Nobody Googles Anymore: How Brands Get Found When People Ask AI

A few weeks ago I needed a new pair of running shoes. A couple of years ago I would have typed "best running shoes" into Google and scrolled through ten lists that all recommended the same brands. This time I opened ChatGPT, described my budget and what I was looking for and had a short list in about two minutes that was specific to what I was looking for.

I'm far from the only person doing this. More people are turning to AI tools to research purchases, compare options and get recommendations, and that changes how brands get discovered. For years, marketers have focused on ranking on Google. The question now is whether their brand shows up when someone asks an AI for advice.

Where Traditional Search falls Short

Search engine optimization, or SEO, is the work brands do to rank higher on search engines like Google. It involves using the right keywords, building links from other websites and creating content that search engines consider relevant.

The issue is what that work has done to the results page. The first few results for many searches are sponsored, meaning a brand paid to be there. Below the ads, you'll often find articles written mainly to rank well, packed with keywords and light on useful detail. A search for "best laptop for students" can turn up a dozen near-identical lists, many of them earning a commission on every sale.

That leaves the work to the shopper. They have to click through several pages, figure out which recommendations are genuine, and piece together an answer that fits their own situation

How AI Search Changes the Experience

Asking an AI tool feels closer to talking with a knowledgeable salesperson. Instead of returning a list of links, it can ask follow-up questions. What's your budget? What will you mainly use it for? Do you have any preferences on size or brand? Each answer narrows the recommendation further.

The result is a response built around one person's needs. Someone looking for a laptop to run design software gets a different answer than someone who mostly writes essays and streams shows, even if they started with the same question.

For shoppers, this saves time. For brands, it raises the bar. Showing up near the top of a page is no longer enough. The AI needs to understand what a product does well and who it suits, so it can recommend it to the right person.

So what is GEO?

Generative engine optimization, or GEO, is the practice of making a brand easier for AI tools to find, understand and recommend. It's still a new field, and marketers are figuring it out as they go.

SEO and GEO overlap in a lot of ways, since both reward clear, credible content. The main difference is the goal. SEO aims to get a page ranked so people click on it. GEO aims to get a brand mentioned in the answer itself, often without the person ever visiting the website.

That shift matters because AI tools pull from many sources at once, including product pages, reviews, news articles and forum discussions. A brand's reputation across the internet starts to carry as much weight as its own website.

How Brands can Show up in AI Answers

There's no exact formula yet, but a few approaches make a real difference.

• Answer real questions. Think about what customers actually ask before they buy, then answer those questions clearly on your website. An FAQ page or a short guide is often more useful to an AI than a slogan.

• Be specific about who the product is for. Since AI tools match products to people, vague descriptions hurt. "Great for everyone" gives the AI nothing to work with. "Built for runners with knee pain" does.

• Keep product information clear and consistent. Prices, features, sizes and availability should be easy to find and match across your website, retailers and social pages.

• Earn mentions beyond your own site. Reviews, press coverage, Reddit threads and creator content all shape how an AI understands a brand. Encouraging honest reviews and building real relationships with creators helps here.

• Write for people first. Content stuffed with keywords tends to come across as thin. Clear, helpful writing works for both readers and AI tools.

• Test it yourself. Ask a few AI tools the questions your customers would ask and see whether your brand comes up, and how it's described. That gives a quick sense of where the gaps are.