Oh great - another acronym. Another marketing buzzword.
Except this time, it’s not fluff. This one actually decides whether your business still shows up when people stop “Googling” and start “ChatGPT-ing.”
Artificial intelligence is quietly rewriting the rules of search. It’s changing how people find information, how answers are presented, and which businesses get seen. It’s the biggest shake-up of the internet since Google first crashed the party 25-plus years ago - and this time, the algorithm actually talks back.
That said, “AI vs Search” isn’t a cage match. Current data shows traditional search remains the cornerstone of desktop discovery while AI tools have normalised as an additional stop in the journey, not a replacement. People still use Google a lot, and AI has become another step in how they search. However, when Google shows an AI Overview, fewer people click the usual links, both organic or ads. If your brand is named inside that AI box, you’re more likely to get the click. In other words, SEO and AIO are companions, and the goal is to show up in both places.
“Even as AI tools gain traction, traditional search continues to anchor desktop browsing behavior.”
- EN Datos, State of Search Q3 2025 (PDF)
Recent tests show that when an AI Overview appears, click-through rates to regular results drop a lot for both organic and paid. However, brands mentioned in the Overview see a lift. (Search Engine Land: Google AI Overviews drive 61% drop in organic CTR, 68% in paid)
But what does AIO really mean for your business? And how is it different from SEO?
Let’s break it down. No jargon, no AI guru nonsense, just plain English.
(And if you’re curious how we broke down SEO in the same style, check that post here: What is SEO?)
If SEO (Search Engine Optimisation) is about showing up in Google, then AIO (Artificial Intelligence Optimisation, to give it the full name) is about showing up in AI-generated answers - the new “front page of the internet.”
Tools like ChatGPT, Gemini, Perplexity, and Google’s AI Overviews don’t give you ten blue links anymore. They summarise the internet and choose who gets quoted. Kind of like a teacher’s pet situation for brands.
You’ll see a few other jargon cousins floating around too:
TL;DR - they’re all working toward the same outcome: earning presence in AI answers and in search features, because people increasingly bounce between engines and AI tools during research.
Think of AIO as SEO’s cooler, slightly scarier younger sibling - the one who actually gets invited to parties.
Search behaviour is evolving, but the latest data suggests evolution, not collapse. People are going from ‘Just Google it’ to also ‘Ask ChatGPT’ in the same breath. AI usage is climbing (ChatGPT now a top destination from search), while search activity per user remains steady with Google still dominant. The real shift is how many searches end on the results page (zero-click), and which destinations search sends people to (YouTube, Reddit, Amazon, Wikipedia stay on top).
What that means in practice:
The difference is brutal: Google gives you ten choices. AI gives you one, maybe two.
If your business isn’t one of them? You’re not just invisible, you’re irrelevant.
Worse, if your competitor is the one quoted, then congrats - you just handed them your authority on a silver platter.
Bottom line: don’t panic, re-balance. Keep your SEO foundations strong and invest in AIO so you’re chosen in both places: search features and AI answers.
“Stateside, organic results remain the primary outcome of Google searches, though their share has edged slightly lower… Overall, the number of searches per user across all search engines remains stable, indicating consistent search behavior.”
- EN Datos, State of Search Q3 2025 (PDF)
You don’t need to be technical to get the basics. AIO is built on principles you may recognise from SEO, but adapted for how AI interprets and serves content:
AI rewards content that’s consistent, credible, and clearly human.
That means no half-hearted blog posts or ChatGPT cut and paste jobs.
You need:
Example: An accounting firm shouldn’t post one “tax tips” article and call it a day. They need a content library that screams “we live and breathe this stuff” - audits, compliance, business structures, finance strategy, the works.
Topic clusters = digital authority. That’s how you tell AI “Hey, we’re not tourists here. We run the joint.”
AI doesn’t read like humans. It scans, classifies, and connects.
Structured data, such as schema markup and metadata, helps AI interpret your content. Think of it as adding name tags to everything in your digital filing cabinet so the AI librarian can actually find your stuff.
However, structure isn’t just technical, it’s also about how you write. AI loves short paragraphs, subheads, and question-answer formats. Basically, write like you’re explaining something to a smart but impatient intern.
Do this by:
The goal is to make your content easy for AI to understand and quote accurately.
AI trusts what trusted sources trust.
When your brand appears on reputable websites, industry sites or publications, government pages, or widely cited blogs, it strengthens your credibility. Even Reddit threads are shaping AI answers now. (Yes, seriously. Reddit.)
This is the new reputation economy: credibility by association.
SEO rankings can shift in weeks.
AIO? It’s like trying to get into the syllabus of next year’s AI school - it takes time.
Large Language Models (LLMs) update slowly. If you publish new content today, it might take months, or years, before it filters into an AI model’s dataset.
Translation: AIO isn’t instant. Meanwhile, AI tools are already part of user journeys today and ChatGPT shows up among top search destinations, so the sooner you publish credible, structured content, the more often you’ll be considered for those AI “shortlists.”
If SEO is gardening, AIO is tree planting. It’s slower, messier, but once it takes root, it lasts.
Large language models (LLMs) pull data from:
What they really care about:
And remember: Search still sends huge volumes to durable ecosystems, like YouTube, Reddit, Amazon, Wikipedia. Being useful there increases your odds of being referenced everywhere, including AI answers.
In short: If you want AI systems to see you, you need to show up where they’re already looking. AI can only find you where you’ve already made yourself visible. If you’re not out there, you’re not in the mix.
