Ruling Content in the Age of Generative Engine Optimization

For two decades, “search” meant: open your favorite search engine, type in a few keywords, scan a page of links, click what looks promising (usually found on page 1 of results, let’s be honest), and get your results. That model and the discoverability of brands shaped an entire industry — SEO strategies, content calendars, paid search budgets and measurement frameworks.

But that version of search is fading fast. The hard truth is that over half of searches now end in zero clicks.

Our target is increasingly taking the ultimate shortcut using Generative AI or short form platforms like YouTube Shorts or TikTok to find the answers they seek– and brands are seeing fewer visits from organic search and paid ads.​

​Staggering–we know. But it’s not all bad news…LLM searchers convert 6x better and visit more webpages, making visibility within AI search critical. And here’s the real shift for brands: your content is now interpreted by machines first, humans second. Search isn’t dead. The SEO practices brands built their strategies around now simply serve as a foundation for building toward some great tactics to be discovered through Generative Engine Optimization.

Crafting Content That Connects

Crafting content to become discoverable is now forcing brands into the uncomfortable space of having to follow best practices. What does that mean and how do you still find your audience where they are?

Conversation-first discovery:
Gone are the fragmented searches in Google of “Best…” insert the rest of your query here. People are now asking layered questions to find the answers they seek. They’re clarifying. They’re following up. They’re doing talk to text. Discovery is now mirroring full human dialogue in a way that changes how brands must show up. While keywords will still help users find what they need (i.e. your brand), the real shift is in becoming a trusted source for when these human/machine dialogues are happening. It means the machine needs to find your brand, consider the information from it trusted, and then recommend a summary of what the user is looking for.

Video-first answers:

Hand in hand with search dialogues becoming more conversational, they are also evolving to become visual.

For a growing segment of users — especially Gen Z and younger millennials — YouTube and TikTok are their preferred search engines. People are typing (or speaking) full questions into Shorts and TikTok the same way they once did into Google. “How do I…” “What’s the best…” “Is it worth…” But instead of scanning links, they’re watching someone show them "how to". They want demos, breakdowns and real reactions. They want to see the product in action and see a creator demonstrate expertise and show proof so that users can judge the credibility for themselves.

And this is where it intersects directly with GEO. These same platforms are increasingly indexed, transcribed, summarized and surfaced inside AI-driven responses. Models pull from transcripts, captions, engagement signals and creator authority to inform the synthesized answer. The ecosystem is converging. If AI is building answers from across the web, your brand needs to exist in the formats people are actually using to search. Structured blog content matters. But so do transcripts. So do captions. So do clear, authoritative explanations delivered on camera.

Because ultimately, whether the source is a blog post or a 45-second Short, it’s all fuel for the same outcome: the synthesized summary.

Model-driven summaries:
In order to get that trusty seal of approval from AI, your content has to be discoverable and easy to scroll by machines but focused on the human that will eventually read it. When a user asks a question, the model scans across patterns it has learned, identifies relevant signals and constructs a synthesized response designed to feel cohesive and complete. Visibility is no longer about ranking first or a list of links; it’s about being a part of the answer.  

This synthesized, short summary is the first point of influence before the user ever sees your website. In many cases, that summary satisfies the need entirely, which means your influence has to happen upstream–which fundamentally changes the game. Here are some of the signals we recommend you focus on to be referenced and include in the construction of the answer itself.

Key signals to prioritize:

• Produce clear, authoritative content that demonstrates expertise.

• Provide structured blog posts and concise, well-formatted information.

• Include video content with demonstrations, real reactions, and expert breakdowns.

• Use accurate transcripts and captions for all video and audio assets.

• Reinforce credibility with earned media, PR, and thought leadership.

• Ensure your content is easy for AI models to index, summarize, and reference.

This is where PR, thought leadership and owned content come together to work harmoniously. The model has more confidence pulling from you. The summary strengthens your authority as an expert.

Real-time personalization:
The more you feed AI, the more dynamic its adaptable behavior becomes based on the context and prior inputs you’ve given it. No two journeys to the same query are identical now. Two people can ask the exact same question — and receive meaningfully different answers. Not because the facts change, but because the framing does.

If you consistently reference legacy journalism as credible, your answers may skew toward institutional reporting and broad context. If your inputs lean niche or industry-specific, the engine adapts accordingly. The discovery layer learns what “useful” looks like to you — and adjusts in real time. The big difference is that search used to be standardized and now it’s responsive.

The implication for brands is significant: visibility is no longer just about ranking. It’s about relevance within a fluid, personalized ecosystem. Your content isn’t simply competing for position, it’s competing for contextual alignment. And in a world where discovery adapts to the individual, authority and clarity become the signals that travel furthest.

In short: the future of search isn’t about being first on a page. It’s about being the answer — no matter who’s asking.

What This Means for Marketers

If search has shifted from links to language, from rankings to relevance, then marketing has to shift with it.

Keywords still matter — but intent fluency matters more. It’s no longer about what people type. It’s about what they’re trying to solve. Conversation-first discovery rewards brands that anticipate follow-ups, clarify nuance and provide complete answers; not just optimized ones. AI systems surface content that is genuinely helpful, structured clearly and reinforced across credible ecosystems. Thin, keyword-stuffed copy doesn’t get synthesized. Depth does. Specificity does. Authority does.

As model-driven summaries become the first touchpoint, brands are no longer competing for clicks—they’re competing to become the answer itself. That means structured expertise. Clean formatting. Recognizable signals of trust. Earned media and PR that reinforce credibility. A body of work that machines can confidently interpret and humans can confidently act on.

But here’s where it gets interesting.

Brands that win in this ecosystem aren’t just participating in it, they’ll design for it. This is a shift from gaming algorithms to earning inclusion and shaping understanding. The new discovery loop is simple.

Ask → Understand → Act

Ask. People start with real questions.
Understand. AI synthesizes and interprets.
Act. Users make decisions faster, with more confidence.

Brands that thrive in this environment will be the ones that answer real questions, show real empathy and provide real guidance. Because in a world where machines filter information, the most human brands will stand out. For marketers willing to adapt, this is a licensed permission to get creative and think deeper about the target.

Ready to become the trusted answer in a GEO search? Email Nate Tredinnick at ntredinnick@hiebing.com to set up a call.