AI Citation Strategy: How to Get Your Brand Cited by ChatGPT and Gemini

Most brands approach AI visibility by optimising their own website. Better content. Structured data. Faster load times. These things help, but they address roughly 9% of the problem.

The other 91% is what the rest of the internet says about you. Reddit threads. Trustpilot reviews. Comparison blogs. Industry coverage. Expert roundups. These are the sources AI platforms cite. These are the sources that determine whether your brand appears in the answer.

A citation strategy for AI is not link-building. It's building genuine third-party presence in the places AI systems trust. Here's how to approach it systematically.

Where AI Citations Actually Come From

Understanding the citation hierarchy is the starting point for building a strategy. Not all sources are equal, and the mix varies by platform.

Source Type	AI Citation Weight	Notes
Reddit	Very high (~40% of citations)	Peer recommendations carry significant trust signal
Review platforms	High	Trustpilot, G2, Google Reviews — volume and recency matter
Industry publications	High	Trade press, vertical media, respected blogs
Comparison/best-of articles	High	"Top 10 [category]" content directly referenced in AI answers
News coverage	Medium-high	National and specialist media mentions
Brand website	Low (~9%)	Useful for structured data extraction, not primary citation source

This hierarchy should dictate where you spend your effort. If your current strategy is 80% focused on your own website, you're investing in the lowest-leverage channel.

The Four-Layer Citation Programme

Layer 1: Reddit — The Highest-Leverage Channel

Reddit accounts for approximately 40% of AI citations across major platforms. When someone asks ChatGPT which accounting software to use and it draws from r/smallbusiness, that thread is doing more work for the brands mentioned in it than their own websites are doing.

The strategic approach to Reddit is genuine community contribution — not promotion. Promotional content gets downvoted and removed. Genuine helpfulness gets upvoted and stays. Here's what works:

• Identify your 5-10 most relevant subreddits. Where do your customers ask for recommendations in your category? That's where you need a presence. Use Reddit's search to find threads with questions you can answer.
• Answer questions thoroughly. When someone asks "which [product] is best for [use case]?" write a genuinely helpful, detailed answer. Mention your brand where it's legitimately relevant. Don't make it the only option you mention — that reads as promotion. Position yourself as the expert who happens to offer the solution.
• Build a track record, not a single post. AI systems see patterns. A brand mentioned in 30 different Reddit threads across 18 months carries more weight than a brand mentioned 30 times in a single thread from a new account. Consistent, genuine participation over time is the goal.
• Respond to threads that mention your category. Set up alerts for keywords related to your service area. When relevant threads appear, contribute. These responses become part of the permanent record that AI draws from.

One important note: Reddit moderators ban promotional accounts aggressively. The approach that works is building real credibility as a community contributor, not seeding mentions. The brands that do this well use their genuine expertise as the value they bring — it works because it's real.

Layer 2: Review Platform Volume

Review platforms — Trustpilot, G2, Capterra, Google Reviews, Clutch, or whichever is most relevant to your category — are the second most cited source type in AI answers. They serve as social proof signals. When ChatGPT or Gemini forms a view of your brand, review volume and ratings are part of the data.

The specific approach:

• Choose the right platform for your category. SaaS and B2B products prioritise G2 and Capterra. Consumer services prioritise Trustpilot and Google. Service businesses prioritise Clutch and Google. Focus your volume-building effort where AI is most likely to cite in your category.
• Systematise review collection. Build a post-purchase or post-engagement email sequence that requests reviews. The window matters — for most categories, a request 2-3 days after delivery or completion gets the best response rate. Make the request easy: one-click link to the review platform.
• Aim for 100+ reviews as a minimum threshold. Under 50 reviews, the signal is weak. Over 100, it starts to register meaningfully in AI citation patterns. Over 500, it becomes a strong authority signal.
• Respond to reviews publicly. AI systems see your responses. A brand that engages substantively with negative reviews demonstrates credibility. A brand that ignores them does not.
• Ensure reviews contain specific detail. Generic "great service!" reviews carry less citation weight than reviews that mention specific features, use cases, or outcomes. In your review request communication, ask for specific feedback: "What problem did we help you solve?" or "What would you tell someone else considering us?"

Layer 3: Comparison and Best-Of Content

Articles that compare providers in a category — "best project management software for remote teams," "top travel insurance providers in the UK," "B2B SaaS tools for sales teams in 2026" — are directly referenced by AI when answering recommendation queries. Getting your brand into these articles is a high-leverage citation move.

