About

We built CitationDesk because we needed it ourselves.

CitationDesk is the productized version of a citation-tracking system we've been running internally across our fleet of ~30 niche publishing sites since 2025. We needed to know when ChatGPT, Claude, Perplexity, and Gemini started citing a page — because AI-search inbound traffic now converts 4× organic SERP-position-3 traffic, and we couldn't afford to find out months later via Search Console anomalies.

The operator

Hi, I'm Paulo de Vries. I run a fleet of static-reference + programmatic-SEO sites — HoldLens (superinvestor portfolio tracking), Read Stacks (non-fiction book summaries), FermentCalc, ColorCombinations, ZipRadar, and others. Most of these compound on organic search + AI citation; some monetize via affiliate, some via subscription. Across the fleet, I've shipped 100+ versions of an internal autonomy framework (AcePilot) that handles SEO, GEO, and AdSense compliance unattended.

CitationDesk is the first piece of fleet-internal tooling I've productized for outside use. I'm shipping it because the "AI citation" problem isn't solved by any of the existing tools at a price point that makes sense for solo operators, small publishers, or content marketers. The ones I evaluated started at $200-1,000/mo. That doesn't work for the 90% of operators who would benefit most.

I'm based in the Netherlands. I write code, I write content, and I deploy infrastructure with my own hands. There is no marketing team, no growth hacker, and no investor pressure to hit a Series-A growth curve. CitationDesk is built to be useful first, profitable second, and never extractive.

CitationDesk is published by Caslon Media, the registered Dutch media company behind my network of independent data and reference sites — see the partners page for the media kit.

What we believe

• AI citation is the new SEO. The web is bifurcating: humans who search Google, and humans who ask ChatGPT / Claude / Perplexity / Gemini. Both routes lead to your content — if it's discoverable. Most operators optimize for Google. We help you optimize for both.
• Transparency over opacity. When CitationDesk says "you're cited", we show you which model, which query, which paragraph, what timestamp. No black-box AI scores. No mystery dashboards.
• Plain English over jargon. A solo content creator on Substack should be able to read our dashboard and act on it. CRO/SEO acronyms get translated.
• Free means free. The AI Visibility Score and every generator tool on this site are free, run without signup, and have no paid tiers behind them. No trial clocks, no "you have 7 days left" emails.
• No dark patterns. No pay-to-alter scores. Where CitationDesk recommends third-party tools, some links may become affiliate links over time — always disclosed (see our affiliate disclosure), and never a factor in a score or comparison verdict.

Where to find me

• Email: [email protected] (or use the contact form on /contact)
• LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/paulodevries
• GitHub: @pmdevries-rgb