AI search citations

When an AI answer names a shop, it often leans on pages: a directory, a local article, a competitor guide, sometimes the shop’s own site. Those citations are the useful part of a miss. If you were not named, the hosts they used are the list to look at this week.

Mentionmill shows cited links on every check. We do not invent URLs. If a pass comes back without links, we say so. This week then talks about “the sites ChatGPT already cites” in general instead of a fake hostname. When links are present, the steps can name the hosts — hostname only.

Run the prompt a customer would ask. The citation list is for that question, not for your brand name as a query. “Best plumber in Austin” produces different sources than “Harbor Plumbing reviews.” You want the first kind.

Getting cited is not a guarantee you will be named next time. Models reuse sources and they also wander. The honest move is to be present on a page they already trust for this question, keep your name and city consistent, and recheck. $29/month watches the same prompt so you can see if a new host appears when a new name does.

This is not a backlink index and not a lawsuit brief about whose article ranked. It is the links from this pass, next to Named or Not named. Perplexity often shows sources more plainly; ChatGPT still names shops. We run both. See Perplexity brand mentions if that engine is the one your client asked about.

Hostnames only appear in This week when the pass actually returned them. We will not invent a URL to make the steps look finished. If you need the Perplexity-shaped version of this question, use Cited in Perplexity. If you need the monitor, save the prompt after the free check.

Citations move when names move. That is why the weekly email includes both. A new shop on the list often means a new host. A host that drops you is a reason to look at the listing, not a reason to redesign the homepage. Run the prompt you care about.