• Audit which comparison articles currently rank for your category queries. Search the 10-15 most important queries your customers use. Identify which articles appear in the top 5 results. These are the articles AI platforms cite when they answer similar queries.
• Reach out to the authors of articles that don't include you. Contact the author or the publication directly. Provide a clear case for inclusion: what you offer, what differentiates you, supporting data (customer count, reviews, notable clients). Make their update easy — provide a ready-to-use description and key facts.
• Create your own comparison content. Build pages on your own site that compare you to specific competitors. These pages — "[Your brand] vs [Competitor]" or "Alternatives to [Competitor]" — rank for comparison queries and can be cited by AI when those queries are asked. The content needs to be fair and accurate, not purely promotional, or AI won't cite it.
• Monitor for new comparison content. Set up Google Alerts or use a monitoring tool to track when new "best of" or comparison articles appear in your category. Move quickly to seek inclusion before these articles establish their content and the author moves on.

Layer 4: Industry Publication Coverage

A mention in a respected industry publication carries authority weight that no amount of on-site content can replicate. Trade press, vertical media, national business coverage — these sources are trusted by AI systems at a level that positions them above most other citation types.

• Pitch stories with genuine news value. AI product launches, client case studies with permission, original research, founder commentary on industry trends — these are publishable. A PR pitch that says "our product is great" is not.
• Contribute expert commentary. Many publications accept contributed pieces from industry practitioners. A well-argued opinion article in a relevant trade publication creates a permanent, citable third-party mention that AI draws from. Pitch these to 3-5 publications in your vertical.
• Publish original research. Data-led research — surveys, analysis, benchmark reports — generates the most durable citation value. A "State of [Category] 2026" report published on your website and covered by trade press creates citations both on your own domain and in the publications that write about it.
• Be a source for journalists. Sign up for HARO (Help a Reporter Out) or its successors. Respond to journalist queries in your category with specific, data-backed commentary. A quote in a news article is a permanent citation signal in AI systems.

What Makes a Citation Stick

Not all citations are equal in AI terms. The citations that create lasting visibility share specific characteristics.

Independence. AI systems discount content that reads as self-promotional. A review that sounds like marketing copy is treated with lower trust than a review that sounds like a genuine customer account. Third-party content written by people with no commercial relationship to your brand carries more weight.

Specificity. Citations that include specific details — product features, pricing tiers, named use cases, measurable outcomes — are extracted by AI more reliably than vague endorsements. "They helped us increase qualified leads by 34% in Q3" is a more citable statement than "they were really helpful."

Recency. For real-time AI platforms (ChatGPT with Bing, Gemini), recently indexed content carries more weight than older content. A review from last week outranks one from two years ago in real-time citation contexts. This means citation-building is an ongoing programme, not a one-time project.

Source authority. A citation from a site with high domain authority and established readership carries more weight than one from a new or low-authority site. This is why industry publications matter more than unknown blogs, and why Reddit outperforms most content aggregators.

Realistic Timelines

AI citation strategies take time to show results. Here's a realistic picture of the timeline:

• Weeks 1-4: Set up review collection systems. Identify target subreddits. Map comparison articles that lack your brand. Contact the 5 highest-priority article authors.
• Months 1-3: First reviews accumulate. Reddit contributions begin to build a visible track record. 1-2 comparison article inclusions secured. First media pitch in progress.
• Months 3-6: Real-time AI visibility improvements become measurable on platforms like ChatGPT and Gemini as new indexed content influences browsing results. Review count crosses 100 threshold on primary platform.
• Months 6-12: Consistent programme creates compounding effect. Multiple comparison articles include your brand. Reddit presence is established. Media coverage generates citations. AI visibility score shows measurable improvement across platforms.
• 12+ months: Training data effects begin to show in base model knowledge as citations accumulate. Competitive advantage over brands that haven't started becomes increasingly pronounced.

The brands that will dominate AI recommendations in two years are the ones building citation programmes now. The barrier to entry is lower today than it will be when the majority of marketing teams recognise what's happening.

Measuring Citation Programme Progress

Track these metrics monthly to understand whether your programme is working:

• Review count and rating trend — volume and quality on your primary review platform
• Reddit mention count — how often your brand appears in relevant subreddit threads
• Comparison article inclusion rate — what percentage of top-ranked comparison articles in your category include your brand
• Media mention volume — coverage in industry publications and news outlets
• AI citation rate — the percentage of AI-generated answers in your category that cite your brand (tracked via systematic AI testing or monitoring tools)

The last metric — AI citation rate — is the outcome you're building toward. The others are the inputs. Track both. If your inputs are improving but your citation rate isn't moving, the issue is likely entity consistency or brand search volume rather than citation volume alone.

Frequently Asked Questions