Type B (Unbranded Query)
A query with no brand name — a category or generic need where the engine chooses who to mention.
What is a Type B (unbranded) query?
A Type B query is an unbranded query: no brand name, just a category or generic need. The engine chooses who to mention, so it is the best signal of genuine authority.
A Type B query is the hardest visibility to win and the most telling: the buyer never named you, so being mentioned is pure earned authority.
Unbranded queries describe a need or category without naming any vendor — best way to do X, tools for Y, how to solve Z. The engine decides which brands deserve a mention, drawing on entity strength, authority signals and how citable your content is. Nothing about the query points to you.
This is why Type B is the strongest authority signal. Winning here means the engine independently judged you relevant and trustworthy for the category, the exact position that captures buyers before they have a shortlist.
In SkuLift's framework, Type B sits between Type A (branded) and Type C (comparative). Moving share of voice on Type B queries is the clearest proof that AEO and GEO work is building real, unprompted authority.