Also, here’s the twist: AI answers aren’t static. They remix every time someone asks. So you’re not optimising for “rankings” anymore - you’re optimising for “repeat appearances.”
“In this world, our carefully produced content serves a different purpose: to educate the LLM and get into its training data to be available for ‘remixes'.”
- Reynolds, Stinnett & Shirk, (What is Generative Engine Optimization (GEO) & how does it impact SEO?)
What that means is that people receive different summaries, even for the same queries run just minutes apart. These AI tools constantly ‘remix’ what they know.
For businesses, that unpredictability is both a challenge and an opportunity. A challenge, because you can’t expect one piece of content to “lock in” your visibility the way a strong SEO ranking might. But also an opportunity, because every remix gives you another chance to be pulled to the top of the charts.
Each question is a new audition. The more your brand’s name, content, and tone appear across trusted sources, the more likely AI keeps picking you.
You’re not chasing one #1 spot anymore… you’re trying to become the chorus everyone else keeps quoting.
If you’re making marketing decisions for a business, you don’t need to know the ins and outs of LLMs or understand how AI is coded. You just need to make your brand recognisable and trustworthy to it.
Here are some practical starting moves:
Look at your current content, and be brutally honest.
Is it helpful or hollow? Does it sound like a person or a brochure?
Cull the fluff. Rewrite what’s worth saving. Publish what teaches, not sells.
Keywords are yesterday’s game. Topic authority is the new currency.
Build clusters of interconnected articles that explore your main themes deeply and from multiple angles. Instead of one post on “employee wellness,” create a cluster: legal obligations, case studies, tools, leadership strategies.
Authority comes from depth, not repetition.
Add schema markup, alt text, metadata - yes, it’s still important. They all help machines understand and identify the content on your site.
But also: write like AI is your nosy neighbour. A clean site structure makes everything clear, labelled, and easy to quote.
In traditional SEO, backlinks were the goal. In AIO, mentions are the new backlinks and are just as valuable. Aim to be referenced by industry sites, media outlets, and trusted directories. If others are saying your name online (for good reasons), you’re halfway to credibility.
Emerging analytics tools now track when and where your brand appears in AI answers. They’re not perfect, but early adopters will learn faster. Think of it as SEO analytics 2.0 - still awkward, but essential.
No quick wins here. This can’t be overstated. AIO is a slow build and you won’t “rank” tomorrow. The impatient marketers will give up before it starts paying off, but that’s your edge. Those early investments will matter as AI models evolve.
Topical authority doesn’t care about your budget. It cares about your brains.
Jane Cozens sums this up nicely in Search Engine Land:
“Unlike domain authority, topical authority isn’t based on your website’s size or links. Small or new sites can build it by creating focused, comprehensive content. This makes high topical authority an attainable goal for all websites, regardless of your background or available resources.
- Jane Cozens, Topical authority: How to become the go-to resource on your topic
AIO doesn’t replace SEO, and SEO isn’t dead.
Search is steady; AI is additive.
Treat AIO as a new distribution layer that selects and summarises your work, while SEO remains the foundational system that ensures you’re discoverable and technically sound.
Instead of each competing to be the main character, they’re complementary and reliable sidekicks. Think Batman and Robin. Both SEO and AIO are jumping into the Batmobile together, excitedly yelling “Let’s go get 'em!”.
You still need SEO. It builds the foundation, but if you only optimise for Google, you’ll miss growing on-SERP opportunities and the AI answer layer that many users now trust during research.
The smart move? Keep SEO humming along, but start tuning into how AI actually hears you. Because that’s where the real conversations, and conversions, are happening now.
The brands that will thrive in this next phase:
It’s easy to feel like the ground is shifting under your feet. (Because, honestly, it is. The internet has the stability of a toddler on a sugar high.)
AIO sounds new, and in some ways it is. But the fundamentals haven’t changed: create content people actually value, build authority that isn’t fake, and make sure machines understand you as clearly as humans do.
At Insight Online, we’ve seen every digital “revolution” that was supposed to change everything, and then watched half of them fizzle out. From early SEO to mobile-first, from “voice search is the future” to now AI discovery, one thing has always stayed true: the brands that start adapting early and invest with intention always come out on top.
Each digital wave of change rewards the same traits: adaptability, clarity, and credibility. The rest is just noise.
AIO is simply the next chapter. Not a replacement, but an evolution. Ignore it, and you’ll be that person still bragging about ranking #1 for a keyword no one’s typed since 2022.
So if you want your brand to stay visible not just on Google but in AI-generated answers, or what we’re now calling ‘the new front page of the internet’, now’s the time to act.
AI Optimisation isn’t just a hype - it’s survival.
It’s not about chasing algorithms, it’s about earning trust from both people and machines.
If SEO helps people find you, AIO makes sure AI doesn’t forget you exist.
The future of visibility isn’t ten blue links. It’s one credible mention.
And you sure as hell want it to be yours.
With over 15 years of experience in search and online marketing, Kim is the Founder of Insight Online. Kim started Insight as he saw an opportunity to build an agency that focuses on business results and strong working relationships with clients.
As the face of the business, Kim will likely be your first point of contact, chatting with you about your work and what you’d like to get done. The best part of his job is meeting new people, getting to know their businesses, and making a tangible, measurable difference for them.
In his spare time, Kim loves playing disc golf, strumming a little guitar and is an avid bookworm.
His favourite charities are Zeal which supports youth in their development over a number of years and Lifewise, an organisation focussed on getting homeless into homes.
