PR Is Back in the Chat: Navigating AIO and GEO
It’s no surprise AI has changed the way people search.
For decades, SEO (search engine optimization) was the cornerstone of digital visibility. Today, with the rise of LLMs like ChatGPT and Claude, we’re entering an era where two new concepts — AIO (AI Optimization) and GEO (Generative Engine Optimization) — are quickly reshaping how brands think about being discoverable, and causing quite the frenzy in the process.
While the true impact of both are still evolving, some areas of focus are emerging as key drivers of success for both AIO and GEO.
What is the Difference Between AIO and GEO?
AIO is the umbrella strategy for making sure a brand is discoverable and accurately represented across AI-powered platforms. It encompasses how large language models, answer engines, and AI-driven discovery tools perceive and cite your company.
GEO is a more specific tactic within AIO. It focuses on how content is structured so that generative engines like ChatGPT, Claude, Perplexity, Gemini, or Google’s AI Overviews can understand it, trust it, and surface it in their answers. GEO is often described as the next phase of SEO, but I would argue it’s an evolution rather than a replacement.
Both matter because they’re where audiences are increasingly asking questions. Instead of typing into Google, people are turning to chat interfaces. This shift makes it critical for companies to understand how and why they appear in those results.
Why PR Matters More Than Ever
Many are scrambling to figure out what their AIO and GEO strategies are, and there have been very few answers around “what’s working” and “what’s not.” But one focus area has emerged as a key component of both — PR.
Simply put, the more a company is mentioned in credible sources, the more likely it is to be recognized as reliable by AI systems. In fact, a recent Fast Company article named PR the most strategic business function of 2025 for this exact reason. This got spread around like wildfire to all my PR colleagues when it was published. We loved it!
Recent data from MuckRack backs this up. 95% of links cited by AI are non-paid coverage, and 27% of those are journalistic content. In other words, earned media is a bullseye for AIO, which means PR is earning its place back at the center of the conversation.
Back to the PR Basics
Even with the rise of AIO and GEO, the fundamentals of PR haven’t changed. A strong program still relies on a balance of earned, owned, and select paid channels. Each plays a role in shaping how a brand shows up in the world.
Earned: consistent media coverage, bylines, customer proof, speaking, and awards. These are credibility signals that validate your brand for both people and AI systems.
Owned: company blogs, newsletters, and thought leadership hubs that provide depth and a direct line to your audience.
Paid: sponsored content, social campaigns, and select awards and opportunities.
The formula is the same as it’s always been, and when these three work together they compound over time. What’s new is that AIO rewards earned coverage above all else, making the credibility piece more important than ever.
And before you ask, no, I don’t think you should abandon all of your SEO efforts and focus solely on PR. SEO still has its place, and can often create earned media mentions down the road as well.
AIO and GEO are still new. No one has it completely figured out yet. But one thing is certain, PR has become a non-negotiable in this new world of AI discoverability.
In the near future, we’ll see more tools emerge to help track brand mentions across LLMs (companies like Profound are already starting this). But measurement aside, the principle remains the same: if your company isn’t in the conversation, AI won’t know to bring you into it.
And that’s why PR is, quite literally, back in the chat.
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