The GEO Blueprint: AI Search

The Truth About AI Search: 58% Less Clicks But More Conversions?

AI search sends less traffic than traditional search, but the traffic it sends is highly qualified. Patrick Stox has the data to prove it.✅ Win AI visibility — try Semrush free for 14 days: https://semrush.sjv.io/xJro6kIn this episode, George Vlasyev sits down with Patrick Stox, Product Developer and Technical SEO Expert at Ahrefs, an industry-leading SEO platform that recently studied 75,000 brands to understand what drives visibility in ChatGPT. Patrick is one of the clearest and most grounded voices in the space on what actually works in the AI-driven search age, how to navigate the "click collapse," and what is quietly changing for brands that haven’t made the shift yet.Key Topics Covered:* The reality of the click collapse: Why AI search traffic is plummeting by over 50% but sending more qualified conversions * The freshness vs. relevance debate: Why pages with zero Google traffic are being cited thousands of times by AI * The breakdown of Google's "Web Guide": What it is, why it beats standard AI modes, and how it handles clickable links * Why attribution is "messy and difficult" right now — and the manual workarounds brands are using to track LLM impact * Personalization and memory: Why two people typing the exact same prompt will get 100% different results * The truth about AI agents in commerce: Will consumers actually trust AI assistants with their credit cards? * How Google is fighting back: The hiring of anti-scraping engineers and the blocking of traditional SEO rank tracking tools * Walled gardens and paywalls: Why established publishers are shifting toward data licensing and subscription models * Information Gain Framework: Why your content needs a mix of AI efficiency and unique human insights to be valued * How Ahrefs built 100 free AI writing tools to drive 20 million visits per month as a massive lead-gen funnel * The 30-minute CMO audit: Why marketing leaders need to "take a breath" amidst the AI bubble and focus on long-term strategy * Why SEO is transforming into GEO (Generative Engine Optimization) and why brand reputation and product quality matter more than ever Connect with Patrick Stox:LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/patrickstoxWebsite: https://ahrefs.comSubscribe to Substack: https://georgevlasyev.substack.com/ [https://georgevlasyev.substack.com/]The Geo Blueprint Podcast explores how brands can win visibility in the age of generative AI, LLM-powered search, and shifting digital ecosystems.Timestamps:00:00 - Intro00:56 - Ahrefs studied 75,000 brands — what actually drives AI visibility?02:53 - Click collapse — traffic plummeting but conversions aren't03:56 - Attribution in AI search — how do brands track the invisible?06:23 - Agents for commerce — are we actually ready?08:43 - What is the most important AI search metric right now?11:46 - What does the future of the web look like?12:34 - Web Guide vs AI Mode — which will win?15:15 - Google is blocking SEO tools past position 30 — here's why16:57 - Should publishers go behind paywalls to protect from AI crawlers?19:22 - Junior SEO jobs — should you change careers?20:39 - Is it SEO or GEO — and why does that distinction matter?24:11 - What is uniquely human in the age of AI?31:52 - Ahrefs built 100 free AI tools — 20 million visits per month32:54 - What jobs are actually safe from AI?36:45 - CMO advice for the next 6-12 months39:50 - Vibe coding — hundreds of apps built43:44 - AI generic content vs original — what should you actually publish?46:26 - Are we in an AI bubble?50:46 - Outro#GEO #AISearch #AEO #SEO #ContentMarketing #DigitalMarketing #B2BSaaS #ArtificialIntelligence #SearchMarketing #GEOBlueprint #Ahrefs

