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Winning customers through SEO or GEO/AI search
The fundamental shift in how buyers discover solutions
Perplexity went from zero to 100 million weekly users faster than TikTok. ChatGPT reached 700 million weekly active users in under two years. Claude serves millions daily. Yet most B2B companies still allocate 100% of their search optimization budget to Google.
This misallocation reveals a strategic blindspot. According to Forrester Research, 90% of B2B buyers now use AI tools in their research process. A separate G2 study found that 29% start their research in ChatGPT more often than Google. The discovery landscape has fundamentally shifted, but our optimization strategies haven’t evolved.
The evidence is mounting across every industry vertical. When researchers at BrightEdge analyzed recommendation patterns, they discovered that ChatGPT and Google’s AI disagree on product recommendations 62% of the time. Two different algorithms, two different sets of winners. Companies ranking first on Google often don’t appear at all in AI-generated recommendations.
This creates a strategic dilemma for founders. Do you continue investing in traditional SEO, where the playbook is proven but the audience is fragmenting? Or do you shift resources to Generative Engine Optimization (GEO), where the opportunity is massive but the rules are still being written?
