What buyers see when they ask AI about companies like yours
What buyers see when they ask AI about companies like yours
We run the same basic test, over and over. Here’s what keeps showing up, and one real example start to finish.
We run the same basic test, over and over. Here’s what keeps showing up, and one real example start to finish.
One real example
One real example
The patterns we keep seeing
The patterns we keep seeing
Alone or together, the same handful of things keep showing up:
Companies get described correctly, but not recommended.
Why: knowing the facts about a company isn’t the same as thinking of it when it’s time to suggest options. In a study of 175 brands, AI got the facts right 96% of the time, but left the brand out of its recommendations 88% of the time. (Victorious, Q2 2026)
The answer changes depending on which AI you ask.
Why: each AI tool reads different websites and trusts different sources, so they don’t always agree. ChatGPT and Perplexity share only 11% of the same sources when answering the same question. (AuthorityTech, February 2026)
Every company sounds the same.
Why: if a company hasn’t said something specific, and said it the same way everywhere, AI has nothing unique to repeat back, so it falls back on generic words like “trusted” or “data-driven.” In fact, 62% of the time, AI doesn’t even say the company’s name in its answer. (Semrush / Kevin Indig, June 2026)
Alone or together, the same handful of things keep showing up:
Companies get described correctly, but not recommended.
Why: knowing the facts about a company isn’t the same as thinking of it when it’s time to suggest options. In a study of 175 brands, AI got the facts right 96% of the time, but left the brand out of its recommendations 88% of the time. (Victorious, Q2 2026)
The answer changes depending on which AI you ask.
Why: each AI tool reads different websites and trusts different sources, so they don’t always agree. ChatGPT and Perplexity share only 11% of the same sources when answering the same question. (AuthorityTech, February 2026)
Every company sounds the same.
Why: if a company hasn’t said something specific, and said it the same way everywhere, AI has nothing unique to repeat back, so it falls back on generic words like “trusted” or “data-driven.” In fact, 62% of the time, AI doesn’t even say the company’s name in its answer. (Semrush / Kevin Indig, June 2026)
Try this yourself
Try this yourself
Open ChatGPT, Perplexity, or Claude and ask:
“Describe [your company].” Is it accurate? Is it something you’d actually want a buyer to read?
“Compare [your company] to [your closest competitor].” Who does it favor, and why?
“Recommend a company for [the problem you solve], for a buyer like [your real customer].” Do you show up?
If the answer to #3 is no, and #1 looked fine, that’s the exact gap a Representation Baseline exists to explain.
Open ChatGPT, Perplexity, or Claude and ask:
“Describe [your company].” Is it accurate? Is it something you’d actually want a buyer to read?
“Compare [your company] to [your closest competitor].” Who does it favor, and why?
“Recommend a company for [the problem you solve], for a buyer like [your real customer].” Do you show up?
If the answer to #3 is no, and #1 looked fine, that’s the exact gap a Representation Baseline exists to explain.
Testimonial
Testimonial
“The audit gave us deeper visibility and benchmarking into how searchable and findable we currently are. More importantly, it showed us how buyers encounter, compare and evaluate us before they ever visit our website — and how they experience our brand at each step of the way. We walked away with a strong sense of priorities and next steps.”
“The audit gave us deeper visibility and benchmarking into how searchable and findable we currently are. More importantly, it showed us how buyers encounter, compare and evaluate us before they ever visit our website — and how they experience our brand at each step of the way. We walked away with a strong sense of priorities and next steps.”
Jessica Nevers, Head of Marketing, Cascade AI
Jessica Nevers, Head of Marketing, Cascade AI
What to do next
What to do next
If any of this looks familiar, the next step is a Representation Baseline: a one-week test of how ChatGPT, Perplexity, and Claude describe and recommend your company to your real buyers.
If any of this looks familiar, the next step is a Representation Baseline: a one-week test of how ChatGPT, Perplexity, and Claude describe and recommend your company to your real buyers.