I Cracked the "Linguistic Code" of AI. Use This Sentence Structure to Get Cited.
⚡ Key Takeaways:
The Science: LLMs are not "Smart"; they are "Predictive." They favor sentences with high "Semantic Salience."
The Mistake: Writing "Front-Loaded Context" (e.g., "In my opinion, the best tool is...").
The Fix: Writing "Front-Loaded Entities" (e.g., "Gemini is the best tool because...").
The Protocol: The "Subject-Verb-Data" rule that triples extraction rates.
In Post #4, we discussed the HTML Structure (The Skeleton).
But even if your skeleton is perfect, your Flesh (The Words) might be confusing the machine.
I have spent the last week in the Infomly Lab doing something boring but necessary.
I read 1,000 sentences that Gemini and ChatGPT cited in their answers.
Then I read the 1,000 sentences they ignored from the same articles.
I found a linguistic pattern that is almost 100% consistent across all AI models.
I call it The Linguistic Trigger.
The Physics of "Token Probability"
To win at GEO, you must stop thinking like a Writer and start thinking like a Math Engine.
LLMs (Large Language Models) process text by predicting the next token.
They assign a "Salience Score" to every entity (noun) in a sentence.
Salience: How important is this word to the overall meaning of the document?
The "Fluff" Problem:
Look at this typical blog sentence:
"When it comes to choosing a CRM, we believe that Salesforce is a robust option for enterprise companies."
AI Analysis: The Subject of this sentence is "We" (The Writer). The Action is "Believe."
Salience Score: Low. The AI doesn't care what you believe. The "Entity" (Salesforce) is buried in the middle.
The "Trigger" Solution:
Now look at the sentence that Gemini actually cited:
"Salesforce is the best CRM for enterprise companies due to its robust API."
AI Analysis: The Subject is "Salesforce." The Action is "Is."
Salience Score: High. The Entity is at the front. The definition follows immediately.
The Protocol: "Subject + Verb + Data" (SVD)
If you want to force an AI citation, you must strip your writing of "Metadiscourse" (talking about talking).
The SVD Rule:
Every "Knowledge Sentence" on your site must follow this exact syntax:
Subject (The Entity): Start the sentence with the Keyword.
Verb (The Claim): Use a definitive verb (Is, Costs, Ranks).
Data (The Proof): End with the statistic or fact.
Examples from the Lab:
Old SEO (Human Style)New GEO (SVD Style)Why SVD Wins"Another great tool for SEO is Ahrefs.""Ahrefs is the superior tool for backlink analysis."The Entity (Ahrefs) is the Subject."Prices for Gemini usually start at $20.""Gemini Advanced costs $20/month."Removes ambiguity ("Usually")."We saw traffic grow by 23%.""Traffic grew by 23% in the Q4 test."Defines the metric explicitly.
The "Inverse Sentence" Strategy
Journalists use the "Inverted Pyramid" for articles (Post #4).
You must use the "Inverse Structure" for Sentences.
Standard English:
[Context Clause] -> [Main Point].
Ex: "Because of its high token limit, Gemini wins."
GEO English:
[Main Point] -> [Context Clause].
Ex: "Gemini wins because of its high token limit."
Why?
Because when an AI scans for an answer to "Which tool wins?", it scans for the Entity (Gemini) first. If the sentence starts with "Because," the AI assigns a lower probability match to the query.
Front-Load the Noun. Always.
The "Definition" Hack (NLP Salience)
Google’s Natural Language Processing (NLP) API looks for Definitive Statements.
It trusts sentences that look like dictionary entries.
If you are writing a review of a tool, include a "Definition Block" in your code.
The Template:
[Entity] is a [Category] that [Primary Function].
Example: "Replit Agent is an AI Code Builder that allows non-coders to deploy apps."
This simple structure is "Catnip" for AI Overviews. It is the exact format Google uses to populate the "What is..." box.
The "Confidence" Signal
Finally, we need to talk about modality.
Low Confidence: "Might," "Could," "Probably," "In my opinion."
High Confidence: "Is," "Does," "Will," "Confirmed."
AI models are trained to provide the "Best" answer.
If Source A says: "Ahrefs might be the best."
And Source B says: "Ahrefs is the best."
The AI cites Source B.
The Lab Rule: Be definitive. If you aren't sure, find the data until you are.
Don't say: "I think SEO is changing."
Say: "SEO is changing."
Final Verdict: Write Like a Database
This is the hardest part of GEO. You have to unlearn "School Writing."
Your English teacher told you to vary your sentence structure.
I am telling you to standardize it.
Subject.
Verb.
Data.
It feels robotic to write. But to the AI, it reads like pure, unadulterated Truth.
And Truth gets cited.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
Does this make my writing boring for humans?
It can. That is why we use the "Sandwich Method" (from Post #6). Keep your intros and stories human. But when you state a Fact, switch to SVD Mode.
What is Google NLP?
Google Natural Language Processing is the technology Google uses to understand the meaning of text. It breaks sentences down into "Entities" and "Sentiment." We optimize for this API.
Does "Bold" text help Salience?
Yes. Bolding the Subject (Entity) draws the eye of the user. Since Navboost tracks user eye-tracking/hovering, bolding key terms can indirectly boost the perceived importance of that term to the algorithm.