The Future of discoverability (and why we’re still calling it SEO)

SEO vs GEO vs AIO: Rethinking SEO for a Fragmented Discovery Journey

Search Everywhere Optimization: Winning Visibility Beyond Google

The world of search used to feel fairly predictable. The algorithm may require some tweaks to the execution here and there, but the tactics remained the same. With the expansion of online platforms and the rise of AI, visibility is getting harder to maintain.

And as the ways people search and discover information shift, new acronyms keep appearing: 

• GEO (Generative Engine Optimization)
• AIO (AI Optimization)
• LLMO (Large Language Model Optimization) 
• AEO (Answer Engine Optimization) 

They’re all attempts to label what’s happening. But unfortunately, the conversation has become less about strategy and more about naming the chaos. 

Our take? 

The acronyms aren’t important. Call it SEO, GEO, AIO, or anything else. None of that really matters. Our goal remains the same: show up where it matters most, when it matters most, for who it matters most.

The Shattered SEO Landscape 

For years, “search” followed a predictable pattern: someone types a query into Google, scans a list of blue links, clicks on a website, and continues their journey from there.

Brands built their strategies around that linear flow. And the data was clean enough to see which queries were driving organic traffic and to make reasonable assumptions about how they contributed to conversions.

That world still exists, but it’s no longer the whole story. Today’s discovery path looks more like a maze than a funnel. 

A single journey might involve Google for broad research, TikTok for visuals, Reddit for real-world perspectives, Instagram for social proof, and an AI assistant like ChatGPT or Perplexity to synthesize the information and support the decision. 

Some journeys may loop back into traditional SERP, but others may never touch Google at all. 

Discovery now happens across a series of disconnected platforms and AI systems that don’t share data, creating new challenges for understanding how decisions are made. 

Here’s what’s happening: 

• Zero-click searches are stealing traffic: AI answers more questions on-platform, shrinking the opportunity to earn clicks. 
• AI discovery is a black box: LLM engines don’t show query-level demand signals or phrasing patterns.
• Journeys no longer follow a straight path down the funnel: Consideration now happens across search, communities, creators, and AI tools.
• Attribution is fragmented: The journey across different platforms and tools makes it hard to maintain a single source of truth on what’s working.

When discovery happens everywhere, planning around a single channel, a single funnel, or a single set of keywords no longer reflects reality. Content calendars, channel roadmaps, and growth forecasts built on linear search behavior start to drift from how people actually decide.

The problem isn’t that discovery got harder to influence. It’s that we’re still trying to win at it like it hasn’t changed. Brands that clearly see this new complexity, and focus their efforts accordingly, will adapt and lead.

Redefining “SEO” 

SEO grew up in a search environment that was far more centralized than the one we have today. The entire craft was built around ranking pages, earning clicks, and getting users onto your owned properties. But as we’ve just discussed, decision-making doesn’t follow that path anymore. 

Optimizing only your website means you’re optimizing for just one slice of the journey. Optimizing beyond your website requires shifting from purely keyword-based planning to understanding intent, context, and the formats people expect: video, reviews, summaries, visuals, comparisons, and conversations.

SEO isn’t dead; it’s expanding beyond its traditional framework. Today, it applies everywhere people discover, evaluate, and compare information across the entire digital ecosystem.

Search Everywhere Optimization

Search Everywhere Optimization is driven by that simple truth: people discover information across many platforms, not just one. 

Visibility now depends as much on third-party platforms, creators, reviews, and short-form video.

You can see it happening in real time: 

• Reddit exploded after Google’s Helpful Content Update in September 2023, as estimated organic traffic grew by nearly 5,000% (6.3 million monthly visits from organic search), becoming one of the most surfaced sources in both traditional search and AI-generated answers. 
• Google has started surfacing more Instagram content in search results – as total keywords ranked in top 3 positions increased by 49% (7 million) over the last 2 years – including visual posts and reels when they add context to a query. 
• TikTok continues to grow as a first-stop search engine for Gen Z, especially for “how to”, food, and product queries.  Additionally, estimates show Google is now sending TikTok 119% more organic traffic compared to 2 years ago.  
• YouTube remains one of the largest search platforms on the planet and continues to grow in visibility across discovery journeys. Organic traffic to YouTube directly from Google search just hit a new all time high, and is up 138% over the last 2 years.
• Platforms like Tripadvisor and Yelp increasingly shape how people choose where to go and what to try locally, and that influence now extends into AI-generated recommendations.

Liz Reid, Vice President and Head of Search at Google, has openly acknowledged the shift, saying they’re now surfacing more video, more forums, and more UGC because that’s where user behavior is moving. 

AI search is following the same pattern. Tools like ChatGPT, Perplexity, and Google’s AI Overviews cite third-party platforms more frequently than brand websites. They’re pulling from the places people talk, share, review, and create, not just the places brands publish.

In this model, success comes from creating signals that travel:

• Recognition signals (brand search, mentions) 
• Validation signals (reviews, UGC, citations)
• Authority signals (expert presence, consistency)
• Engagement signals (watch time, saves, comments) 

Those signals should carry through every step of the discovery journey, no matter where it starts.

How to Win in the New Era of Search & Discovery

Step one: stop debating what to call the next version of SEO and start embracing the multi-channel reality of modern discovery.

Now that discovery signals live across paid, organic, social, PR, creators, and AI systems, no single team owns performance anymore. 

Winning in this new landscape means building signals that travel across every platform where people search and where AI systems learn. The brands that stand out are the ones that create enough relevance, presence, and trust that they’re mentioned, cited, and surfaced everywhere discovery happens.

Brand building is now a search strategy.
If people recognize your brand, search for it, talk about it, review it, or recommend it, those signals echo across Google, TikTok, Reddit, local map packs, and AI tools. Modern discovery favors brands with identities and reputations strong enough to stand out even when the platform controls the entry point.

Paid and organic efforts need to be aligned, not siloed.
Paid and organic search efforts should complement each other. Organic insights reduce unnecessary paid spend, and paid ads help fill visibility gaps. Together, they create smarter coverage around the searches that matter most, when it matters most.

Social and UGC matter more than ever.
Short-form video, creator content, community chatter, reviews, and forums all influence both human decisions and AI citations. The more people talk about your brand across platforms, the easier it becomes for both users and AI systems to understand and surface you.

The fundamentals still count.
Accurate information across platforms, strong visuals, up-to-date details, structured content, and technical site health still matter, especially as AI models increasingly pull from structured and verified sources.

Measurement has to evolve with discovery.

When journeys span beyond your website, measurement must also shift. Brands need a unified view of how search, social, video, communities, and AI surfaces work together to influence visibility and demand.

Where Discovery Goes From Here 

Search isn’t dying, it’s multiplying. (see here) But the old idea of “ranking” has to evolve into something broader and more collaborative. Every team, including brand, PR, paid, organic, social, and strategy, contributes to a brand’s discoverability across the digital ecosystem. 

Search visibility isn’t a single-channel effort anymore. It’s an alignment effort.

The good news is that as long as people search, there are always ways to influence what they find. The brands that embrace this mindset and focus on showing up where it matters most, when it matters most, for who matters most are the ones who will win this new era of search.

Discovery is happening everywhere. The opportunity is, too.