Documentation
Brand mention vs domain citation
CiteLens measures two different things, separately: does the AI say your name, and does the AI cite your website? They answer different questions and you optimize them differently.
A brand mention is when an AI writes your name in its answer — “you could try Acme Clinic”. A domain citation is when the AI links or attributes a claim to your website as a source. You can have one without the other: AI might recommend you by name while citing a third-party listicle, or cite your blog without ever naming you as a brand.
- 1Domain citations tab — switches every metric on the page to the citation lens.
- 2Visibility under the domain lens — how often engines cite your domain as a source (here 77% vs 99% for brand mentions).
- 3Share of Voice for cited domains — which sites win the citations for your topics.
Which one should you watch?
- Track brand mention when your goal is awareness and recommendation — you want the AI to name you as an option.
- Track domain citation when your goal is authority and traffic — you want the AI to use and link your content as the source.
- Most teams watch both: being named but never cited means you rely on others’ pages; being cited but never named means your content works but your brand isn’t sticking.