How to Increase Brand Visibility in LLM Search and AI Overviews

by Leron Kornreich

AI overviews and large language models (LLMs) are forcing startups to update their SEO and PR playbooks. Organic traffic has already taken a serious hit for many brands.  Gemini’s AI Mode, ChatGPT, Claude and the like are upending traditional SEO strategies that push for high rankings to drive people to click. Here’s what you need to consider to make sure your company doesn’t get left behind.

Organic Traffic Is Down—What That Means for You

Many brands have seen a pretty sharp dip in organic traffic—especially for informational searches. Even Moz – whose entire business is SEO – experienced a huge drop. The company says it ranks #1 for a major keyword but website traffic plunged around 50% because AI snippets are providing direct answers on search pages. When AI gives users a quick answer, your site gets less visibility, and that impacts lead generation.

Earned Media Returns with a Key Role 

Authoritative publications rank high in chatbot query results. And that means the days of downplaying media outreach are over. LLMs love credible sources like media outlets.

We know many companies find it frustrating that earned media won’t necessarily echo your marketing narratives. That’s exactly why reporter and analyst coverage is considered authoritative. These are sources you don’t control, sources that are independent and, therefore, more credible than paid or owned platforms.

Trade industry news outlets and trusted review sites also rank high in chatbot queries, making it more important than ever to get quoted in respected industry sources. Media entities that syndicate coverage are extremely valuable as well since their stories are echoed across numerous outlets. And while the Holy Grail is coverage where your brand headlines, mentions in esteemed sources are also highly effective in boosting brand awareness and bumping up visibility in LLMs. 

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PR as Your Power Tool

Securing coverage in media outlets and analyst reports is no easy task. The reason they are considered trustworthy is that the bar for entry is far higher than, say, buying an ad. In a recent blog titled, “Unpopular Opinion: Public Relations is the Future of Marketing,” Moz founder, Rand Fishkin, describes PR as critical to avoiding the “zero click phenomenon.”

In it he explains,“Want to be atop Reddit? Google News? Apple News? Techmeme? Hacker News? Metafilter? Those Google Discover feeds? Well, you’d better be doing PR, because the visibility algorithms that govern all those places, and the people who create for them are, you guessed it, basing a huge amount of what they create, submit, and click on behind-the-scenes PR efforts.”According to SearchEngineLand, "AI-powered search engines increasingly rely on brand mentions, reputation, and authority signals pulled from across the web – areas where PR excels."

Optimize Press Releases for AI Search

Press releases also need a makeover in this new world. Stuffing press releases full of keywords reflects the old playbook. The new playbook requires thinking through how LLMs process information. This means including relevant background information, including headers and bullets, and prioritizing the most important information by making sure it’s up top. It’s also important to write the release keeping in mind the types of questions people ask about products and services and how they ask them.

The old playbook of just getting top ranks or viral social posts isn’t enough anymore — your strategy should now include how your content can be AI-friendly and how your brand gets represented in trusted sources.

To get a step ahead of your competitors with a strong PR strategy and results that bolster your brand recognition and business strategy, schedule an introductory call.