The AI Search Apocalypse

The AI Search Apocalypse

For years, SEO meant one thing: fighting for a blue link on Google.

Now? People search everywhere.

On TikTok. On Amazon. On ChatGPT. On Reddit.
↳ If they search it, you can optimise for it.

This is Search Everywhere Optimisation - SEO for the AI-first era.
Nine layers of discoverability. One goal: be the answer wherever the question is asked.

The Four Layers of AI Search (AEO)

Level 1 – Traditional SEO
Keywords, backlinks, on-page tweaks, technical hygiene.
Still matters, but only as the foundation.

Level 2 – AI Search Optimisation
AI Overviews, AI Mode, ChatGPT search.
Not about getting crawled anymore - it’s about being chosen.

Level 3 – Paid Search Visibility
Google Ads, YouTube Ads.
Rented attention. Great for speed, gone when the budget dries.

Level 4 – LLM Answer SEO
ChatGPT, Perplexity, Claude.
Content models retrieve, cite, and summarise.

Why AEO Matters

AI search traffic is exploding while traditional organic slips.

• 1B+ daily queries on ChatGPT - already above Bing, catching TikTok.
• 82% of AI search traffic flows through ChatGPT.
  Perplexity handles 20M daily requests, Claude 19M.

And the quality beats Google:

• 14% of LLM users make a purchase.
  B2C conversion ≈ 30× higher.
• B2B conversion ≈ 40× higher.
  Most conversions happen within minutes, not days.
  
  

Google drives browsers.
AI drives buyers.

How to Optimise for AI Search (AEO)

1. Think AEO, not SEO
   SEO = keywords, EEAT, backlinks.
   AEO = structured answers, conversational prompts, credible citations.
   
   
2. Write Like ChatGPT Answers
   FAQs, bullets, pros/cons tables, quotes.
   Add JSON-LD schema so content is machine-readable.
   
   
3. Speak Like Your Users
   You’re not writing headlines - you’re teaching the model.
   Bad: “Introducing our new marketing calendar tool.”
   Good: “What’s the best way to auto-generate a GTM plan with AI?”
   
   
4. Get Mentioned Where AI Looks First
   Wikipedia, Reddit, Forbes dominate model training data.
   One great Reddit comment can beat ten guest posts.
   
   
5. Mirror Decision-Making Queries
   “Compare [Brand A] vs [Brand B].”
   “Why is [Brand A] better?”
   “What’s the best [tool] for [persona]?”

The Five Layers of Everywhere SEO

Level 5 – Brand Authority SEO
Third-party mentions build trust.

Level 6 – Community SEO
Reddit, Quora, Slack, Discord.

Level 7 – Parasite SEO
Leverage high-authority platforms - LinkedIn, Medium, Substack.

Level 8 – Platform-Specific SEO
Optimise for Amazon, YouTube, TikTok, LinkedIn search.

Level 9 – Topic Domination
Control discovery across every surface.

When brands execute AEO, traffic turns into sales.

• Month 1: 0.12% AI traffic → 2.2% of sales
  Month 6: 0.19% AI traffic → 2.9% of sales
• Month 12: 0.36% AI traffic → 5.8% of sales

The volume is smaller. The intent is higher. The cycle is faster.

SEO is no longer about gaming one search engine.
It’s about Search Everywhere Optimisation.

And right now, ChatGPT is where the highest-intent buyers live.

If you’re not visible there, you’re invisible.

Stay curious. Stay human. Stay efficient.

—Charlie

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