I thought I understood local SEO for small businesses. My Google Business profile looked sharp, my keywords worked well, and my backlinks were solid. But suddenly, leads vanished.
I blamed the economy. Then, the algorithm. I even targeted my intern. But here’s the deal: I didn’t see the change coming.
AI changed search. Large Language Models (LLMs) like ChatGPT and Bard started giving answers directly. Users stopped clicking links, and my funnel dried up.
I scoffed at LLM SEO. I thought it was just a buzz. But then I saw my competitors soar while I struggled.
What is LLM SEO? How is it different from traditional SEO? And why does it matter for local businesses?
Let’s dissect the corpse of my old funnel and uncover the anatomy of LLM SEO.
The Clicks That Vanished Overnight
Users Ask, AI Answers—No Clicks Needed
Let’s talk about what’s replacing your leads.
Old-school search rewarded links. You ranked, got clicks, and converted. But that chain broke. AI doesn’t give links—it provides answers.
Stefano Puntoni, Mike Ensing, and Jarvis Bowers (2024) in Harvard Business Review broke this down. LLMs like ChatGPT, Google’s AI Overviews, and Perplexity aren’t search engines. They’re response engines. They don’t point to your site; they speak for you.
The big shift? Search is no longer about finding. It’s about conversing. And AI acts as the middleman.
Key takeaways from the HBR article:
- LLMs now handle brand discovery. Your website isn’t the end point anymore.
- Consumers want natural-language answers, not blue links.
- Marketers must check how their brand appears in AI responses.
- LLMs create knowledge pipelines, not traffic streams.
You’re out of the conversation if AI doesn’t reference your business.
Generative Engine Optimization Starts Here
Now, let’s discuss how to recover—without chasing rankings.
Clicks are on the decline. AI answers consume your traffic.
John Werner (Forbes, May 2025) revealed that 80% of users now rely on AI summaries for 40% of searches. It slashes traditional clicks by 25%. Google’s AI Overviews alone reach over 1 billion users.
So, it’s time to stop pursuing rankings and start feeding the bots.
GEO is your new survival kit. That means:
- Answer real questions—think, “How much does a crown cost?”
- Use schema markup to categorize content (FAQs, hours, prices).
- Write in plain language with clear headers.
- Let AI in—allow GPTBot and Google AI in robots.txt.
- Earn authority—get mentioned on trusted, indexed sites.
AI won’t find you by chance. GEO helps your content become part of the answers, not just background noise.
Keywords Are Dead. Long Live Intent
Short Keywords Miss the Mark
We’ve talked about improving AI visibility. Now, let’s examine what keywords no longer do.
Short, generic keywords miss the goal. They lack depth and intent. They tell AI nothing meaningful—and context is what AI craves.
So, how do LLMs determine relevance? And which models get it right?
A 2025 Harvard Business Review study by Jordan Loewen-Colón, Benedict Heblich, and Marius Birkenbach sought answers. They asked nine leading LLMs to complete a human values questionnaire, which is often used to identify personal morals. Their goal was to measure the intent-recognition bias baked into each AI model.
What they found matters:
- All LLMs shared dominant values (like transparency).
- Their interpretation of meaning—and intent—varied greatly.
- Some LLMs ranked self-direction highest. Others leaned toward conformity or practicality.
- It directly impacts how they rank, rewrite, and present your content.
When the AI interpreting your site sees intent differently than intended, short-tail keywords won’t save you. They create confusion.
Neglect this, and your content becomes invisible to the audience that truly matters—AI itself.
Align Content with User Intent
Now, let’s discuss how to give AI what it wants.
User intent isn’t guesswork anymore. It’s a calculation. This calculation relies on structure, clarity, and semantic design.
Start with topic clustering—group content around natural, conversational themes. Add latent semantic indexing (LSI) keywords for a connected vocabulary. Then, ask yourself: would an AI model find this language valuable?
The Loewen-Colón study wasn’t about SEO—but it might as well have been. If different LLMs rank values differently, your content’s visibility depends on how well it matches the engine’s internal logic.
Here’s what that means for marketers:
- Long-tail keywords are your bridge to AI understanding.
