Original Research
An Insights-led consultancy.
Make Lemonade is built on original research into how AI search engines treat luxury hospitality and travel brands.
The data findings shape our advice.
Why research matters here
Most AI search advice is guesswork.
AI search is moving fast. ChatGPT, Perplexity, Gemini, Claude, and Google AI Overviews are reshaping how luxury hospitality and travel buyers find brands. Most advice on how to respond is anecdotal, opinion-led, or carried over from older SEO playbooks that no longer apply.
We built Make Lemonade differently. Every recommendation we make rests on original research into what AI systems are actually doing: which publications they cite, what content structures they reward, where luxury brands are appearing and disappearing. The evidence comes first. The advice follows.
If we cannot point to evidence for the advice, we will not give the advice.
Flagship study
Invisible or Influential?
A study of 15 luxury travel brands across 17 bespoke audits, combining structured questionnaires, qualitative interviews with hospitality executives, and independent digital audits across ChatGPT, Google AI Overview, Google AI Mode, and Perplexity. The findings reframe what visibility means in the AI era. Reputation, not website performance, is what AI search rewards.
Built jointly by Spotlight Communications and Make Lemonade. The PR and editorial perspective comes from Spotlight’s two decades of luxury travel expertise. The technical AI search analysis comes from Make Lemonade. Featured perspectives include executives from The Dorchester Collection, Corinthia Hotels, and Mantis Collection.
Three findings inside
- Machine-Readable Credibility: the new visibility framework replacing SEO
- The Performance Paradox: why fast websites are not necessarily AI-visible
- The Economy of Trust: editorial authority outperforms paid media for AI discovery
How we research
The Signal Noir framework.
01
AI citation tracking
We map which publications and sources AI platforms cite when answering luxury hospitality and travel queries across ChatGPT, Perplexity, Gemini, and Claude.
02
Publication structural analysis
Each publication is scored across freshness, depth, structure, schema implementation, and citation rate using technical analysis and our proprietary intelligence.
03
Brand visibility benchmarking
We compare individual brand visibility against category competitors across the publications AI systems actually treat as authority sources.
04
Longitudinal monitoring
We track shifts over time, because AI platforms update their training data, weighting, and citation behaviour continuously. What worked last quarter may not work this one.
The Signal Noir framework underpins every current Make Lemonade engagement, from a one-off Snapshot to a six-month Programme. Whitepaper 1 was conducted using an earlier brand audit methodology. Whitepaper 2, publishing 2 June 2026, is the first major study built natively on Signal Noir.
Ongoing thinking
Where the research leads next.
Publishing 2 June 2026
Whitepaper 2: The publications AI actually cites
A study of 30 publications shaping AI search for luxury hospitality and travel. We map which titles AI systems treat as authority sources, score them across the dimensions that matter, and surface the patterns nobody is talking about yet.
Continuous
The Squeeze: Weekly thinking
Shorter pieces between major studies. Topics include the consumer research phase under LLMs, generative engine optimisation, attribution modelling in the AI era, and the Invisible Debt series on AI media economics.
Bespoke
Custom research for partners
Where a brand, agency or publisher needs intelligence specific to their category, region, or competitive set, we run bespoke research engagements. Outputs include benchmarking reports, presentations, and quarterly intelligence subscriptions.
Questions
FAQs about our research
Is the whitepaper free to download?
Yes. The full Invisible or Influential? report is available as a free download in exchange for a name, email, and organisation. We use the email only to send you the report and occasionally to share new research we think you would find relevant. You can unsubscribe at any time.
Can I quote or cite the research in my own work?
Absolutely. The whitepaper is intended to be useful. Editorial citation is welcomed and encouraged. Please credit Make Lemonade and Spotlight Communications, and link back to the source where possible. For longer extracts or commercial republication, get in touch.
Who is the research for?
Primarily for marketing and brand leaders at luxury hospitality and travel brands, PR agencies serving the category, and editorial teams at the publications that inform AI search. The findings are also relevant for travel advisors, destination companies, and lifestyle brands operating in the same AI-mediated discovery environment.
How often is the research updated?
How often is the research updated?
The flagship whitepaper is a snapshot in time. We run continuous monitoring through Signal Noir and publish shorter pieces in The Squeeze as patterns shift. Our second whitepaper publishes 2 June 2026, with continuous research after that.
Can you run custom research for our brand or agency?
Yes. Bespoke research engagements are scoped to the client. Outputs range from one-off intelligence reports to quarterly subscription monitoring. The most common starting point is the AI Visibility Snapshot, which uses the same methodology applied specifically to your brand.
Do you publish methodology details?
Do you publish methodology details?
Yes. Whitepaper 1 used structured questionnaires, qualitative interviews with hospitality executives, and independent digital audits, with technical analysis through SEMrush and Google PageSpeed Insights, validated across ChatGPT, Google AI Overview, Google AI Mode, and Perplexity. Whitepaper 2 builds on this with our proprietary Signal Noir platform. Both methodology sections are documented in the respective reports. We are happy to discuss methodology in more detail with researchers, journalists, and academics.
Start with the research
Download Invisible or Influential?
15 brands, 17 audits, 4 AI platforms. The full picture of how AI search treats luxury hospitality and travel brands.