Field notes Research, essays, and reports from the practice

The Blog.

Original research on how AI engines pick which brands to surface — and the methodology we use to engineer that outcome for our clients.

GA4 Direct Traffic: Why Organic Search Ends Up Here

GA4 direct traffic is a catch-all label for any session with no referrer data, not proof that a user typed your URL…

Zero-Click Search: How to Measure It and What Defends Against

Zero-click search ends without a click to any website. Declining clicks do not prove declining SEO performance. Google answers the query on…

Entity and Attribute Rich Content: The Format AI Lifts into Answers

Many articles contain useful information but still don’t appear in AI-generated answers. The difference often isn’t the quality of the writing it’s…

How to Get Cited by Gemini and Copilot: 6 Proven Tips

AI search is changing how users discover information. Platforms like Gemini and Copilot now provide direct answers by understanding and combining information…

How to Get Your Brand Into the Listicles and Roundups AI Actually Cites

AI assistants answer recommendation queries by pulling from third-party listicles and roundups, not brand pages. A citation press analysis of over 60,000…

The Citation Paradox: Cited as a Source, Not Recommended as a Vendor

AI visibility is often measured by how frequently a brand appears in AI-generated responses. However, being cited does not always mean being…

Attribution Problem: Why Organic Traffic Looks Wrong

Organic traffic reports no longer tell the complete story. AI search has changed how people discover and evaluate brands, and a large…

Refreshing Content on a Cycle: The Freshness That Keeps You Cited

Publishing a piece once and letting it sit is no longer a viable strategy. Refreshing content on a set cycle is what…

The Analyst Voice: Writing With the Authority AI Trusts

Trust is one of the most valuable qualities in writing. Readers are more likely to believe content that explains ideas clearly, supports…