AI citation building: get into the sources AI systems quote
I work out which external sources AI systems rely on in your niche and build a plan to get you among them. Real platforms and real publications only – no bought reviews and no mass placements.
When do you need citation work?
When your site is already in good shape and the answers still name someone else.
You are not in the roundups
Asked for the best companies, the model lists the ones that reviews and comparisons wrote about. Nobody wrote about you.
The site is fine, the answers are not
The technical side is fixed and the pages are reworked, but the model still relies on other people’s sources.
Competitors are everywhere
They show up in directories, reviews and discussions, and you appear only on your own site.
Mentions exist but are weak
You are mentioned somewhere, but without a link, with a misspelled name or in an article nobody quotes.
You do not know where to be
Platforms keep pitching you, but it is unclear which of them affect AI answers.
A new brand
The company is young, it has almost no footprint outside its site, and the model simply has nothing to quote.
What goes into
citation work?
Cited-source analysis
- Which platforms AI systems use for your target prompts
- How often each source gets cited
- Types of material: reviews, directories, discussions, industry media
- What makes those sources easy to quote
Citation-gap analysis
- Platforms where competitors are present and you are not
- Articles where you would naturally be mentioned but are not
- Your external footprint compared with 3–5 competitors
- Platforms ranked by influence and how reachable they are
Existing mentions
- Places where you are already mentioned
- Errors in your name, data and description corrected
- A link added where the mention had none
- Outdated material about the company brought up to date
Platform shortlist
- Industry directories and review sites such as G2, Capterra or Clutch, where they fit your niche
- Editorial sites and trade publications
- Partner and client resources
- Each platform assessed: terms, budget, real influence
Topics and material
- Expert article topics drawn from your own practice
- Formats that get quoted more often: breakdowns, comparisons, original data
- Inclusion in honest category reviews and comparisons
- Expert comments in articles and podcasts on your topic
Communities and discussions
- Professional communities where your category is discussed, including Reddit and industry forums
- Each community’s own rules on self-promotion, followed to the letter
- Answers to real questions instead of promotion
- What never to do: mass mentions and fake accounts
Outreach and tracking
- Pitches to platforms and authors prepared
- Placements coordinated within the agreed volume
- New mentions and citations tracked
- A check of whether the placements show up in AI answers
How does the project run?
Source measurement
What gets cited for your prompts today. 3–4 days.
Citation gap
Comparison with competitors and a list of gaps. 2–3 days.
Strategy
Priority platforms, topics and a publication plan. 3 days.
Approval
We agree the platform list and placement budgets.
Placements
Outreach, material preparation, coordination of each release.
Tracking
New mentions monitored, and whether they appear in answers.
What do you get?
You can take the strategy on its own and carry it out yourself or with your PR agency.
Cited-source map
The platforms AI systems use for your prompts, with how often each is cited.
Citation gap against competitors
Where they are and you are not, with how reachable each platform is.
Priority platform list
Terms, contacts, material requirements and estimated budgets.
Publication and outreach plan
Topics, formats, order and pitch templates for each platform.
Community guidelines
What fits, what backfires and how to answer so it is not read as advertising.
Mentions report
Placements won, and whether they made it into the cited sources.
Timeline and format
- Strategy – 10–14 business days
- Placement coordination – monthly, volume agreed in advance
- Publication dates depend on each platform’s editors, usually 2–6 weeks
- Mentions report – once a month
What I need from you
- A budget for paid placements, if the plan includes such platforms
- An expert on your side to help prepare material
- Approval of every platform before placement
- Permission to mention clients and projects where needed
Not included
- Paid placement fees – you pay platforms directly
- Link buying on unrelated sites
- Fake reviews, fake accounts or mass mentions
How is the result measured?
A placement is not a result on its own: what matters is whether it lands among the sources models rely on.
New mentions
How many articles and listings appeared in the period.
Cited placements
What share of them shows up in AI answers as a source.
Presence in roundups
Share of comparison prompts where the brand is named.
What usually goes with it?
Related reading
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GEO is the work of getting your business named and cited in AI answers. I explain how it relates to SEO and AEO, what to measure instead of rankings and what a realistic first 90 days look like.
Read →How to check your brand's visibility in ChatGPT, Gemini and Copilot
One prompt with your brand name proves very little. Here is the repeatable method I use: a fixed prompt set, repeat runs, a log of full answers, AI share of voice and what Bing and Google report.
Read →Questions about AI citations
Do you guarantee a placement on a specific platform?
Is this link building?
How much do the placements themselves cost?
Will you post about us on Reddit?
How soon will it make a difference?
Can we do without external platforms?
Discuss AI citations
Name your niche and main competitors. I will look at which sources get cited for your prompts and reply within one business day.
I reply within one business day. For a larger project, fill in the project brief.