AI citation tracking: find the pages AI answers are built from.
Answer engines lean on a small set of sources in every category: review sites, forums, publications and directories. AURALIS records the sources behind your tracked answers, tracks which ones you are listed on, and turns each gap into a task.
What is AI citation tracking?
AI citation tracking records which web pages and sites an AI answer engine relies on when it answers questions in your category. Some engines show their sources as links. Others name the reviews, articles or communities they drew on in the answer text.
A mention and a citation are different things. A mention is your brand named in the answer. A citation is a source the engine used to build the answer. Citations explain mentions: brands that are well covered on the sources an engine trusts tend to be the brands it names.
That makes the source list the most practical part of AI visibility work. You cannot edit an engine's answer, but you can get listed, reviewed or discussed on the sites it keeps citing.
From answers to a list of places to be.
- Sources are pulled from every answer: Where an engine shows its sources, every link is recorded. Where it does not, the sites and publications it names are extracted from the answer text.
- Sources are grouped by type: Review platforms, forums and communities, publications, directories and video, so you can see which kind of coverage your category depends on.
- You track where you are listed: Mark the sources you are already on. Each one keeps its listing status, next to the competitors named in the answers that cited it.
- Gaps become playbook tasks: Each missing source becomes a ranked task in your playbook, with the prompts it affects, so the team knows what to do first and why.
What your team gets.
- A source map for your category: Every site cited in your tracked answers, ranked by how many answers rely on it, over the period you choose.
- Sources by engine: Engines trust different sites. See which sources each engine leans on, so work on one does not get mistaken for progress on all of them.
- Missing-source list: The high-use sources you have not marked as listed. This is usually the shortest route to more mentions.
- Answer-level evidence: Each source links back to the answers that cited it, so you can see the exact question and wording behind it.
- Playbook tasks: Gaps are turned into ranked tasks for content, PR, reviews and community work, with the prompts each one should move.
- A listing tracker: A status for each source, from missing to listed, so the team can see what has been done and what is still open.
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between a mention and a citation?
A mention is your brand named in an AI answer. A citation is a source the engine used to build that answer. Tracking both shows not only whether you appear but why.
How do I get cited by AI search engines?
Be present and well described on the sources engines already cite in your category: the review sites, forums, publications and directories in your source map. Publishing clear, specific pages that answer buyer questions on your own site helps too.
Which engines show their sources?
It varies by engine and changes over time. Where an engine returns source links we record them directly. Where it does not, we extract the sources it names in the answer, so every engine is covered.
How does this connect to playbooks?
Each missing source becomes a task in your playbook, ranked by how many of your prompts it affects. Smart playbooks with action plans are included from the Growth plan.