SEO (Search Engine Optimization) has been the longstanding strategy to win the battle for the first page of Google. Putting the right words in the right places used to be the best way to get a search engine to pick your materials as trustworthy and relevant. But, as AI-powered search engines like Perplexity, ChatGPT, and Google’s Gemini become the primary way consumers seek information, the strategies we used yesterday are no longer the best way to optimize visibility with your target audience.
Earned and owned media are driving generative search results, making a trusted PR partner with media and AI expertise more critical than ever. From what we’ve seen as an agency, here is what you need to know about the impact of AI on PR, GEO (Generative Engine Optimization), and how to ensure your brand stays visible.
The Amplification of Earned Trust
We are witnessing a massive shift in consumer trust and habits, reflected in how LLMs are both used and trained. Current data suggests that search engine traffic (especially paid results) will decline rapidly as users transition toward AI-driven results, with some experts predicting traditional search use could be cut in half by 2028.
Even more telling is the trust gap:
- 41% of consumers now trust Generative AI search results more than paid search results.
- Only 15% of consumers still trust search ads more than AI-generated answers.
While there’s still plenty of progress to be made, paid search ads don’t have the sway over customers that generative results do. Perhaps unsurprisingly, paid content doesn’t have sway over the LLMs being trained either.
Statistics show that 95% of AI citations come from non-paid media, with a heavy emphasis on earned content. While traditional search engines try to balance paid and earned results, AI prioritizes information pulled through from trusted sources.
LLMs determine trust by looking at sources that have high domain authority and present factual information in an easily accessible manner. It’s part of the reason why Erik Carlson, CEO of Notified (owner of GlobeNewswire), says we’re experiencing the "renaissance of the press release" in a PR Week article.
Fact sheets, technical readouts and releases, expert commentary, and media reporting are recognized as trusted sources of information designed to give factual accounts of information. If your brand isn't being talked about in these sources, it effectively doesn't exist to an LLM.
The second fold in complexity is recognizing that AI doesn't scan the entire internet equally. According to a Semrush study, the power players in AI citations are:
- Reddit (40.1%)
- Wikipedia (26.3%)
- YouTube (23.5%)
- Google (23.3%)
Building a presence across platforms designed to provide trusted answers and information is more important than ever. If your brand isn't active or mentioned on these platforms, you are missing out on the lion’s share of AI visibility.
While these sites perform well generally across AI search, 50% of AI citations for any given brand come from just 20 specific sites, unique to each brand. Long-tail engagement in relevant sites is more important than ever for reaching your target audience.
Steps to Elevate Your Brand Presence for GEO
To stay ahead of the transition from SEO to GEO, we’re building new strategies into our PR plans. Want our advice on where to start?
- Do an AI Audit: Hop into ChatGPT, Claude, Perplexity, and any other AI search engine, and look up your company. How does the AI describe the brand? Does your business show up if you ask an AI search engine about your industry? Does an AI pull through your product messaging if asked about key differentiators? What sources does it cite when you or your competitors are mentioned? AI search engines allow brands to directly see how their potential customers could discover their business (or miss it entirely!).
- Reprioritize owned content: Ensure owned media is structured, authoritative, and easy for AI to crawl. If you don’t have any, start a blog or other owned content source for AI to pull from. When drafting press releases, treat them as high-authority data feeds for AI, not just announcements. Consider the format as well. For example, AI loves FAQ style formats when searching for information.
- Manage brand presence on high engagement sites: Reddit and Wikipedia account for over half of all AI citations, meaning these sites are a great place to put down roots.
The Bottom Line
In the age of AI, brand visibility is earned, not bought. By focusing on high-authority content and the platforms LLMs draw from, your brand can thrive in the era of GEO. In 2026, we’re expecting to see these strategies become increasingly critical to brand visibility, and we’re happy to guide you through how we’d build your PR strategy.
