AI Is Becoming A First-Stop Tool​

Surveys show many people now use AI as their first-stop tool for finding information. A 2025 poll by the Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research revealed that 60% of Americans use AI to find information at least part of the time. A 2026 survey by the Pew Research Center showed that 57% of teens use chatbots to search for information. And Bain & Company found that while 56% of people still use search engines as a primary tool, 44% either start their search with an LLM or combine them with search engines. There is also a generational divide: For millennials and Gen Z, use of search engines as the primary tool drops to 42%, and their speed of adopting AI tools is roughly twice as fast.​

LLMs have also changed the way that search engines display results. Even when people use traditional searches, AI Overviews at the top of the results display LLM-generated summaries. This has led to the “zero click” phenomenon in which people don’t click further because their questions have already been answered. This shows that even users who still rely on search engines see AI-generated answers much of the time. According to Ahrefs, this reduces the average click-through rate for even top search results by 34.5%. It is clear that in an age of AI-mediated discovery, conventional SEO strategies in themselves are no longer enough.

The Rise Of Generative Engine Optimization

Around 2022 to 2023, popular LLMs began including links and sources in their answers. This gave rise to generative engine optimization (GEO), the practice of structuring content in a way that encourages generative AI to find, summarize and cite that content. What’s become increasingly clear is that GEO, like SEO before it, must now become a part of organizations’ broader digital marketing and communication strategies. It’s not about abandoning traditional SEO, which remains relevant. What’s needed is to treat GEO as part of an overarching strategy.​

AI-mediated discovery requires a different approach from traditional SEO. While a detailed how-to guide is beyond the scope of one article, a few basic principles can help marketing and communications teams begin thinking about how they can integrate this new reality. ​

From Getting Ranked To Being Selected​

For decades, SEO focused on ranking higher in search results. The rationale was obvious: The higher the content appears, the more likely users will click on it. With GEO, clarity and coherence in the content matter more because AI tools often use “query fan-out,” searching across multiple subtopics and sources before generating a response. If an organization’s content and messaging are too complex or fragmented across different channels, it is difficult for AI to consolidate and include that information in its answers. Content should therefore be clear and consistent across webpages, FAQs, press releases, thought leadership and other public-facing materials. ​

From Keywords To Key Questions​

Keywords still matter, but content strategy in the age of AI should also begin with key questions. What are users trying to find out or understand? What specific questions would they type into their AI tools or AI-mediated search engines? If, for example, you are marketing an online MBA program, what questions do prospective students ask in emails, calls, interviews and campus tours? This might include: “How fast can I finish this program?” “What kind of financial aid is available?” And, “In what ways do you help students find jobs?” Build and structure the content around those questions.

By organizing content around these real-world questions, institutions improve not only the user experience but also the likelihood that AI systems will identify and surface those answers.

Make Authority And Expertise Easy To Recognize​

AI tools are more likely to cite content when they can recognize authority and expertise. But this cannot be demonstrated through generic claims such as “innovative” or “customer-centered.” AI is better able to recognize authority when content and institutional storytelling includes specific examples, case studies, data points and experts quoted and cited by name (e.g., university professors active in thought leadership).​

At Notre Dame de Namur University, we have found institutional storytelling becomes more authoritative when tied to career outcomes, workforce-aligned programs, accreditation achievements, transfer partnerships and student success initiatives.

Thought leadership has also become increasingly important. University leaders and faculty experts who contribute commentary, articles, podcasts, interviews and public discussions create a stronger digital authority footprint that AI systems can recognize and reference.

This became particularly evident during periods of institutional change, where students, alumni, donors and community partners sought clarity about the university’s future. AI-mediated search environments amplified the importance of ensuring that accurate, mission-centered and future-focused narratives were publicly available and easy to interpret. But clarity and simplicity should never be sacrificed for the sake of maximizing authority.

Since GEO is an emerging area, best practices will evolve just as they did with SEO. But the core principle is clear: Organizations need to make their content easier for AI tools to understand, trust and use. SEO will remain important, but it needs to be paired and balanced with GEO. And much as falling behind on changing SEO practices resulted in reduced visibility, so too will neglecting GEO result in the same undesirable outcome. Organizations that adapt early will not only stand out from the crowd but be better positioned to continue improving their GEO as the field continues developing in the years to come.

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