AI Optimization: The Next Generational Scam
Guaranteed #1 ChatGPT Rankings are coming. Are you ready?
Thanks to this week's #SEOForLunch Sponsor: Profound
ALSO: I sat down with Jack Chambers-Ward to discuss if AI is a legit threat to digital marketing roles.
Watch my episode of Search w/ CandourI can see it now.
An overzealous sales guy (we’ll call him Bob) is licking his lips, anxious to get you on the phone.
The conversation will go something like this:
Salesman (Bob): Hi, is this the owner of Jan’s Bakery?
Business owner (Jan): Yes, this is Jan, how can I help you?
Bob: You’re familiar with AI, right? Like Chat GPT?
Jan: Yes, of course. Pretty cool technology.
Bob: I just searched you up on ChatGPT, Perplexity and Gemini. Your business isn’t found anywhere!
Jan: oh my! that can’t be good.
Bob: Don’t you worry. I’m calling today to share with you a new service. At Bob’s deals, we’re offering local businesses the opportunity to rank in these AI tools.
Jan: So, like when someone types, where can I find the best gluten free scones, I’ll show up at the top?
Bob: Yep. Exactly. We have “proprietary” tools on our end that feed your business directly into each of these tools and it only takes a few weeks before you get more people walking in through your front door.
…..
But Jan is wicked smart. She’s done her homework. She plays along.
…..
Jan: I heard ChatGPT bases its results off Bing?
Bob: oh, yeah, sure, we talk with the people in control of rankings at Bing too! Ummm so that top ranking can be yours, ready to sign?
Jan: Will you be reviewing my site's content using vector embeddings and cosine similarity scores to better match themes/keywords within these AI tools?
Bob: Oh sure, well, i’m not sure exactly what all that is.. but I can offer you our services for $499/m if you commit to 36 months today!
Jan: No thanks, good luck with your
scam, I mean business.
The future of search, without doubt, includes AI engines and determining the most effective ways to increase visibility… but it’s so much more than rankings. I’ll help you avoid scams and share a few tools that I think provide early value.
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Ready For The Next Generation Of Scams?
I’ve already talked about how the old approach to SEO is dying and that the bar has been raised for future search professionals.
The future of search, without doubt, includes AI engines and determining the most effective ways to increase visibility.
It will take a lot of work, and it won’t be easy, but those who adapt will be rewarded while the lazy folks will be out of a job.
Kinda scary, huh? But, wait! There is great news! If we search LinkedIn, you’ll see that there are nearly 300,000 “AI experts” ready to get you found at the top of ChatGPT. Hallelujah!!
It looks like Bob has got some competition…
Be wary of “Experts.”
One of my biggest pet peeves with the SEO industry is the use of the word “expert.” I told myself I wouldn’t go on a tirade here, but, f-it, this is my newsletter after all.
EXPERT:
“a person who has a comprehensive and authoritative knowledge of or skill in a particular area.”
In SEO, our goal is to “rank” or maximize visibility within search engines.
Those ranking algorithms are proprietary, with very few “ranking components” shared publicly.
We, as SEOs, are tasked with testing over and over which variables correlate with better (or worse) visibility.
Oh, did I mention that Google changes the algorithm (and rules) all the time? Hell, they’ve even had several content creators get together (actually, they’ve done it twice), and meet with them since nobody can recover from the “helpful content update” they released back in 2022.
My point? How the fuck could someone be an expert in something Google doesn’t even know how it works?
I’ve been actively executing SEO strategies for over 15 years, and you’ll never hear or read me anything where I refer to myself as an “SEO Expert.” If I ever reach this status, it will mean that I’ve built a fortune by creating my web properties with visibility across all topics and keyword themes. However, at that point, it won’t matter, as I will have disappeared entirely from the industry; this newsletter will be obsolete. #SorryNotSorry
All that said, you can only imagine my take on these “AI Experts”…
The Future Does Include AI/LLMs No Doubt
Very few people think ChatGPT and AI/LLM technology are going away.
Most of us have adopted it and are actively learning how it works, as well as how to make our (or our clients') businesses more visible within.
The cruel reality is that we are very early in the AI/LLM world. I spoke with over a dozen people recently at SMX Advanced, asking them about their plans to measure the impact of their marketing efforts within AI/LLM.
People brought up various tools, but nobody had a concrete KPI that they felt comfortable tracking. This reflects the current state (exciting yet terrifying) of these new AI/LLMs.
Wait, You Said AI Tools!?
Yep. I’ve been fortunate enough to test several toolsets that include early AI performance reports. While none are perfect, it’s impressive what some of these companies are building.
The tools below are ones that I have personally used and found value in. Three tools with three unique value adds that I want to highlight.
I have not been compensated to mention these tools within the list below, nor will I receive any payment if you click on the links or purchase their products. I was given free access over the past few months to try them out and to provide feedback to their teams.
Everything written below is my opinion and experience playing with each. Consider this my anti-ai-scam tool review. OK, full transparency mode </off>
Similar Web
I worked with the SimilarWeb team back when I wrote about moving past the search box in growing and measuring organic search.
To my knowledge, SW is the only tool that allows you to query any site on the internet and get an estimate for the amount of traffic they are getting from various AI/LLMs.
Similar to how SEOs use keyword research tools to reverse-engineer traffic from competitor sites, I think we’ll see more “AI Indexes” that'll provide similar experiences and actionable items.
Profound
Who said links are dead?
If anything, links (or let’s call them what they are, citations) are more valuable than ever. In the world of AI/LLMs, citations are currency. They determine what gets reported, referenced, and repeated.
The best part? These models are still early in their crawl-and-ingest phase. To my knowledge, they don’t give a damn about follow vs. nofollow or whether a link is buried in a redirect chain. They scan for themes, phrases, and the brands or sites associated with them. It’s pretty plain and simple for right now.
Yes, marketers will absolutely manipulate this. Just like the early days of Google link spam, AI/LLMs will eventually need to crack down. But for now? Guest posts, affiliate links, and scraped content are all fair game. Enjoy the wild west while it lasts.
Semrush -
I’m most familiar with Semrush, having partnered with their team on several projects. What stands out in their AI toolset is the “Overall Sentiment” reporting.
And honestly? I think that’s where the future is headed. Not just for Google and Bing, but for ChatGPT, Perplexity, and every other AI/answer engine. If the internet collectively thinks your brand sucks, why would any engine recommend you? Sentiment will become the new signal.
Tracking how people feel about your brand and improving that experience is a lever most SEOs haven’t had to pull. That’s about to change. Fast.
The Signal vs. the Noise
AI optimization isn’t a scam, but selling AI optimization like it’s 2010 SEO is.
If some self-proclaimed expert tries to guarantee your placement at the top of ChatGPT, run. Fast. These tools are constantly evolving. Anyone pretending they’ve cracked the code is either clueless or trying to con you.
That said, the opportunity here is real. AI engines are crawling, parsing, and surfacing web content in new ways. Visibility matters, more so than ever before. Tracking and learning what gets cited, what influences responses, and how brands show up is the new playbook for optimizing your brand’s presence.
So ignore the Bobs of the world. And instead, get curious. Test. Analyze. Collaborate with people who are transparent about what they do and don’t know.
Because in this era, being adaptable beats being an “expert.”