In AI answers, ranking is often the wrong first question.
A brand must enter the answer before its position can matter.
Start by recording whether it is mentioned at all.
Then check whether it is recommended, how it is described, and which sources are cited.
A brand can be mentioned without a citation, or cited without a strong recommendation.
Those are different failures.
Measure the stages separately, improve the missing evidence or entity signals, and only discuss position after the brand is selected consistently.