GEO: The New Rules of SEO in the AI Era

AI search sends less traffic than Google, but the traffic it sends converts at a higher rate. Jason Patel has the data to prove it.✅ Win AI visibility — try Semrush free for 14 days: https://semrush.sjv.io/MK2yvqIn this episode, George Vlasyev sits down with Jason Patel, founder of OpenForge, an AI search analytics platform that helps brands track and win visibility across ChatGPT, Gemini, Perplexity and every major answer engine. Jason built and sold his first company on the back of SEO, and now he is one of the clearest voices in the space on what actually works in the AEO age and what is quietly killing brands that have not made the shift yet.Key Topics Covered:- Why the entire internet experience is becoming personalized and what that means for how brands show up in AI search- Why you cannot measure AI search visibility with exact attribution yet — and the workaround that actually works right now- The new AI search metrics that matter: AI mentions, citations, share of AI voice, and prompt coverage- Why asking the same prompt over and over again is currently the most accurate way to track your visibility in answer engines- Why mid-funnel and commercial content is where the real opportunity is — and why top-of-funnel content is becoming increasingly dangerous to rely on- The information gain framework: why the only content AI will consistently cite is content it cannot create on its own- Why AI search traffic converts at a higher rate than traditional search traffic despite lower volume- How to win visibility differently on ChatGPT, Gemini, Claude, and Perplexity — and why Perplexity has the largest magnitude of difference from all other platforms- Why there is no golden ratio between first-party and third-party citations and how to find what actually tracks for your specific market- The 30-minute CMO audit: where to start when your traffic is flat or declining- Why structured data and schema are no longer just important — they are mission critical for AI search- Why SEO is not dead but is transforming into something bigger, more lucrative, and more holistic- What people are getting most wrong about AEO and GEO right now- Why the AI age will create more jobs than it destroys — and why human connection becomes more valuable, not lessConnect with Jason:LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/pateljasonWebsite: https://www.openforge.ai/Connect with George:LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/georgevlasyevSubscribe to Substack: https://georgevlasyev.substack.com/Download The GEO Blueprint Guide: https://thegeoblueprint.com/The GEO Blueprint Podcast is hosted by George Vlasyev — exploring how brands can win visibility in the age of generative AI and LLM-powered search.Timestamps:00:00 - Intro00:52 - How Is AI Changing Search & Marketing?02:37 - Can You Measure Visibility in AI Search?05:22 - Which AI Search Metrics Actually Matter?08:06 - How Do You Track AI Search If AI Hallucinates?09:25 - Will AI Analytics Kill AI SEO Tools?11:23 - Why Mid-Funnel Content Beats Top-Funnel Content15:07 - What Kind of Content AI Can't Replace17:32 - Are AI Agents the Future of Commerce?19:10 - How Do Brands Win on ChatGPT, Gemini & Claude?27:02 - Do First-Party or Third-Party Citations Matter More?30:24 - What Should CMOs Do About Declining Traffic?38:33 - What's the First Thing Every Company Should Do for AI Search?42:41 - What People Are Getting Wrong About AI Search, AEO or GEO?46:18 - Will AI Replace White-Collar Jobs?50:04 - Why Human Connection Matters More in the AI Era?55:04 - Where Can People Find Jason Patel?#GEO #AISearch #AEO #SEO #ContentMarketing #DigitalMarketing #B2BSaaS #ArtificialIntelligence #SearchMarketing #GEOBlueprint

SEO Expert: We Analyzed 3 Billion Sessions and Here's What We Found About AI Search | Patrick Reinhart

