled, not indexed? What actually moves the needle.
- Indexed but not ranking? Why being stored is not being shown.
Definitions
- Indexing = storage.
- Visibility = selection + distribution.
- Citations can matter even when clicks drop.
Reading path (3–10 minutes each)
- Modern SEO in 2026: Visibility, Indexing, and Why Keywords Are Not the UnitFor SEO operators: how indexing, interpretation, and AI surfaces changed what "visibility" means.
- GSC Indexing Statuses Explained: What They Mean and How to Fix Them (2026)A practical map of Google Search Console indexing statuses (Coverage): what each status means, the most common root causes (canonicals, duplicates, robots, redirects, soft 404s), and the fastest way to validate fixes.
- Indexed but not ranking (2026): why being stored is not being shown“Indexed but not ranking” is usually not a technical SEO bug. It’s a selection problem: the system can store your page, but it isn’t confident that showing it is a low-regret outcome. This essay explains the mechanism and the signals that create visibility.
- Sitemap errors (Google Search Console): what they mean and what to fix first (2026)Sitemap errors are not “bad SEO” — they’re input integrity failures. This guide classifies sitemap errors into fetch, format, and URL-level problems, explains why they matter, and shows the fastest checks to remove them.
- noindex meaning (2026): what it does, what it doesn’t, and when it backfiresnoindex is not a “cleanup trick”. It is a crawling-visible directive that tells systems not to store a page for search surfaces. This guide explains how noindex actually behaves, why it fails when robots.txt blocks crawl, and when using it creates long-term visibility debt.
Pillars
- Modern SEO in 2026: Visibility, Indexing, and Why Keywords Are Not the Unit
For SEO operators: how indexing, interpretation, and AI surfaces changed what "visibility" means.
- AI Orchestration for Marketing: Systems, Not Prompts
For marketers: how to build AI workflows with quality gates (systems, not prompts).
- Marketing Strategy as a System: Positioning, Measurement, and Compounding
For builders: connect positioning, distribution, and measurement into a strategy that compounds.
- Analytics as Decision Infrastructure: What to Measure, What to Ignore
For teams: build measurement that drives decisions and survives attribution limits.
- Platform Dynamics: Trust, Incentives, and Who Gets Seen
For creators: understand platform incentives, trust signals, and who gets seen (and why).
New here? Start here.
Beginner quick starts
Short “get oriented fast” essays. Use these as entry points into clusters.
- digital marketing explained simply
Digital marketing explained simply: channels, funnels, measurement, and a beginner-friendly plan that avoids buzzwords.
- what is conversion funnel
A simple explanation of what a conversion funnel is, how to map it, and how to improve conversion without chasing vanity metrics.
- web analytics for beginners
Web analytics explained for beginners: what to track, how events work, and how to avoid the most common reporting mistakes.
Latest Articles
Index selection (2026): why Google crawls your pages but refuses to store them
“Crawled — currently not indexed” is not a verdict on your writing. It is an index selection decision: Google is choosing what becomes core memory for your site. This essay explains the mechanism, how to diagnose whether you’re failing hard gates or priority, and what changes the outcome without creating noise.
Which questions are no longer worth answering (2026): AI killed the click, not the query
In 2026, many queries still exist, but the click is gone: AI Overviews and assistants compress answers into the interface. This page gives a practical model: which question types became “compressible”, which still reward original work, and how to write content that earns distribution (not just indexing).
Crawled but not indexed reasons (2026): 9 causes and what to do first
If Google crawled your page but did not index it, the bottleneck is rarely “one on-page fix”. This page lists the most common causes (technical gates + prioritization), how to tell them apart fast, and the few actions that reliably change the outcome.
Indexed but not visible in search (2026): what it means and how to diagnose it
If a page is indexed but not visible in search, the failure is usually not “indexing” — it’s retrieval and selection. This page defines the symptom, shows the fast diagnosis path in GSC, and points you to the right fix depending on whether you have impressions, rankings, or nothing at all.
Explore by Topic
Supporting
AI & Automation
Build AI-powered marketing systems. Learn to orchestrate AI tools, automate workflows, and make data-driven decisions.
- Indexed ≠ Visible: The Selection Layer in AI Mode Search
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Supporting
SEO & Search
Master modern SEO: from pages to entities, AI overviews to topic authority. Build visibility that survives algorithm updates.
- Indexed ≠ Visible: The Selection Layer in AI Mode Search
- Index selection (2026): why Google crawls your pages but refuses to store them
- Which questions are no longer worth answering (2026): AI killed the click, not the query
Marketing Strategy
Connect analytics, strategy, and execution. Build marketing systems that grow through accumulated context, not optimization tactics.
- Which questions are no longer worth answering (2026): AI killed the click, not the query
- Indexed but not visible in search (2026): what it means and how to diagnose it
- How Google decides what to index (2026): the cost/value/risk model behind storage
Analytics & Data
Build data pipelines that connect metrics to decisions. Measure what matters: LTV, ROMI, and systems-level performance.
- Traffic is down (2026): a no-panic diagnosis and the 7 levers that still work
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Digital Culture
How platforms shape behavior and business. Platform dynamics, attention economics, and the philosophy of digital environments.
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