AI
- Quality content that genuinely helped people
- Mentions in authoritative publications
- Strong reputation in their space
- Genuine expertise and thought leadership
SEO 4 AI is Just SEO
SEO 4 AI is the buzzy topic of the moment (with the acronym collection to prove it). But is it any different from normal SEO?
Nope!
Thanks for reading…
In case that’s not enough for you, here’s what a founder in the space has to say about it.
But first!
Why listen to what I’m about to copy-paste below? These are the reasons why Lorelight shut down.
What is Lorelight?
According to its about page:
a generative engine optimization (GEO) platform to help businesses track their brand mentions in AI search engines like ChatGPT, Claude, and Perplexity.
Back to the point of all this, SEO 4 AI is just SEO.
Straight from the Lorelight shut down post (bolding is mine):
After analyzing hundreds of queries across ChatGPT, Claude, and Perplexity, I found that brands with high AI search visibility all had the same characteristics:
Sound familiar?
It should. Because it’s the exact same stuff that’s always worked for SEO, PR, and brand building.
There was no secret formula. No hidden hack. No special optimization technique that only applied to AI.
The AI models are trained on the same content that builds your brand everywhere else. They cite the same authoritative sources. They reference the same trusted publications.
There’s no such thing as “GEO strategy” or “AI optimization” separate from brand building. At least not for the vast majority of brands.
Focusing on AI tactics or SEO tactics or social algorithm hacks is a distraction. You’re building on rented land with a lease that can change at a moment’s notice.
Focus on what you can control and own.
Your brand.
Your channels.
Your story.
Everything else is an amplifier. Amps need inputs.
The internet is word of mouth with a steroid problem.
Co-create your brand with your audience.
Coming Soon: AdsGPT?
OpenAI wants to monetize ChatGPT via ads (which isn’t a surprise, just think of the Google Search budgets waiting to be reallocated).
The company recently hired for a “Growth Paid Marketing Platform Engineer” (listing is no longer up) that :
would be responsible for “developing campaign management tools, integrating with major ad platforms, building real-time attribution and reporting pipelines, and enabling experimentation frameworks to optimize our objectives.”
There is currently an open role called Growth - AI Workflows, Martech, Creative Systems that will:
Design and launch AI-powered creative systems (dynamic content generation, automated asset production, experimentation tooling) that enable rapid, personalized campaigns across multiple channels.
&
Build and scale a modern martech stack (data pipelines, automation platforms, experimentation frameworks) that supports sophisticated targeting, measurement, and real-time optimization.
Connecting ad functionality to Instant Checkout is an obvious first step. The trap is building an ad system that looks like the current heavy hitters.
Turning responses into pay-to-play performance PR outputs kills trust.
Plopping Google Search Ads style placements somewhere in the chat pane is lazy and annoying.
Utilizing the unique understanding of a user, content, and intent to create a new paradigm of contextual advertising that provides value and isn’t reliant on hoovering up user data is the opportunity.
Beware your metrics: Google capped search results at 10 / page. No more 100 results on a page.
A lot of rankings tools are reporting issues and I’m noticing improved reported average ranks across Google Search Console accounts, likely from deep page data loss.
How are ChatGPT results changing?
Apple wants to release its own AI powered search integrated with Siri, calling it an “answer engine”. Potentially powered by a Google model.
Apple is rebuilding Siri around three core components: a planner, the search systems for the web and devices, and a summarizer. The planner interprets voice or text input and decides how to respond; the search system scans the web or user data; and the summarizer pulls it all together into an answer.
At this stage in the game, makes the most sense to build on an outside model. Maybe one less data set to figure out how to infiltrate for AI exposure?
AI may resolve a problem with the fishermen, but it wouldn’t change what is in the pond.
-Philippe Aghion
This is interesting
In a recent update, Google has started indexing and sourcing Instagram content.
Now posts and reels function like blog posts from an SEO perspective.
For professional accounts this could mean approaching it more like Pinterest than TikTok.
attached screenshot from IG announcing the update found online
Apple is bringing in the big guns to power Siri: now with AI!
OpenAI and Jony Ive are thinking screen-free.
Google and Perplexity are powering assistants elsewhere.
Smart glasses are spilling from every nook and cranny.
As the ambient computing future draws nearer, what does your brand sound like?