Only 1% of website traffic comes from LLMs right now and Patrick Reinhart has the 3 billion session study from Conductor to prove it.In this episode, George Vlasyev sits down with Patrick Reinhart, VP of Professional Services at Conductor, where he has spent nearly 11 years helping enterprise brands navigate the intersection of SEO, data, and now AI search. With 23 years in the industry, Patrick leads strategic consulting for some of the world's largest organizations and runs Conductor's monthly 3030 webinar series. He brings one of the most data-grounded perspectives on GEO, brand visibility in LLMs, and what search professionals actually need to do right now.Key Topics Covered:- Conductor's benchmarks study covering 3 billion sessions and 54 million prompts — and what the 1% LLM referral traffic number really means- Why Conductor is shifting from SaaS to data as a service and what that signals for the future of software- What Google values vs. what LLMs value after two years of side-by-side tracking- Why backlinks matter in traditional search but brand sentiment is the authority signal in AI search- The attribution problem in AI search and why a rise in direct traffic is your best proxy right now- AI commerce agents: where they will work (flights, subscriptions) and where they won't (anything above a comfort-price threshold)- The gamification of AI search and why a human in the loop is the real line between sustainable and black hat- Why the SEO vs. GEO debate is mostly pointless and what search professionals should actually own- Why your brand is a mathematical entity in AI and what that means for sentiment, share of voice, and visibility- Google Personal Intelligence, Gemini pulling citations from Gmail, and what hyper-personalization does to the search journey- AI overview coverage swinging from 23% to 47% back to 34% and what the volatility actually signals- Why ads in AI chat are fundamentally not conducive to the experience — and what the early test results are showing- Direct CMO advice for right now: reset expectations, fix the process, and stop treating traffic as a success metricConnect with Patrick:LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/patrickreinhart/Website: https://www.conductor.com/Download The GEO Blueprint Guide: https://thegeoblueprint.com/The GEO Blueprint Podcast is hosted by George Vlasyev — exploring how brands can win visibility in the age of generative AI and LLM-powered search.Timestamps:00:00 - Intro01:36 - Who is Patrick and what does Conductor do?02:30 - Conductor is shifting from SaaS to data as a service — what does that mean?04:45 - What will be the moat of software companies moving forward?06:08 - Conductor's study — 3 billion sessions, 54 million prompts, only 1% traffic from LLMs11:33 - What Google values vs what LLMs value — 2 years of tracking15:43 - The attribution problem in AI search20:02 - What's your take on agents for commerce?22:52 - Gamification of AI search — what companies should NOT do26:57 - Is it SEO or GEO — why does that debate matter?32:43 - Demographics, AI adoption, and why your audience determines your strategy38:21 - Your brand is a mathematical entity in AI39:17 - Google personal intelligence — the data behemoth finally unlocks46:22 - AI overview coverage went from 23% to 47% back to 34% — what that tells us52:12 - Hot take — ads in AI55:12 - CMO advice for right now58:38 - Outro#GEO #AISearch #SEO #GenerativeEngineOptimization #DigitalMarketing #B2BSaaS #LLMOptimization #ContentMarketing #SearchMarketing #GEOBlueprint

Wix's Head of AI Search: What 300M Websites Are Teaching Us About Agentic Shopping | Crystal Carter

300 million websites. One of the most unique vantage points on AI search in the world.✅ Win AI visibility — try Semrush free for 14 days: https://semrush.sjv.io/2RyML7In this episode, George Vlasyev sits down with Crystal Carter, Head of AI Search and SEO Communications at Wix, where she helps shape how hundreds of millions of websites navigate the shift from traditional SEO to AI search visibility. Crystal is a global keynote speaker, Harvard Business School presenter and author of the upcoming book New Rules of AI Search. She brings one of the most grounded and data-rich perspectives on GEO, agentic commerce and the future of the web available anywhere right now.Key Topics Covered:- How search is actually evolving right now and what the data from 300 million Wix websites is showing- What NL Web is and how Wix built a one-click solution to make websites ready for AI agents- How the Wix ChatGPT integration works and what you can actually do with it today- Why your website needs to stop being a destination and start being a resource- Why Wix became the first CMS to sign the Agentic Commerce Protocol and what that means for the future of shopping in ChatGPT- How small businesses can compete in agentic shopping against large enterprises- How far away agents making purchases on our behalf actually are and why the shift will be slow until it's suddenly fast- Why different audiences use completely different AI platforms and how brands should use that data to prioritize their GEO strategy- How Aria tags work for both visually impaired users and AI agents and why that overlap matters for your website- Whether there will be one AI winner or whether models will stay scattered across different use cases and audiences- What zero click and click collapse actually mean for your business and what to do about itConnect with Crystal:LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/crystal-carter-digital/Website: https://www.wix.com/📖 Crystal's Book (Pre-Order): https://www.amazon.co.uk/New-Rules-Search-Results-visibility/dp/1394399693Download The GEO Blueprint Guide: https://thegeoblueprint.com/The GEO Blueprint Podcast is hosted by George Vlasyev — exploring how brands can win visibility in the age of generative AI and LLM-powered search.Timestamps:00:00 - Intro00:53 - Who is Crystal & what does she do at Wix?02:44 - How is search actually evolving right now?07:34 - NL Web — how to make your website ready for AI agents in one click14:09 - Wix's ChatGPT integration — what can you actually do with it?17:39 - Your website needs to be a resource, not just a destination20:33 - Wix signs the Agentic Commerce Protocol — what does that mean?22:11 - How can small businesses compete in agentic shopping?25:42 - How far away are agents making purchases on our behalf?32:45 - Wix had an AI website builder in 2016 — slow until it's fast35:11 - Who actually uses which AI — and how brands should use that data38:03 - Aria tags work for blind users and AI agents. Here's why that matters.40:52 - What is your go-to LLM model?43:57 - Will there be one AI winner or will models stay scattered?48:57 - Zero click and click collapse — what to do about it51:54 - Outro#GEO #AISearch #SEO #AgenticCommerce #DigitalMarketing #B2BSaaS #LLMOptimization #ContentMarketing #SearchMarketing #GEOBlueprint

