Enricko Lukman, the founder and CEO of ContentGrow, a B2B content marketing agency serving tech companies in the Asia-Pacific region, recently experienced a shocking event. Two potential clients contacted his company separately, and when Enricko asked during the discovery session how they learned about his services, both gave the same, unexpected answer: ChatGPT recommended them. Enricko hasn’t done any specific optimization for the AI platform, but artificial intelligence is already driving quality leads to his business.
This illustrates the massive transformation that is taking place in the world of digital marketing as artificial intelligence fundamentally changes the way consumers discover products and services. This phenomenon gave birth to Generative Engine Optimization (GEO), a new discipline focused on ensuring brands appear in AI-generated responses rather than traditional search engine rankings.
Scale of change
The numbers supporting this shift are striking. According to Enricko’s research, ChatGPT processes over a billion queries daily while amassing 800 million weekly active users by June 2025, a drastic increase from 300 million users just six months earlier. Perplexity AI experienced similar explosive growth, expanding from 2.36 million visits in early 2023 to over 110 million monthly visits by March 2025.
Traditional search behavior has simultaneously decreased in effectiveness. Break the Web reports that 58.5% of Google searches in the US now end without a click to an external website as users are satisfied with AI-generated summaries.
Pew Research’s latest findings further clarify this trend. When users encounter an AI summary in search results, only 8% click through to a traditional website, compared to 15% when there is no AI summary. More significantly, 26% of users ended their browsing session immediately after viewing a page with an AI summary, versus 16% for a page containing only conventional search results.
Google disputed Pew’s findings through a blog post on its website. Liz Reid, VP and Head of Google Search, recently stated that “the total volume of organic clicks from Google Search to websites is relatively stable year-over-year” and claimed the company sent “slightly more quality clicks to websites than last year.”
Understanding the new landscape
Pew Research data reveals that about 18% of Google searches by March 2025 result in AI summaries. Crucially, longer and more complex search parameters are driving the creation of AI summaries. While only 8% of one- or two-word searches generate summaries, the figure jumps to 53% for searches containing 10 or more words.
This pattern is important because longer queries often represent research behavior with serious intent, exactly the kind that businesses rely on to attract quality leads. When AI summaries did appear, 88% cited three or more sources according to Pew Research, yet only 1% of users clicked on the links in those summaries.
How GEO is different from SEO
Traditional search engine optimization relies on keywords, backlinks, and domain authority to achieve rankings. Generative Engine Optimization operates on a completely different principle, prioritizing clear information, authoritative sources, statistics, and structured content that is easily referenced and cited by AI systems.
Research on GEO published in November 2023 showed that content optimized with relevant citations, quotes, and statistics can increase visibility in AI responses by more than 40%. The study identified that comparative listicles accounted for 32.5% of all sources cited by AI models, followed by blog posts and opinion articles.
When Enricko tested queries related to his industry, he found that AI responses referenced specific companies with detailed value proposition explanations that did not correlate with traditional Google rankings. This highlights how AI systems evaluate authority differently, through frequency of mention in trusted sources rather than link-based metrics.
As John Herrman observed in his analysis for New York Magazine, AI platforms “continuously search the web” but also synthesize and extract information rather than ranking pages. The standard of judgment has shifted from backlinks and click-through rates to citations and contextual mentions across a range of authoritative sources including industry directories, mainstream publications, research reports, user-generated content platforms and academic publications.
Implications for marketing strategy
This transformation creates both opportunities and risks for marketers. The competitive landscape is becoming more democratic as startups can compete with established brands through strategic AI optimization rather than expensive link-building campaigns. Fast-moving players gain an edge while most organizations remain focused on traditional SEO.
However, absence during the research phase poses serious risks. Gartner research shows that 80% of future sales interactions between buyers and suppliers will occur through online platforms. According to IDC predictions, half of Asia-Pacific midsize businesses will adopt generative AI applications for marketing and sales automation by 2026.
The implications go beyond mere traffic metrics to fundamental changes in customer behavior. Even if Google’s stability claims prove true, Pew Research data shows users interact differently with search results when AI summaries are present, clicking less frequently and ending sessions sooner.
The evolution of the attention economy
GEO represents more than just a tactical adjustment, it signals a fundamental shift in the attention economy. Traditional SEO focuses on capturing clicks and driving traffic, while GEO emphasizes mastering mindshare and influencing AI-mediated recommendations. Success metrics are evolving from pageviews to contextual mentions and citation quality.
This evolution is putting pressure on the entire digital publishing ecosystem. If AI summaries satisfy user intent without requiring a website visit, traditional content monetization through advertising and affiliate revenue will be disrupted. But Enricko’s experience shows the potential to generate higher quality leads when AI systems make recommendations based on comprehensive content analysis.
Content strategies must adjust accordingly. Instead of keyword-optimized content for search rankings, marketers need citation-worthy material that AI systems will reference when answering user questions. This requires clear and structured information with statistical support and credible sources, comparative and educational content that answers common industry questions, and authoritative language that establishes an expert position.
Marketer Ross Simmonds notes in his research that “listicles work well on niche sites” and AI systems look for “expert content” structured in a crawlable format.
The rise of GEO raises complex questions about content ownership and usage. AI models train on vast web content, potentially incorporating proprietary information without direct compensation to creators. Most web content is already incorporated into AI training datasets, so the choice for marketers is to optimize for discovery or risk being invisible.
Looking ahead
The tension between Google’s traffic stability claims and Pew Research’s findings showing AI’s impact on search behavior remains contentious and continues to evolve. Marketers should monitor how the frequency of AI summaries changes over time, whether the types of queries that generate summaries expand beyond current patterns, and how different platforms balance direct answers with traffic generation.
John Herrman’s analysis for New York Magazine notes that the $75 billion SEO industry is already showing impact through mass layoffs and strategic pivots towards the “era of generative engines.” For forward-thinking marketers, this disruption creates opportunities to build authority and visibility in AI-powered discovery.
The broader question is, are we witnessing a temporary adjustment or a permanent restructuring of information discovery and consumption? As Enricko observed after his ChatGPT driven leads, “the question is not whether AI search will change the shape of B2B discovery, that’s already happening. The question is whether companies like ours will be seen when prospects start asking AI assistants for recommendations.”
The rise of GEO does not eliminate traditional SEO overnight, but demands a parallel strategy that addresses how AI systems discover and reference content. Organizations that understand and adjust to these changes position themselves for success in an increasingly AI-dominated market, while those that ignore the shifts risk being invisible in an ever-evolving attention economy.
In other words, based on various research and findings, GEO seems to be separating true marketers from algorithm manipulators because GEO, at least currently, rewards genuine expertise, not algorithm manipulation, so if you have been optimizing content for algorithms, be prepared to suffer. But if you focus on creating quality content with in-depth research, the transition to GEO will be smoother.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by PostX News and is published from a syndicated feed.)
