Something interesting is happening in SEO.
AI chatbots and Google’s AI Overview are changing how we search and consume information – and it’s impacting direct website traffic. SEO experts are calling this the era of “zero click search.”
Here’s where it gets exciting (at least for me, as a journalist).
Brand mentions in trusted publications inform AI training models, which means they’re referencing and citing high-authority sites with insights, rather than generic blog posts that won the Google game.
In this age of AI, an investment in PR efforts is now two-fold: It’s good for brand and good for SEO.
Here’s what Noah Greenberg from Stacker is predicting:
Search Engine Land backed this up. “Brands that invest today in strategic, AI-savvy PR – earning influential mentions, building consistent topical authority, and proactively shaping their digital footprints across domains – will be the ones leading tomorrow’s search landscape.
The future of search isn’t just about links and keywords. It’s about being talked about accurately, contextually, and authoritatively, in the right places, and by the right voices.”
Personally, I’m pumped to see this. Gone are the days where brands can churn out generic articles and win search.
Brands who work with writers who understand the media landscape, know how to sell stories into publications, and can lead an editorial-focused strategy will come out on top. It also highlights the importance of founder-led personal brands to support the SEO/PR strategy with thought leadership and topical authority.
So, what can you start to do now?
- Hire journalists, not “content writers”
- Connect your writers with the SEO team – they need to work in-tandem
- Invest in media training (know how to talk to journalists and get quoted well)
- Get your leadership team to grow their personal brands
- Consider launching an editorial newsletter that functions like a publication (not a promo engine for your business)
TLDR: PR matters more than ever in the age of AI.
