Brief an original data study from numbers only the founder can pull
Original statistics are the citation other writers need, and one solid study outranks years of opinion posts — but the numbers live in a database only the founder can query. Deliver the brief instead: the question, the cut of data that answers it, the methodology note, and the headline it would earn, every figure an explicit placeholder until the query runs.
By The Marketinque TeamReviewed June 2026
Step 3.8.3 Publish one original-data study in the SaaS launch checklist · phase 3, Authority baseline
The play
Original numbers are the content other writers must cite, and only the operator can pull them. So the deliverable here is the BRIEF, not the article: the question worth answering, the cut of data that answers it, the methodology note that makes it citable, and the headline the finding would earn.
Watch out for
- Hand back a brief with placeholders, never a finished article — inventing the figures is the one way this play destroys the credibility it exists to build.
- Publish the methodology — sample size, dates, definitions — or the numbers won’t be cited.
- Aggregate and anonymize; never expose an identifiable customer.
Best for
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Plays like this one
- Publish the “[topic] statistics” page writers have to citeA “[topic] statistics” page is the query a writer runs when a claim needs a number, so the page that answers it best is cited for years. Aggregate fifty-plus figures traced to primary sources — the filing, the study, the government table — each dated, linked and stated once, with ten quotable one-liners on top. Pick the sub-topic where page one is weak, and stamp the year.
- Give a query Google already ranks you for its own pageSearch Console shows queries where Google gives you impressions but has no dedicated page. Each mismatch is a page you can rank faster than a cold keyword, because the domain-level association already exists. Publish one page per query, matching the exact intent, then re-check position and impressions before the next batch.
- The definitive how-to guide for a task you solveWrite the definitive, genuinely complete how-to guide for a task your product makes easier, targeting “how to [task]” searches. Answer the question fully and for free; mention the product only where it honestly removes a step. Comprehensive how-to content ranks, earns links, and gets cited by AI for the underlying task.
- "[Category] alternatives" comparison articleTarget high-intent "[category] alternatives" and "best [category]" searches with a balanced comparison article. Use a real feature table, name honest trade-offs, and state who each option suits best — including where you are not the right pick. Comparison content is the single most-cited format in AI answers and converts bottom-funnel searchers.
Sources
Compiled by The Marketinque Team to our editorial standards.