For the past twenty years, the goal of digital marketing was simple: rank number one on Google. Businesses spent billions optimizing keywords, building backlinks, and tweaking meta tags to climb the “blue links.”
Today, that landscape is shifting beneath our feet. With the rise of tools like ChatGPT, Perplexity, Claude, and Google’s own AI Overviews (formerly SGE), user behavior is changing. People are no longer just searching; they are asking. And instead of a list of links, they expect a single, synthesized answer.
This evolution begs a critical question for marketers and business owners: What strategies improve brand visibility in AI search engines when there are no traditional rankings to climb?
The answer lies in a new discipline known as Generative Engine Optimization (GEO). Here is what the experts are saying about adapting your strategy for the algorithmic age.
1. Optimize for “Entities,” Not Just Keywords
In traditional SEO, you might target the keyword “best running shoes.” In the AI era, keywords matter less than “entities.”
An entity is how an AI understands a noun—it is a person, a place, a brand, or a concept. Large Language Models (LLMs) function by understanding the relationships between these entities. They don’t just scan for matching words; they map connections.
To succeed, you must ensure the AI understands who you are.
- The Strategy: Use structured data (Schema markup) extensively on your website. This is code that speaks directly to search engines, explicitly stating, “This is a Brand,” “This is a Product,” and “This is the CEO.”
- The Goal: You want the AI’s “Knowledge Graph” to firmly associate your brand with your specific industry. If the AI understands that your brand is a definitive entity in the “CRM software” space, it is more likely to mention you when a user asks for recommendations.
2. Target “Conversational” Long-Tail Queries
The way we type into a search bar is different from how we speak to a chatbot.
- Old Search: “CRM software pricing”
- New Search: “What is the best CRM software for a small marketing agency with a budget of $500 a month?”
AI models thrive on context. If your content is generic, it will be ignored.
- The Strategy: Shift your content strategy toward answering complex, specific questions. Create “FAQ” sections that mimic natural conversation. Instead of writing 2,000 words of fluff, write direct, high-density answers that solve specific problems.
- The Insight: AI models prefer “information gain”—content that adds new, unique value rather than just repeating what everyone else has said.
3. Become the “Cited Source” Through Digital PR
When an AI like Perplexity provides an answer, it often includes footnotes or citations. Being that citation is the new “Ranking #1.”
How do you get cited? By being the primary source of data. AI models prioritize authority. If you publish original research, white papers, or unique industry surveys, you become the reference point.
- The Strategy: Invest in “Digital PR.” This doesn’t mean press releases; it means getting your brand mentioned and linked in high-authority publications (news sites, industry journals, reputable blogs).
- The Mechanics: If the New York Times and TechCrunch both mention that your software is the fastest on the market, the LLM ingests that consensus. When a user asks, “Which software is the fastest?”, the AI predicts your brand as the answer based on the training data it consumed.
4. Manage Your Reputation on Forums
This is perhaps the most overlooked strategy. AI models heavily weight user-generated content from platforms like Reddit, Quora, and specialized forums. They view these platforms as sources of “authentic human experience.”
If a user asks ChatGPT, “Is Brand X reliable?”, the AI often pulls sentiment from these discussions.
- The Strategy: You cannot fake this. You must actively engage in community management. Monitor what is being said about your brand on Reddit. Participate in the conversation (transparently, not as a bot).
- The Risk: If your marketing site says you are “World Class” but every Reddit thread says your customer service is terrible, the AI will likely report that your customer service is mixed or poor.
5. Focus on “Brand Authority” and Authorship
Google’s E-E-A-T guidelines (Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, and Trustworthiness) are even more critical for AI visibility. AI models are trained to reduce “hallucinations” (false information), so they are biased toward trusted sources.
- The Strategy: Ensure every piece of content on your site has a clear author with a biography establishing their credentials. If you are writing about health, the author should be a doctor. If you are writing about finance, they should be a financial advisor.
- The Expert Take: Anonymity is the enemy of AI visibility. Connect your content to real, verifiable experts to signal to the engine that your output is safe to serve to users.
Conclusion: The Shift to “Answer Engine” Marketing
Asking what strategies improve brand visibility in AI search engines ultimately requires a mindset shift. You are no longer trying to trick an algorithm into clicking a blue link. You are trying to convince a digital intelligence that your brand is the most factually accurate, widely trusted, and relevant answer to a user’s problem.
The future of search is not about being found; it is about being chosen. By building genuine authority, structuring your data clearly, and owning the conversation in your industry, you can ensure your brand remains visible in the age of AI.
