Week 5: Leverage, trust that scales beyond you

AI assistants repeat what trusted sources say. Your own website can only claim things; other sources confirm them. Leverage is about systematically earning that confirmation.

Build a citation map

Go back to the questions you asked in Week 1. Perplexity shows its sources, and ChatGPT often does when it searches. List the sites they cited: directories, review sites, local media, industry associations, "best of" articles. For each, note whether competitors appear there and whether your business does. That list is your shortlist of where to be.

Profiles that confirm who you are

Official profiles help a model connect the dots: this website, this Google listing and this LinkedIn page are the same business. Make sure each exists and has consistent details, then list them in the schema's sameAs field from Week 4.

• Google Business Profile
• LinkedIn company page
• Industry association or licensing body listing
• Chamber of commerce or local business directory
• The main social account the business actually uses

Trust transfer

The strongest authority comes from people and organisations whose recommendation already carries weight: referral partners, suppliers, community groups, local journalists. For each one, ask what is in it for them, and what the first small step is. A guest article, a joint event, a supplier's "where to buy" page or a partner's referral list each create a real, earned mention.

Earned only

Never buy fake reviews or invent testimonials. Beyond being wrong, and against the rules of every review platform, it backfires: AI systems cross-check sources, and inconsistent or inflated claims lower trust.

A 90-day plan

Turn the map into three months of work: what gets fixed or claimed in month one, which partners you approach in month two, what you publish or earn in month three, and how you will know it worked.