By Lana Mini, SVP, Marx Layne & Company

In today’s AI-driven world, you’re getting answers from chatbots, voice assistants, or AI summaries without ever clicking through to a website. For companies, it might feel like your digital turf is slipping away. It is. But there’s good news: this shift can open a new way to visibility.

How? It’s GEO and SEO combined. Let’s start from scratch:

 What Is Zero-Click SEO?

Zero-click SEO is when searchers get what they need right from the search results: no clicking required. Think featured snippets, “People Also Ask” boxes, voice assistant replies, and knowledge panels. If your brand shows up there, you’ve already earned trust without a single visit to your site.

What’s Generative Engine Optimization (GEO)?

Don’t mistake GEO for Geo-targeting. Two different things.

GEO is the next level of SEO. It’s how AI tools like ChatGPT, Google’s Search Generative Experience (SGE), and others generate answers by pulling data from trusted sources. Sometimes, they don’t even link back to your website.

If your brand isn’t part of the trusted pool through strong media mentions or authoritative content you might as well be invisible to these AI engines.

Here’s what it looks like in real life:

• A hospital gets cited when someone asks ChatGPT about stroke warning signs.
• A restaurant group is recommended by a voice assistant for “best brunch in Detroit.”
• A manufacturer appears in AI answers about “international green-certified Tier 1 suppliers.”
• A commercial builder is referenced in AI summaries when execs ask about sustainable projects in the Midwest.
• A nonprofit organization is referenced about mental health service referrals and wrap-around services in your region.

GEO vs. Geo-Targeting: What’s the Difference?

They sound alike but aren’t.

• Geo-targeting is about where your audience is. Think local searching like “restaurants near me” queries, and maps.
• Generative Engine Optimization (GEO) is about how AI generates answers and whether your brand is part of those answers based on trusted content and media presence.

Both matter, but GEO is where PR and digital strategy collide in a fresh, exciting way.

Do You Need to Know All the Tech Details?

Honestly? No.

If you’re leading a health system, running a national builder, hosting a festival, serving the community via your nonprofit, scaling a restaurant brand, or managing public trust for a manufacturer, you don’t have to chase every AI update. That’s our job.

At Marx Layne, we make sure your brand shows up where it counts whether that’s:

• An AI recommending your firm
• A voice assistant reading your business hours
• A journalist finding your expert insights for their next story

You don’t need to understand the tech, you just need to know that it’s working for you. 

Why This Matters for PR and Digital Strategy

PR and SEO are no longer separate worlds. And SEO isn’t just keywords anymore.

Your earned media placed in the right outlets, crafted clearly, and optimized smartly directly impacts what AI tools surface in their answers.

We build:

• Media strategies that fuel AI engines
• Content that reads like clear, concise answers
• Authority that pops up in zero-click and AI-generated summaries

We create visibility for humans and machines alike.

Your audience is asking questions. Not just on Google, but through AI tools that barely existed a year ago.

Are you showing up in those answers?

If not, let’s fix that.

Want to make sure AI engines know your name?
Let’s talk.
Contact Marx Layne