By Yik Jinn, Head of SEO and AI Search, ALIQ Studio
Business owners increasingly turn to artificial intelligence (AI) tools such as ChatGPT and Gemini to find website design agencies, SEO specialists and other marketing service providers. However, a new study by ALIQ Studio suggests that the sources behind these AI-generated recommendations deserve closer scrutiny before businesses make hiring decisions.
Published on 6 October 2026, the study examined 42 English-language questions covering seven types of marketing services in Malaysia, including website design, social media and advertising. Each question was submitted to ChatGPT and Gemini through their developer interfaces, with three repetitions per question across two rounds conducted a week apart.
The resulting 504 answers contained 2,445 citations. ALIQ Studio classified each cited page according to the website that published it to understand where the information supporting AI-generated answers originated.
Most AI Citations Lead to Marketing Providers’ Websites
The study found that marketing agencies’ and freelancers’ websites accounted for 87.4% of Gemini’s citations and 59.9% of ChatGPT’s citations.
These sources included service pages, agency homepages, articles, lists ranking the “best” agencies and freelancers’ own websites.
For questions specifically asking which provider to hire, the proportion was approximately 85% for both AI tools, reaching 86.1% for Gemini and 84.8% for ChatGPT. ALIQ Studio noted that this was an exploratory breakdown conducted after the planned analysis.
The findings indicate that many links supporting AI-generated hiring recommendations lead to content published by businesses selling marketing services.
However, the study did not assess the quality of the agencies recommended or match every cited page to the agency named alongside it. An agency’s website can provide useful information about its services, but it does not constitute an independent assessment of its suitability.
News Websites Do Not Always Mean Independent Sources
The study also identified two rankings of AI SEO agencies supplied by agencies and published on media websites. One was labelled as sponsored content, while the other appeared in an announcement section and identified an agency as its content provider.
Gemini cited these two articles 24 times in responses to questions about SEO and AI search. None of those answers disclosed that the rankings originated from an agency. ChatGPT did not cite either article.
Although the labels appeared on the original webpages, they were not carried over into Gemini’s answers.
ALIQ Studio highlighted a similar consideration for business directories and profile pages. Its methodology classified sources according to the websites hosting them, meaning a profile written by a service provider on another platform was still counted as a third-party-hosted source.
Consequently, a page appearing on a media website or directory should not automatically be treated as independent evidence.
ChatGPT and Gemini Use Different Sources Depending on the Question
The study found differences in how the two AI tools sourced their answers, particularly when users asked how marketing services work rather than which provider to hire.
For questions about how a service works, only 18.8% of ChatGPT’s citations led to providers’ own pages. Government and association websites accounted for 40.9%, while Google’s own pages made up 26.4%.
Gemini, by comparison, relied on providers’ websites for at least 85% of its citations across every question category.
ALIQ Studio identified this as another exploratory finding. Nevertheless, it suggests that business owners may benefit from asking broader questions about a service, including how it works and what to consider when selecting a supplier, rather than relying solely on AI-generated shortlists.
Examining the sources behind these explanatory answers can provide additional context when evaluating potential providers.
AI Search Results Can Change Between Queries
The study also examined whether the same questions produced consistent sources when asked again a week later.
Only 55.8% of the websites cited by Gemini and 54.2% of those cited by ChatGPT were cited again for the same questions in the second round.
These figures measure the overlap between cited websites, not changes in the agencies recommended. ALIQ Studio also cautioned that some differences could reflect normal variation between AI responses rather than changes occurring over the week.
The findings suggest that businesses should avoid treating a single AI-generated answer as a definitive or consistent source of recommendations.
Five Checks Before Hiring an Agency Recommended by AI
ALIQ Studio outlined five practical precautions for businesses using AI tools to shortlist marketing agencies and freelancers:
- Check who published each source. Open every cited link and determine whether it comes from the agency itself, another provider, a directory or a news website.
- Look for sponsorship disclosures. Check the original page for labels such as “sponsored”, “advertorial” or “content provided by”, as these details may not appear in the AI-generated answer.
- Ask different questions and repeat your search. Revisit the same question on another day, and ask how the service works and what to look for in a supplier. Examine the sources supporting those answers as well.
- Request client references. Ask shortlisted agencies for references from clients with projects similar to yours, and speak directly with those clients where possible.
- Compare proposals using the same brief. Give every shortlisted agency an identical written brief, then compare the proposed scope of work, deliverables and costs.
The study did not test whether these precautions lead to better hiring decisions. They are intended as practical safeguards for businesses assessing AI-generated recommendations.
AI Shortlists Are a Starting Point, Not a Hiring Decision
AI search tools can help business owners discover marketing agencies they might not otherwise encounter. However, appearing on an AI-generated shortlist does not establish that a provider is the right fit for a particular business.
According to the study’s findings, the sources behind these recommendations warrant closer examination, particularly when they originate from businesses promoting their own services.
Ultimately, businesses should evaluate prospective agencies based on the quality and relevance of their work, client references and the terms of their proposals before committing to a partnership.
The study’s central message is that AI can help identify potential suppliers, but the evidence needed to make a sound hiring decision still requires independent scrutiny.
