HOW TO GET CITED BY AI
The Complete Guide to AI Visibility
THE SHIFT
Google used to be the question.
Now AI answers before anyone clicks.
The game changed. Ranking isn't enough anymore.
You need to be the answer AI gives.
HOW AI DECIDES WHO TO CITE
AI doesn't search like Google. It recalls from training data and retrieves from real-time sources. This is why network layer optimization matters.
Where AI pulls from:
- •Common Crawl web data
- •Wikipedia and Wikidata
- •Academic papers
- •High-authority websites
- •Structured knowledge databases
What makes AI cite you:
- •Clear entity definition (who you are)
- •Structured data it can parse
- •Content it can verify elsewhere
- •Expertise signals (credentials, sources)
- •Freshness and accuracy
The pattern: AI cites what it can understand, verify, and confidently attribute.
PLATFORM BY PLATFORM
Each AI has different priorities. Here's what matters for each.
CHATGPT
37.5M queries daily
What it values:
- • Wikipedia-style comprehensive content
- • Clear entity definitions
- • Question-answer structure
- • Authority signals
What to do:
- • Create definitive guides on your topic
- • Use question-based headings
- • Include statistics with sources
- • Build domain authority over time
CLAUDE
10M+ queries daily
What it values:
- • Factual accuracy above all
- • Balanced perspectives
- • Deep expertise
- • Primary sources
What to do:
- • Prioritize accuracy over engagement
- • Include multiple viewpoints
- • Cite original sources
- • Demonstrate genuine expertise
GEMINI
Integrated with Google Search
What it values:
- • Schema markup
- • Featured snippet formatting
- • Mobile optimization
- • Page speed
What to do:
- • Optimize for featured snippets
- • Implement FAQ and HowTo schema
- • Target "People Also Ask" questions
- • Keep pages fast
COPILOT
Bing integrated
What it values:
- • LinkedIn presence
- • Professional tone
- • Business credibility signals
- • Bing SEO
What to do:
- • Optimize your LinkedIn company page
- • Use clear, professional language
- • Include company credentials
- • Verify in Bing Webmaster Tools
PERPLEXITY
10M+ monthly users
What it values:
- • Fresh content
- • Clear source attribution
- • Easy-to-extract structure
- • Specific answers
What to do:
- • Update content regularly
- • Use visible timestamps
- • Structure for quick extraction
- • Answer specific questions directly
WHAT ALL AI PLATFORMS WANT
Universal patterns that work everywhere:
CONTENT STRUCTURE
- • Answer the question in the first 40-60 words
- • Use question-based H2/H3 headings
- • Bullet points for scannable information
- • Clear topic sentences
- • TL;DR for long content
AUTHORITY SIGNALS
- • Author name and credentials
- • Company entity information
- • Citations to authoritative sources
- • Consistent business information everywhere
- • Industry directory presence
TECHNICAL FOUNDATION
- • Schema markup (Organization, FAQPage, Article)
- • Fast load times (under 3 seconds)
- • Mobile-responsive
- • Clean HTML structure
- • Updated XML sitemap
ENTITY CLARITY
- • Clear definition of who you are
- • Wikipedia/Wikidata presence if possible
- • Google Business Profile optimized
- • Same information across all platforms
- • Knowledge graph signals
THE SCHEMA THAT MATTERS
Schema markup is how AI understands context. These are the types that actually move the needle:
HIGH PRIORITY
- Organization — tells AI who you are
- FAQPage — feeds direct answer extraction
- Article — provides content context
- Person — establishes author authority
BUSINESS-SPECIFIC
- LocalBusiness — local recommendations
- Product — e-commerce citations
- Review — trust signals
- HowTo — process queries
EXAMPLE: Organization Schema
{
"@context": "https://schema.org",
"@type": "Organization",
"name": "Your Company",
"url": "https://yoursite.com",
"description": "What you do, clearly stated",
"sameAs": [
"https://linkedin.com/company/you",
"https://twitter.com/you"
]
}EXAMPLE: FAQPage Schema
{
"@context": "https://schema.org",
"@type": "FAQPage",
"mainEntity": [{
"@type": "Question",
"name": "How long until AI starts citing me?",
"acceptedAnswer": {
"@type": "Answer",
"text": "Technical changes like schema can be
recognized in days. Building citation authority
typically takes 2-6 months."
}
}]
}HOW TO WRITE FOR AI
AI extracts and cites differently than humans read.
DO THIS:
- • Lead with the answer, then explain
- • "AI optimization requires..." (question in answer)
- • Define terms before using them
- • Active voice: "We optimize..." not "Sites are optimized..."
- • Specific numbers: "37.5M queries" not "millions"
NOT THIS:
- • "This improves it" (unclear what "this" and "it" are)
- • "Mistakes were made" (passive, no attribution)
- • "Recent studies show" (which studies? when?)
- • Long sentences with multiple clauses
- • Starting with "However..." (missing context)
EXAMPLE
Good:
"Schema markup is structured data that helps AI understand website content. Organizations use JSON-LD format because Google recommends it for optimal parsing."
Bad:
"This is something that can help them understand it better. Many companies are implementing this because it's recommended and provides benefits."
The difference: AI can extract and cite the first one. The second one is meaningless without context.
HOW TO CHECK IF AI CITES YOU
Manual testing:
- • Ask each platform questions about your industry
- • Ask for specific business recommendations
- • Compare your mentions vs. competitor mentions
- • Track citation frequency over time
Test queries to try:
- • "What are the best [your industry] companies?"
- • "Who should I use for [your service]?"
- • "Compare [you] vs [competitor]"
- • "What do experts recommend for [your problem]?"
What you're looking for:
- • Are you mentioned at all?
- • Are you mentioned accurately?
- • Are you mentioned first, or buried?
- • Is your competitor mentioned instead?
THE 90-DAY PLAN
WEEKS 1-2: Foundation
WEEKS 3-4: Content
MONTH 2: Authority
ONGOING: Monitor
COMMON QUESTIONS
How long until AI recommends me?
Technical changes (schema) can be recognized in days to weeks. Building consistent citation authority takes 2-6 months. Our network layer speeds this up.
Can I optimize for all platforms at once?
Yes. The core principles—clear structure, schema markup, authoritative content—benefit all AI systems.
Does traditional SEO still matter?
Yes. Google rankings still drive traffic, and many AI platforms pull from search results. Do both SEO and AEO.
Will AI optimization hurt my Google rankings?
No. The techniques overlap. Structured content and schema markup help both search and AI visibility.
What schema matters most?
Organization (entity recognition) and FAQPage(direct answer extraction) have the highest impact.
Do I need different content for each AI?
No. One well-structured, authoritative piece works across all platforms. The principles are universal.
THE BOTTOM LINE
AI is answering questions about your industry right now.
Either you're the source—or someone else is. Learn more about AI visibility.
The companies optimizing for AI citations today will be the default answers tomorrow. The window for first-mover advantage is still open.
It won't be open forever.
See What AI Says About You
Free audit shows where you appear in AI responses—and where you don't. Takes 30 seconds. No email required. Check your AI Visibility Score now.
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