AI Search Is Shrinking Clicks: How to Win with AEO and a Multi-Channel Strategy
AI search boosts impressions but steals clicks, so the one-channel playbook is over. Win demand with AEO: own your category, ship complete answers, and diversify where buyers look.
AI Search Is Forcing Marketers To Diversify Their Channel Strategy
Content visibility is up. Website traffic is down. More than half of Google searches now end without a click, while people get instant answers from AI Overviews, LLMs, and communities like Reddit.
The one-channel playbook is done. AI has given everyone fast, personalized answers across many platforms, and Google is losing attention to AI search engines like ChatGPT. If you want consistent demand, your content has to live where buyers actually look.
From SEO to AEO: What's Actually Changing
AI usage has surged since 2023. A recent survey shows adoption jumped to 78% of organizations using AI in at least one function in 2024, up from 55% a year prior. That shift changes how people consume and verify information.
As search engines ship more AI features, impressions can rise while clicks fall. The buying process hasn't changed, but the early research steps now run through AI search. That means optimizing for humans and for LLMs.
How AEO Works
- Optimize to be cited inside LLM answers, not just ranked on a results page.
- Write for natural language questions and follow-ups, not only short keywords.
- Win with two levers: choosing the right topics and designing content with intent.
Choose Topics That Claim a Category
AI engines use vector embeddings to map relationships between ideas. Your job is to build strong semantic ties between your content and the categories you want to own.
Example: A project management platform shouldn't stop at "project management tools." Create depth around resource allocation, workflow automation, and team collaboration best practices. That helps models associate your brand with the full category, not a single keyword.
Three Moves That Build Authority
- Category saturation: Build content clusters that cover the full arc from definitions to advanced use cases.
- Context-rich answers: Address nuanced prompts like "How do small teams manage projects with limited resources?"
- Personalization at scale: Publish variations by industry, role, and company size so models can fetch the most relevant answer.
Design Content With Intent
LLMs prefer content that's correct, complete, and easy to retrieve. Blend consensus-backed facts with information gain-unique data or POVs that readers can't get elsewhere.
Structure matters. LLMs index content in chunks, so each section should stand alone and fully answer a sub-question without relying on earlier context.
Make entities and relationships explicit. Semantic triple: "The CRM helps sales teams track leads." Subject: the CRM. Predicate: helps. Object: track leads. Clear associations improve retrieval and citations.
Back claims with reputable sources and structured data where possible. For context on zero-click behavior, see Search Engine Land. For adoption trends, see McKinsey's State of AI.
From Distribution to Amplification
Publishing and "sharing" are table stakes. The job now is to amplify signals across the channels where people and models pay attention-and to iterate fast as behavior shifts.
The Loop (4 Stages)
- Express who you are: Define your taste, tone, and point of view.
- Tailor your approach: Use AI to make interactions personal.
- Amplify your reach: Diversify across channels for humans and bots.
- Evolve in real time: Ship, learn, and improve quickly.
Five Plays To Run Now
Diversify your channel mix
Invest where attention and upside are growing: AEO, community forums like Reddit, and video platforms like YouTube. You don't need to be everywhere-pick the few that move your metrics.
Engage high-intent visitors in real time
On-site, speed and relevance win. Use an AI assistant to surface tutorials, feature comparisons, and FAQs the moment behavior shows evaluation.
Remove friction: fast load times, clean navigation, and clear next steps.
Activate trusted creators
People trust people. Partner with YouTubers and industry operators whose audiences match your ICP, and co-create reviews, tutorials, and teardown content.
Scale content production with AI (without losing the human touch)
- Repurpose long-form into short posts, carousels, and short-form video scripts.
- Personalize copy by industry, role, and company size while keeping a single core message.
- Offload research and first-draft edits to AI; use human judgment for narrative, accuracy, and voice.
Test next-gen ads
Run adaptive creative that swaps messaging by viewer context. Example: LinkedIn video that shows ROI dashboards to CFOs and pipeline tools to sales managers.
AEO Quick Checklist
- Define the category you plan to own and map subtopics.
- Build clusters with internal links and clear, standalone sections.
- Answer specific, conversational questions end-to-end in each chunk.
- Add proprietary data, benchmarks, or unique insights for information gain.
- Name entities and relationships consistently; avoid vague references.
- Cite credible sources and include structured data where appropriate.
- Track which pages LLMs cite and fill content gaps fast.
Upskill Your Team
Want a focused path to build AI-driven marketing skills and AEO readiness? Start here:
The Bottom Line
AI is changing how buyers decide. To be discovered and recommended, diversify your channel mix, build semantic depth across your category, and package complete answers that humans and machines can trust and retrieve at high-intent moments.
