From category player to the default-cited freelance platform.
Upwork already owned mindshare with buyers, but AI assistants were splitting recommendations across smaller platforms. We engineered the answer layer so LLMs lead with Upwork on hiring prompts.
Marketplace leader, fragmented in AI answers.
Buyers researching 'best freelance platform' inside ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini and Perplexity were being shown a fragmented mix of Upwork and smaller competitors - diluting the default recommendation.
- Inconsistent citation across the Big Four on commercial prompts
- Smaller competitors over-indexed on niche use-case queries
- Off-page corroboration not aligned with marketplace category depth
- No live tracking of AI recommendation share vs competitors
"AI assistants are now the buyer's first stop. Owning that slot is non-negotiable."
Prompt-led AEO at marketplace scale.
We mapped the prompts hiring managers actually ask AI, engineered answer-first content per use-case cluster, and built the third-party corroboration LLMs need to cite a platform as the default.
Prompt mapping
180k+ prompt library covering hiring use-cases, role types, skills, regions and competitor comparison queries.
Answer-first content
Rebuilt high-leverage category, comparison and 'how to hire' pages for verbatim AI lift.
Authority push
Citation work in industry publications, listicle inclusion and Reddit corroboration in hiring communities.
Big Four tracking
Weekly recommendation-share dashboards across ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini and Perplexity.
Default-cited across hiring prompts.
Upwork moved from fragmented citations to leading recommendations on the highest-intent hiring prompts across all four major AI platforms.
"LLM Listed turned AI into a reliable, measurable channel for us - not a black box."
A snapshot of the buyer prompts now in scope.
Best platform to hire a freelancer
Where to find vetted contractors online
Upwork vs alternatives for hiring developers
Lead your category in AI answers.
Get a free marketplace visibility scan across the Big Four.