The AI boom is here, and while the buzz is deafening, savvy brands are quietly doing something that’s driving massive results: publishing research-driven content.
If you’re an ambitious marketer, SaaS founder, or content strategist juggling creativity, technology, and ROI, this is the strategy that could put you ahead of the pack. Why? Because in a world thirsty for reliable insights, research content doesn’t just stand out—it dominates.
In this blog post, we’re diving into why research-driven content is a growth engine for AI companies, how you can implement it, and how distribution fuels its impact.
The Rise of Research in the AI Era
A few years ago, I conducted an analysis of over 50 of the top brands in Martech and analyzed over 10,000 of their URLs. In this analysis, I categorized the different articles and URLs and then cross referenced how many links each asset had based on category. The results were staggering..
Tools generated more links than anything else.
Shopify stood out as an example of a brand that launched tons of marketing tools and earned hundreds of thousands of links. Brands around the world reached out to me after this study to talk to them about the power of tools, to help them build definition assets and more. But one of the top four pieces that rarely got asked about was ‘research’.
Well…
Today, research is taking off… Especially if you’re in AI.
AI-related research is surging at an unprecedented pace. According to Stanford’s 2024 Artificial Intelligence Index report, the number of published research articles tripled between 2010 and 2022, growing from 88,000 to over 240,000. Just as telling, Google Trend data indicates an 8x increase in searches related to “AI research” over the last few years.
This isn’t just a trend—it’s a shift in how businesses (and individuals) make decisions. AI research drives learning, sparks innovation, and shapes how industries evolve.
From Google DeepMind to NVIDIA and beyond, the smartest companies are leveraging research to dominate the conversation around AI. They’re not burying their knowledge in gated PDFs—they’re publishing it openly, optimizing it for search engines, and distributing it across platforms. The result?
- Authority. Research elevates your brand as a trusted thought leader.
- Backlinks galore. Major publications often cite well-executed studies, boosting your SEO.
- Traffic spikes. People flock to content that offers credible, unique insights.
If you work in a space like AI—or any fast-moving industry—you can replicate this approach. And if you’re worried you don’t have the resources of Google, don’t fret. You don’t need a billion-dollar R&D budget to create impactful research-driven content.
Why Publishing Research Unlocks a Competitive Edge
1. Links, Mentions, and SEO Gains
Let’s start with the numbers.
Google DeepMind has six research articles with more than 500 referring domains—and one article boasts over 2,000.
That’s an SEO gold mine.
Why does this happen? Because research content is inherently linkable. Writers, journalists, analysts, and bloggers need authoritative sources to back their own content, and a well-written research piece acts as their ammunition.
2. Credibility in a Crowded Market
We live in a time where claims without evidence fall flat. Publishing research positions your brand not as an opinion holder, but as an authority backed by data and insights. AI companies like NVIDIA don’t just market cutting-edge tech—they show their expertise through proven findings.
By sharing your research, you build trust, credibility, and differentiation—especially in industries where skepticism (hello, AI skeptics!) is abundant.
3. Buzz That Fuels Distribution
Press publications, newsletters, and niche communities go wild over compelling research. A well-crafted research study can earn mentions in top-tier media outlets like Fortune or niche industry blogs, and serve as a resource hub for subreddits like r/Futurology and r/MachineLearning.
Once the buzz starts, it’s self-reinforcing: more mentions drive traffic, which draws attention from additional influencers, and the cascade continues.
How to Create and Repurpose Research-Driven Content
Think creating research content is out of reach? Think again. There are two main approaches: proprietary research and leveraging existing studies.
A. Proprietary Research: Build It Yourself
If you have the internal resources, conducting your own research can be incredibly powerful. Here’s the process:
- Identify a pressing question in your niche that aligns with both your audience’s needs and your product’s value.
- Conduct surveys, user studies, or experiments and compile the data.
- Present your findings in an accessible format: blog posts, infographics, videos, or whitepapers.
- Distribute relentlessly: Don’t let your research languish on your website—share it on subreddits, LinkedIn, X (formerly Twitter), and relevant newsletters.
Pro Tip: Turn your data into digestible visuals—charts, graphs, and short videos—to drive engagement across platforms.
B. Leverage Existing Research
Not ready to run your own study? No problem. Find relevant, existing research and analyze or contextualize it for your audience.
Here’s an example from the podcast:
- Ross Simmons of Foundation started with a scientific study on coffee’s productivity-boosting effects.
- He cross-referenced it with a separate study on the motivational effects of upbeat music.
- The result? A blog post combining both ideas into a fresh, actionable insight: “Coffee + up-tempo music = productivity hack.”
By becoming the translator for inaccessible research, you add value while saving your audience the effort of interpretation.
Distribution: The Secret Sauce
Creating great research won’t matter if no one sees it. Yet too many brands drop the ball on distribution by relegating their work to static PDFs or gated eBooks. Don’t make that mistake.
Unlock the full potential of your content by following these steps:
- Turn PDFs into Blog Posts. Summarize key findings in easy-to-read posts optimized for SEO.
- Make High-Impact Graphics. Visuals like charts, timelines, and infographics work wonders on LinkedIn and Instagram.
- Use Social Media Effectively. Share snippets of your findings across platforms tailored to your audience—whether that’s LinkedIn for B2B or Reddit for tech enthusiasts.
- Deploy Video and Audio. Narrate your findings in short videos, reels, or podcasts that can live on YouTube, Instagram Stories, or TikTok.
- Pitch to Media. Reach out to industry journalists, newsletters, and blogs with your research. They’re always looking for fresh insights to share.
TL;DR: Why You Should Press Publish
The smartest AI (and non-AI) brands are leveraging research-driven content as a secret weapon:
- It builds backlinks and dramatically improves SEO performance.
- It establishes your brand as a credible authority in a crowded, skeptical market.
- It generates the media buzz, attention, and traffic that fuel growth.
Whether you have the capacity to create proprietary research or prefer to mine others’ studies for insights, publishing and distributing valuable research-driven content positions your brand for long-term success.
For ambitious marketers looking to validate ROI, SaaS founders trying to scale, or content strategists staying ahead of algorithm shifts, this strategy is your growth catalyst.
Ready to take the leap?
Don’t sleep on the power of research-backed content to drive your SEO, storytelling, and audience impact. Because in the fast-evolving world of AI, the ones who press publish win.