The goal is not creating content — it’s being cited.

John Hellerman recently published a sharp, timely piece in Legal Management on how smaller firms can out-position larger competitors in the AI search era—and it’s worth a close read for anyone thinking about visibility, growth, or business development.

If you hit a paywall, the full text is here.

The core shift is hard to ignore: AI-driven discovery is changing how clients find and evaluate expertise. As John notes, “AI search is prioritizing earned media, not owned content,” and more than 95% of what these systems surface comes from credible, third-party sources. In that environment, simply producing more content isn’t enough.

His most important point: “The goal is not creating content — it’s being cited.”

That insight reframes everything. Smaller firms don’t need to match the volume or budgets of larger competitors. Instead, they win through focus—owning a specific niche, investing in fewer but more substantive pieces, and building authority through credible media placement and repetition.

The article also challenges a common habit: spreading marketing budgets thinly across ongoing activity. As John explains, concentration—not consistency—is what builds momentum, visibility, and ultimately authority.

There’s a lot here that will resonate, particularly for firms navigating how to show up in an increasingly AI-mediated landscape.