Why it matters now
The way customers find you has changed.
Customers still search. But more and more, they get their answer from AI before they ever visit a website. Here's what that means for your business, and what to do about it.
How people find businesses today
Three places your next customer is looking.
Search results
The classic list of links. Customers compare a few options and click. Still important, and still where many journeys begin.
What gets you there: SEOAI summaries in search
Google AI Overviews and AI Mode answer the question right on the results page. Many people read the summary and never scroll.
What gets you there: SEO + AEOAI assistants
ChatGPT, Gemini, Perplexity, Claude, and Copilot answer questions directly, and often name specific businesses to consider.
What gets you there: AEO
The numbers
AI search isn't coming. It's here.
- 1B+monthly users of Google AI ModeSource: Alphabet, July 2026
- 900M+people use ChatGPT every weekSource: OpenAI via TechCrunch, Feb 2026
- 2Bmonthly users of Google AI Overviews, the AI summaries at the top of search resultsSource: Alphabet via TechCrunch, July 2025
- 8%of Google visits led to a click on a regular result when an AI summary appeared, vs. 15% without oneSource: Pew Research Center, July 2025
- 1%of visits included a click on a link inside a Google AI summarySource: Pew Research Center, July 2025
- 53%of Google searches with 10 or more words produced an AI summary, vs. 8% of one- or two-word searchesSource: Pew Research Center, July 2025
What it means for your business
If AI doesn't recommend you, it recommends someone else.
- 01
Fewer clicks, higher stakes
When an AI summary answers the question, fewer people click through to websites. The businesses named in that answer get the attention. Everyone else is easy to miss.
- 02
Fewer spots at the top
A results page shows ten links. An AI answer often names just a handful of businesses. Being "on page one" is no longer the same as being seen.
- 03
Detailed questions go to AI
Longer, specific questions are much more likely to trigger an AI summary. Those are often the customers who are closest to buying.
- 04
Accuracy is on the line
AI repeats what the web says about you. Outdated hours, old service areas, or thin information can lead AI to describe your business incorrectly, or skip it.
The honest truth
Search isn't dying. It's changing.
You'll hear people claim SEO is dead. It isn't. Google reports that AI features are"driving an incremental increase in Search queries overall"and that it still sends billions of clicks to websites every week.
What's changed is where customers make decisions. The businesses that win show up in both places: in the search results, and in the answer.
Gets you ranked. Your site appears when customers search and compare options.
Gets you recommended. AI tools name your business when customers ask for advice.
Gets you chosen. Customers see you everywhere they look, and trust what they find.
The cost of waiting
Visibility compounds. So does invisibility.
Reviews, mentions, helpful content, and consistent listings all build over time. The businesses investing now are building the reputation AI tools draw on, and that head start is hard to catch.
Every month you're missing from the answer is a month of customers choosing someone else, often without you ever knowing they were looking.
Read: The Cost of Being Invisible in AI SearchWhat to do next
Three ways to get started.
- Step 1
Estimate what you're missing
Use your own numbers to see what low visibility could be costing you each year.
Open the calculator - Step 2
See where you actually stand
Get a free AI visibility audit: Google, five AI tools, your competitors, and a clear action plan.
Get your free audit - Step 3
Fix it with a clear plan
SEO, AEO, websites, marketing, and AI, working together to get you found and chosen.
Explore services
FAQ
Common questions.
Is SEO still worth investing in?
Yes. Search is still a major way customers find businesses, and Google reports that AI features are increasing overall search activity. Strong SEO is also the foundation AI tools rely on, so it supports AEO too.
What is AEO, in one sentence?
Answer engine optimization (AEO) is the work of making your business easy for AI tools to find, understand, trust, and recommend when customers ask questions.
My business gets referrals. Does this still matter?
Often more than you would expect. Many people who hear about you from a friend will still search your name or ask an AI tool about you before they call. What they find can confirm or undermine that referral.
How do I know if AI tools mention my business?
Ask the AI tools your customers use the questions your customers ask. Or request our free AI visibility audit, and we will check Google and five leading AI tools for you and show you exactly what we find.
Make sure customers can find you.
Get a free AI visibility audit. We will show you how you appear on Google and in AI answers today, and exactly what to do next.