Artificial intelligence is not replacing marketers. It is changing how people discover things.
That was the theme of The Marketing Meetup session with Lauren Ingram, founder of Next Big Thing. Lauren, who has worked at Meta and Amazon, believes the next frontier of marketing is not about optimising for people’s eyeballs, but for the algorithms that now shape what humans see.
Her talk explored how brands can prepare for GEO , Generative Engine Optimisation , and ensure that when people ask AI tools like ChatGPT, Gemini or Perplexity for advice, it is their brands being recommended.
Below is a summary of her key insights, written with the help of AI (so please excuse any tiny errors).
Table of Contents
- From SEO to GEO: The Shift to AI Search
- Why AI Recommendations Matter
- What Is GEO?
- How to Make Your Brand Visible to AI
- AI as Your Literal Friend
- The Overlap Between GEO and SEO
- Why Smaller Brands Still Have an Edge
- Testing Your AI Visibility
- First Steps for Marketers
- Taking a Calm Approach to AI Hype
- Conclusion
From SEO to GEO: The Shift to AI Search
Lauren began by pointing out that traditional search optimisation is no longer enough.
For twenty years, marketing has focused on ranking high on Google. But in 2025, audiences are no longer just searching on Google or TikTok; they are asking AI agents directly. “Your customers are already having private conversations with their AIs,” she said. “You just can’t see them.”
If search once meant optimising for clicks, AI visibility means optimising for conversation. Marketers need to understand how AI tools retrieve, rank and reference information to decide which brands to recommend.
This new behaviour is already mainstream: nearly half of online shoppers now use AI tools as part of their search journey.
Why AI Recommendations Matter
To make this real, Lauren shared a personal story.
She recently asked ChatGPT to recommend a car seat for her four-year-old. The chatbot compared models, linked to reviews and offered reasoning about price and safety. She bought the one it recommended.
This, she said, is the new customer journey: AI-assisted decision-making.
When an AI recommends your brand, traffic may be smaller, but those who click through are already convinced and ready to buy.
“The person who clicks through from an AI recommendation is your warmest lead,” she said.
What Is GEO?
Lauren defined Generative Engine Optimisation (GEO) as the practice of making your brand more visible to AI systems.
It is similar to SEO but broader. Instead of optimising for one search engine, GEO optimises for all AI models , ChatGPT, Gemini, Claude, Perplexity and Copilot.
Each of these models pulls from multiple data sources, including:
- Reddit and Quora threads
- News and trade press
- Amazon and Google reviews
- Podcasts and YouTube transcripts
- Company websites and FAQs
Understanding where AIs find their information is key. “These models are reading the internet differently,” she said. “So we need to write differently.”
How to Make Your Brand Visible to AI
Lauren shared a memorable framework , one she joked “only spells SUCH BINS” , to help brands improve AI visibility. Each letter stands for a practical principle.
Be Specific
Know who you are and what you offer. AI prefers clear, literal language that describes products and services precisely. Avoid jargon or abstract claims. “Imagine you’re speaking to your most literal friend,” she said. “AI loves clarity.”
Be Unique
Offer something different. Create proprietary reports, calculators or insights that make your brand stand out. “Being weird,” she said, “is sometimes the best SEO strategy.”
Be Credible
AI systems look for authority. That means press coverage, backlinks and genuine mentions across reputable sources. Publications such as The New York Times, The Financial Times and industry media like Campaign and The Drum carry weight.
Be Human
Language still wins. Write naturally and conversationally. Skip corporate jargon. “No one needs more ‘solutions-focused innovation to drive impact,’” she joked. “Just say what you do.”
Be Brandled
Yes, brandled , her word for being brand-literal.
Include your company or product name at the start of sentences. For example: “Next Big Thing is a community helping women get into AI.” This helps AI tools quote and recognise your brand accurately.
Be Informative
Answer real questions. Create content that genuinely helps people make decisions. FAQs and resource pages are especially valuable because AIs use them to extract direct answers to user queries.
Be New
Fresh content signals relevance. Regular blog posts, newsletters, and podcasts show that your brand is active and trustworthy.
Be Structured
AI prefers concise, well-formatted information. Use bullet points, short paragraphs and clear headings. “Think about how LinkedIn posts read , short, structured, easy to quote,” she said.
AI as Your Literal Friend
Lauren returned several times to one key point: AI is your literal friend.
When you write or publish, imagine feeding information to a tool that takes every sentence at face value. It cannot infer meaning from tone or metaphor. If your copy says “we”, AI has to guess who “we” is. Make its job easier.
The goal is not to sound robotic, but to write clearly enough that both humans and machines can understand and trust it.
The Overlap Between GEO and SEO
Although GEO is new, many of its principles echo SEO. Authority, relevance and clarity still matter.
The difference is that GEO extends far beyond your website.
AI draws from a network of sources , press, forums, podcasts and reviews , rather than a single domain. That means every online mention contributes to your AI visibility score.
As Lauren put it: “It’s not just about your site anymore. It’s about your whole internet footprint.”
Why Smaller Brands Still Have an Edge
One of the most popular questions from the audience was whether big brands will dominate AI results just as they dominate Google search. Lauren’s answer was optimistic.
Large companies have more mentions, but they move slowly. Smaller brands can test ideas faster, experiment with tone and publish across platforms without layers of sign-off. “If you can move quickly, you can win,” she said.
Testing Your AI Visibility
Lauren noted that AI results are often personalised. What you see may differ from what your customers see.
You can test visibility by running logged-out searches on ChatGPT or Perplexity, or by using emerging tools such as Profound, which track how often brands appear in AI-generated responses.
She predicted that traditional SEO tools like Semrush and Ahrefs will soon include AI visibility tracking by default.
First Steps for Marketers
For small teams, Lauren suggested beginning with a content audit.
Check whether your website and social posts use clear, literal language. Identify gaps where you could add FAQs or blogs that answer genuine customer questions.
Then work on credibility. Appear in press, on podcasts or YouTube. “AI is watching everything,” she said. “Give it something good to watch.”
Taking a Calm Approach to AI Hype
Lauren also addressed the constant noise surrounding AI launches. “Why does it matter if you know about the new update at 3pm or next week?” she asked. “The world isn’t going to blow up.”
She encouraged marketers to stay curious but unhurried. Experiment with what matters to your brand rather than chasing every shiny tool.
Her idea of a “slow AI newsletter” , a monthly digest of key updates instead of daily hype , drew applause from the audience.
Conclusion
Lauren Ingram’s philosophy of AI visibility reframes marketing for a conversational, machine-mediated internet.
The principles remain human: clarity, credibility, and usefulness. The difference is that your audience now includes both people and algorithms.
“Be clear, be credible, be human,” she said. “Because when the robots recommend you, the humans will follow.”