The Search Expert: Why The Old Internet Is Over (And What Is Replacing It) | Bastian Grimm

The internet as we know it is changing faster than most brands realize. And the window to adapt is shorter than anyone wants to admit.✅ Win AI visibility — try Semrush free for 14 days: https://semrush.sjv.io/n4PoZAIn this episode, George Vlasyev sits down with Bastian Grimm, CEO of Peak ACE, a performance marketing agency based in Berlin with over 25 years of experience in SEO and digital marketing. Bastian is one of the most forward-thinking voices in the industry, regularly speaking at major conferences and pushing the boundaries of what GEO, entity SEO and AI search actually mean for businesses right now and in the years ahead.This is one of the deepest and most future-focused conversations on the show so far, covering everything from the agentic web to personal intelligence, MCP protocols and what brand visibility even means when there is no fixed search result anymore.Key Topics Covered:- Why the biggest shift in internet history is machines talking to machines and what that means for every brand with a website- Why agents doing research, browsing and buying on your behalf changes the entire foundation of digital marketing- How Google is operating at roughly 5% of its actual AI capability and why legal guardrails are the only thing holding it back- What personal intelligence actually is and how Gemini is now building responses from your Gmail, YouTube history and purchase behavior- Why your website might eventually become a brand entity and data provider rather than a destination- What MCP is, why it matters for AI visibility and how brands should be thinking about connectivity standards right now- Why the open web is in decline and what the new interface layer between humans and information might actually look like- How Google's Stitch technology could generate entirely personalized UIs on the fly and what that means for traditional SEO- Why traffic is a proxy metric and what actually matters when there is no default search result- The future of paywalled journalism and publishing in a world where AI constructs responses without sending clicks- Why Bastian moved his entire agency from ChatGPT to Claude and what drove that decision- Persuasive AI, dark patterns and the ethical guardrails that are still missing from the industry- Vibe coding, Claude Code and how building tools has completely changed for non-developersConnect with Bastian:LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/bastiangrimm/Website: https://peakace.agency/en/Download The GEO Blueprint Guide: https://thegeoblueprint.com/The GEO Blueprint Podcast is hosted by George Vlasyev - exploring how brands can win visibility in the age of generative AI and LLM-powered search.Timestamps:00:00 - Intro01:33 - Who is Bastian & 25 years in SEO02:02 - Is SEO dead?02:49 - The agentic web — what does it mean when AI searches and buys on your behalf?04:48 - How far away are agents making purchases for us?07:59 - Google agent traffic is now distinguishable in your server logs10:53 - Profound raised $1B — will Google make AI visibility tools obsolete?13:28 - Why Bastian wouldn't bet on OpenAI right now19:44 - Are we even going to visit websites anymore?27:38 - Paywalls, journalism and who's going to train the models31:31 - Google's personal intelligence — Gemini now knows everything about you36:25 - Google is operating at 5% of its real capability39:12 - What is MCP and why does every brand need to understand it?47:04 - Hot take — ads in AI52:52 - AI can generate a personalized UI on the fly — what does visibility even mean then?59:40 - Do we even need websites at this point anymore?01:01:35 - What excites you most right now?01:07:22 - Outro#GEO #AISearch #SEO #DigitalMarketing #AgenticWeb #MCP #PersonalIntelligence #B2BSaaS #ContentMarketing #GEOBlueprint