For years, gaining the number one position on Google was the dream for many brands. Now, it’s not even the starting point. People aren’t searching the old way.
ChatGPT now gets over 2.6 billion visits a month. That represents more than just a bump in traffic and points to a full-on shift in how people find information online.
Instead of scrolling through ten blue links on Google, opening up 4/5 tabs which seem relevant and hoping for the best, people are now asking AI to summarise, compare, and recommend. Expectations have shifted, users don’t want options, they want answers.
AI tools are becoming the new interfaces between your brand and your audience. Increasingly, if you’re not mentioned in the answer, you’re not being considered by the end user.
This is where Generative Engine Optimisation (GEO) and Large Language Model Optimisation (LLMO) comes in.
Mentions mean more than clicks
When ChatGPT or your LLM of choice names your brand in a response, it’s perceived differently by the user. It’s not just about visibility, those responses drive trust. It tells users that your brand helped shape the answer by providing useful and relevant information, not just paid to sit at the top of the results page.
Ultimately, this signals credibility. AI tools only mention brands they ‘think’ are useful. There is no pay-to-play here (yet), and it reaches people when they’re ready to act. Nobody fires up ChatGPT for a casual browse!
Compared to SEO rankings which shift every five minutes, AI mentions last much longer and are referred to, so the information they share sticks with users.
From keywords to answers
Traditional SEO is about keywords. GEO and LLMO are about being the best answer. AI tools scan the web for clear, helpful, well-sourced content that answers real questions.
To get included, you need to:
- Write content that solves problems, not just pushes products
- Use clear headings, short paragraphs, and structured formats like FAQs
- Keep your tone neutral and your sources credible
- Make sure your content is up to date, not covered in digital cobwebs
Basically, write like someone who wants to be understood by a robot.
How AI decides what to mention
AI tools aren’t neutral. They’re trained on patterns and preferences. If your brand shows up in respected sources, gets mentioned often, and publishes content that’s actually useful, you’re more likely to be cited. Some factors that shape inclusion:
- Relevance to the question
- Credibility of the source
- Recency of the content
- Depth of the explanation
- Consistency across platforms
- Clarity in formatting and structure
You don’t need to shout louder than everyone else. But you do need to be clear, useful, and easy to find. GEO and LLMO are still new, but there are practical ways to improve your odds:
- Publish content that answers specific questions clearly
- Get featured in expert roundups, industry press or review sites
- Avoid jargon and fluff – keep your copy sharp and focused
- Use schema markup to help machines read your site properly
- Check how tools like ChatGPT or Perplexity describe you – and your competitors
We built a tool called Share of LLM to help track how often brands get mentioned in LLM responses. Because if the machine doesn’t know you, neither will your next customer.
The role of user behaviour
AI tools don’t just learn from content. They also learn from how people respond to it.
If users upvote, click, or share content within AI interfaces, that content is more likely to appear again. So, a one-off mention isn’t enough. You need to keep offering value that gets noticed.
Your next audience might not be human
Here’s the bit marketers should care about: your next audience might not be a person. It might be a model deciding if your brand is worth including.
Search isn’t dead. But how people search is changing. And the brands that win are the ones mentioned by machines.
To see how this shift is playing out, check out how OpenAI is turning ChatGPT into a real discovery engine. This isn’t the future, it’s happening now.
If you’re still focused only on SEO rankings, you’re missing half the picture. AI tools are already shaping what people see and trust.
Get in touch with our experts to find out more:
- Roi Perez, Senior Digital Strategist – roi.perez@unlimitedgroup.com
- Rejoice Ojiaku, SEO & Content Manager – rejoice.ojiaku@nelsonbostock.com