Understanding sources
The domains and URLs that power AI recommendations
Why Sources Matter
When an AI platform like ChatGPT answers a question, particularly those requiring real-time knowledge, it often performs a web search. The websites it finds and uses to construct its answer are called Sources.
In the world of Generative Engine Optimization (GEO), sources are the equivalent of backlinks in traditional SEO. If a model consistently relies on a specific domain to learn about your industry, getting your brand mentioned on that domain is the fastest way to improve your AI visibility.
Exploring Source Domains
Navigate to the Sources page in your dashboard to see an aggregated view of the domains that AI models are citing during your tracked prompts.
The table displays:
- Domain: The top-level website (e.g.,
forbes.com,g2.com). - Citation Count: How many times this domain was used as a reference when answering your prompts.
- Brand Share: Which brands are most frequently associated with this domain in the AI's mind.
Individual Source URLs
Clicking on any specific domain in the table will drill down into the individual URLs (the specific articles or pages) that the AI actually read.
For example, you might see that g2.com is a frequent source, but clicking into it reveals that the AI is specifically reading a page titled "Best Marketing Tools of 2024".
Actionable Insights
How can you use source data?
1. Identify PR & Content Targets
If you see that your competitors are frequently cited by a specific industry blog, that blog is now a priority target for your PR team. Securing a mention or guest post on that high-value source domain directly influences the AI's knowledge base.
2. Monitor Your Own Domains
Are your own blog posts or documentation pages being cited by the AI? If so, you know that content is highly valuable to the model. Consider expanding on those topics or updating them frequently.
3. Watchlists
GeoFlux allows you to create Watchlists for critical domains. If there is a "kingmaker" publication in your industry, add it to your Watchlist to be notified whenever it is cited in an AI response, so you can track its evolving influence.