- Natural language isn’t fluff—it’s alignment.
- Generic copy gets lost in translation.
Want your local bakery to pop up when someone asks, “Where’s the nearest sourdough that lacks preservatives?” Write like a human. Organize like a machine.
You’re no longer optimizing for an algorithm. You’re syncing with a value system.
The Authority You Didn’t Know You Lacked
E-E-A-T Is Now Table Stakes
In the last section, we explored intent. Now, let’s shift to trust.
Google’s Search Quality Evaluator Guidelines (2024) highlight what LLMs look for: Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, and Trustworthiness (E-E-A-T).
Google doesn’t just rank content—it evaluates who creates it. AI follows this logic.
To earn trust, show your credentials:
- Add clear author bios and sourcing.
- Cite respected journals, .gov, or .edu sources.
- Use schema markup for FAQs, reviews, and services.
Structured content = trusted content.
AI needs signs that your page isn’t just filler. Provide substance, transparency, and human touch.
Trust is now technical, not just reputational.
Build Trust Through Structured Content
Google’s Search Quality Evaluator Guidelines (2024) also make it clear: Trust must be explicit.
To help AI trust your content:
- Use schema markup for FAQs, reviews, and hours.
- Add author bios, credentials, and clear citations.
- Publish original content tied to first-hand experience.
Make your site appear like it was written by real people—with proof.
Trust isn’t a feeling. It’s structured, sourced, and obvious.
Local SEO ≠ Local Anymore
Local Signals Are Now Contextual
Now, let’s rethink what “local” really involves.
Old tactics like NAP, citations, and reviews no longer work. Generative AI doesn’t care where you are. It focuses on how you connect locally.
Local relevance shifts from coordinates to context.
- Mention nearby courts, landmarks, or city agencies.
- Write about real community issues.
- Answer location-specific questions.
Google’s research shows AI prefers content signals—not maps—to assess local credibility.
Show you’re not in the area—you’re part of it.
Zero-Click Doesn’t Mean Zero Chance
In the last section, we showed how AI reads for local depth. Now, let’s explore how to stay visible when clicks fade.
While LLMs provide summaries, your content fuels those summaries.
To win:
- Use Q&A format
- Write scannable takeaways
- Focus on snippet-worthy content
Zero-click still counts as a click from the perspective of AI.
The Funnel Isn’t Dead. It’s Just Weird Now.
Discovery Happens Everywhere
Let’s reconsider zero-clicks as an opportunity for visibility.
Search isn’t linear. People drift from Reddit to TikTok to ChatGPT to your website. Maybe.
The classic funnel—awareness, interest, decision—is fractured. You need to be discoverable at every stage.
It requires consistent messaging, content atomization, and platform awareness.
Someone may hear about your business from a chatbot. Then they Google you. Later, they might watch your YouTube. Then, they ask ChatGPT again.
LLMs haven’t killed the funnel. They’ve diversified it.
Your Website Is a Dataset, Not a Destination
Now that we’ve outlined this new fragmented journey, it’s time to rethink your website’s purpose.
It’s less about being a “home page” and more about serving as “training data.”
Your blog, service pages, and about sections don’t just cater to visitors. They feed AI.
Clear, structured, rich content positions your site as a source. When AI uses your words, your brand gets noticed.
You’re not writing for bots. You’re writing through them.
Welcome to the age of machine-readable content.
How to Reanimate Your Funnel in 2025
Adapt or Be Forgotten
You can cling to outdated SEO. Or you can evolve with the times.
Here are the key shifts to consider:
- LLMs are changing search behavior.
- Intent now beats keywords.
- Trust and authority are non-negotiable.
- Local SEO needs local depth.
- Your website is your AI résumé.
It isn’t hype. It’s happening.
A Checklist to Reboot Your Funnel
- Rewrite key pages for human + AI readability.
- Add schema markup (FAQ, reviews, services).
- Build topic clusters around real user intent.
- Get cited on trusted, niche-relevant sources.
- Monitor where your brand shows up in AI results.
- Create content that answers questions before they’re asked.
Don’t mourn the funnel. Rebuild it for the age of AI.
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