Google's Had a Midlife Crisis.

 

I was in Manchester last month, having dinner with a group of CEO’s. Someone asked: "When did you last actually click on a Google result?" Silence. Cutlery clinking. A sheepish look around the table.

The honest answer? Barely ever. Because Google — and every AI assistant after it — now just tells you the answer. No clicking required.

That single change has quietly dismantled 20 years of SEO strategy. And most businesses haven't noticed yet.

 

1. What on Earth is SEO?

SEO — Search Engine Optimization — is the game of making your website show up when someone types something into Google. You stuff in the right keywords, get other sites to link to yours, and pray to the algorithm gods. If it works, you appear on page one. If it doesn't, you're on page two — which, as the joke goes, is the best place to hide a dead body.

It's been the backbone of digital marketing since the late 1990s.

 

Otherwise, you get into the paid game where the highest bidder gets seen. It could be the worst product, but because they have paid the most for the ad, they appear at the top of the search page. Companies have spent fortunes on it. Some still do.

But the internet has moved on. And it's taking your customers with it.

 

2. Enter AEO — Answer Engine Optimization

Here's what's changed. When someone types "best CRM for a 50-person sales team" into Google today, they often don't see ten blue links. They see a direct answer — right there at the top. No clicking. No visiting your site. Just the answer.

That answer comes from somewhere. And if it doesn't come from your content — if your website isn't written in a way that answers real questions clearly (or you have paid a ton of money for the ad space) you're invisible. Completely.

AEO is about structuring your content so that search engines pick you as the answer. Think about FAQs. Think 'What is...?' pages.

Think content that directly answers the questions your ideal customer is actually asking.

Frank's Quick Tip  Write one page on your website that answers your single most-asked customer question, in plain English. No jargon. No waffle. Just: question at the top, clear answer underneath. That's AEO in action.

 

3. Now Meet GEO — Generative Engine Optimization

If AEO changed the game, GEO has rewritten the rulebook entirely.

When your customers ask ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, or any AI assistant a question “who are the best sales trainers in the UK?" or "what should I look for in a keynote speaker?" — the AI doesn't search Google. It draws on everything it's been trained on, plus real-time browsing. And it gives one authoritative answer. Maybe two or three names. Maybe mine. Maybe not.

Do a Google search for ‘Sales Technology Speaker’ and see what comes up…

GEO is about making sure that when AI talks about your industry, it talks about you.

That means being mentioned in credible online articles. My next article will be sharing my 7 point system for creating articles and blogs….

Getting quoted by respected publications. Having clear, authoritative content that AI systems can cite confidently. Building a digital reputation that AI trusts.

It's not quick. But neither was SEO in 2003. The businesses investing in it now will be the ones AI recommends in 2026 and beyond.

 

4. SEO vs AEO vs GEO — The Simple Version

 

SEO	AEO	GEO
Keywords	Questions & answers	AI-ready content
Clicks to your site	Direct answers given	Your content IN the answer
Google rankings	Voice & chat results	AI model citations
Rank higher	Be the answer	Be quoted by AI

 

5. What This Means For Your Business Right Now

You don't need to panic, but you do need to act. Here's what I tell every CEO and sales director I work with:

▪      Write like a person. Stop writing for Google bots. Start writing for human beings asking real questions.

▪      Answer the questions. Your website should answer the top five questions a prospect asks before they buy from you. Make those pages exceptional.

▪      Build your authority. Get your name and expertise into industry articles, trade publications, podcasts and news sites. That's what AI reads.

▪      Don't ditch SEO entirely. Don't abandon SEO overnight — it still matters. But treat it as one leg of a three-legged stool, not the whole chair.

▪      Test it yourself. Ask ChatGPT right now: 'Who are the top [companies] in [your sector] in [your country]?' If your name isn't there, you have work to do.

 

Quick Tip  Try this today: open ChatGPT and type 'What should I look for when hiring a [your type of service] provider?' If your expertise, your company, or your name doesn't appear in any form — that's your gap. Now go fill it.

 

The Bottom Line

The businesses that dominated Google in 2010 weren't the ones who got lucky. They were the ones who understood how search worked before their competitors did and moved first.

We're at the same moment again. The rules have changed and the question is whether you're one of the businesses shaping the new game — or one of the ones about to be left wondering where all their leads went.

Brutal truth: if an AI assistant can't find you, endorse you, or cite you — you're as invisible to a whole generation of buyers as if your website didn't exist.

Time to get found.

 

Want to make sure AI finds — and recommends — your business? Let's talk.