How To Win Brand Visibility in AI Search: AIOs, LLMs & The New SEO Landscape

The search landscape is undergoing its most profound transformation since the invention of the desktop search bar. The integration of Large Language Models (LLMs) into major search engines is redefining what success looks like, replacing the familiar “10 blue links” with synthesized answers, or AI Overviews (AIOs).

To maintain and grow visibility, enterprise SEOs must pivot their strategy from traditional click-focused optimization to a bifurcated approach that prioritizes both brand authority and performance in stable niches.

The AI Search Reality Check: Decoupling Clicks from Impressions

The most significant seismic shift is the “Great Decoupling.” Data increasingly shows that for many sites, impressions are rising while clicks are declining.

This phenomenon is a direct result of AI Overviews. When an AIO provides a satisfying, synthesized answer directly on the Search Engine Results Page (SERP), the user has no need to click on an organic result. For businesses that rely on clicks as their primary conversion signal, this represents a major existential challenge.

The New Position 1: AIOs Cannibalize the Top-of-Funnel

The traditional battleground for Position 1 is being dramatically rewritten. Data shows a significant increase in the percentage of Rank 1 results now occupied by AI Overviews, which are largely cannibalizing organic visibility.

This shift is most pronounced for informational, top-of-funnel queries. Users asking “What is X?” or “How does Y work?” are the most likely to be satisfied by a comprehensive AI summary. Enterprise SEOs competing in this space may have seen their organic Position 1 visibility drop by 50% or more.

This forces a critical decision: should you fight for shrinking organic traffic, or evolve to optimize for the AI mechanism itself—a practice known as Answer Engine Optimization (AIO)?

Strategic Playbook 1: The Brand Imperative (Optimizing for Impressions)

The rise of LLMs necessitates a fundamental change in how SEO is viewed: it must be treated as a brand marketing channel, not purely a performance channel.

1. Focus on Brand Mentions, Not Citations

The ultimate goal in the age of AIOs is to have your brand mentioned in the synthesized response. While being cited (having your domain listed as a source) is a strong tactical win, the strategic victory is the direct, unmissable mention of your company or product.

• Action: Build unmatched authority around niche topics. The AI is designed to use the most authoritative, trustworthy sources to construct its answer. Google’s E-A-T/E-E-A-T (Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, Trustworthiness) signals are more critical than ever before.

2. Differentiate In-Model vs. Outer-Model Responses

AIO and LLM responses fall into two categories:

• In-Model Responses: The AI answers the question entirely based on its internal training data. This is difficult to influence tactically.
• Outer-Model (Grounded) Responses: The AI performs a follow-up “grounding” search to verify facts or find a specific answer, often leading to a prompt that encourages a user click for more detail.

Tactical Focus: You are much better positioned to affect outer-model/grounded responses. By providing hyper-specific, factual, and well-structured content, you increase the chances that the AI grounding process will select your content as the required source, potentially generating a click or a clear citation.

Strategic Playbook 2: The Performance Anchor (Where Clicks Still Live)

While informational searches are heavily affected, some query types are proving to be more resilient to AIO cannibalization, providing a stable anchor for performance marketing:

1. Local SEO

Local search features, such as Local Packs, remain relatively stable. When Google experiments with AI local features, they still rely on the same underlying local data. Because local queries often lead to immediate, transactional actions (visiting a store, calling a business), the click is still highly valued.

• Action: Double down on Google Business Profile optimization, local schema, and review signals.

2. Commercial & Transactional Organic

Queries with high commercial intent (e.g., “best project management software,” “buy running shoes online”) are holding their ground better than informational searches. While AIOs are rising here, they often cannibalize other SERP features (like paid ads or shopping carousels) before significantly eroding the organic Position 1.

• Action: Focus on content that moves users down the funnel: detailed comparison pages, “best of” guides that clearly position your brand, and robust product pages.

Navigating LLMs and the Long Tail

The underlying technology of AI search—LLMs—introduces a new focus on the very long tail.

1. AI Mode is a Complement, Not a Replacement

Dedicated “AI Modes” (like Google’s Search Generative Experience, or SGE, in its experimental phases) are often compared to competitors like ChatGPT. Crucially, these modes tend to handle a different type of query: those that are more complex, conversational, and lengthy.

Initial data suggests that this AI chat mode is acting as a complement to traditional search, not a replacement. Most users still revert to classic SERPs for basic informational or navigational queries.

2. The People Also Ask (PAA) Data Advantage

AI search is dominated by obscure, highly specific queries that form the very long tail. These are the types of questions an LLM is best equipped to answer conversationally.

One of the most instructive tactical clues for this new landscape is the existing “People Also Ask” (PAA) data on current SERPs. These questions reveal the exact complex, related queries users are typing into a search box.

• Action: Systematically mine PAA data to identify content gaps. Create hyper-targeted, structured content that directly answers these secondary and tertiary questions, increasing your potential to be included in an AIO or LLM-generated response.

Conclusion

Winning brand visibility in the new AI Search era requires embracing change and shifting the core definition of SEO success. It is no longer enough to target a simple rank position. Success is now defined by:

1. Brand Authority: Becoming the undeniable expert so the AIO must mention you.
2. Strategic Bifurcation: Optimizing for impressions in the informational space and optimizing for clicks in the local and commercial spaces.
3. Content Refinement: Targeting the conversational, long-tail queries revealed by tools like PAA, and structuring content to facilitate easy extraction by an LLM.

The SEO professional who evolves from managing links and keywords to managing brand mentions and authority will be the one who thrives in the age of AIOs and LLMs.