When every page says the same thing, AI systems cite the source that adds something new. Original evidence is the clearest way to be that source.
Types of evidence that get cited
- Surveys and original research with a clear method.
- Anonymised data from your own product or customers.
- Benchmarks and tests you ran yourself.
- Detailed case studies with numbers, dates and named clients where allowed.
- Expert commentary from named people with real credentials.
Publish it well
- Put headline findings in plain sentences near the top.
- Show the method, sample and date.
- Present data in HTML tables, not only images.
- Give each major finding its own heading so it can be lifted cleanly.
Make it last
Annual research that repeats the same questions builds a trend line others reference year after year. One-off stunts fade.
Common mistakes
- Tiny samples presented as industry truth.
- Findings locked in a gated PDF that no crawler can read.