Help them find their way
Ideas within ideas within ideas Show depth of expertise with nested headline levels — H1, H2, H3.
AI citations — easy as H1, H2, H3
Pages with clear heading hierarchy — H1, H2, H3 — are nearly three times as likely to be cited by ChatGPT as pages without headline hierarchy, according to AirOps’ analysis of 12,000 URLs across 900 high-intent queries.
Why? AI uses your headings as a navigation map. So show the way with nested levels.
- H1: Deliver your core topic. Define your big idea clearly. How to format content for AI citations
- H2s: Ask your core questions. Label the questions your audience is actively asking about your topic so AI engines — and readers — can find what they’re looking for. How do you write H2 subheads AI will cite
- H3s: Answer the question you posed in H2 with sub-subheads, lists, tables and data. Keyword headers vs. question headers
Show depth of knowledge
A flat structure — all H2s, nothing nested — reads as undifferentiated. Logical nesting — topics, subtopics and sub-subtopics — suggests expertise and depth.
And AI rewards expertise with citations.
