Narendar Rajagopalan

90% of brands still chase Google rankings. The other 10% are getting cited by AI engines. Which side are you on? The distinction is simple: Old SEO asked: “How do we rank on page one?” New SEO asks: “How do we get retrieved, cited, and trusted by AI?” Old SEO measured clicks. New SEO measures citations. Old SEO stuffed keywords. New SEO matches intent. Old SEO rewarded volume. New SEO rewards authority. I’ve watched too many teams confuse traffic with visibility. They’ve got dashboards. Keyword trackers. Dozens of low-value blogs. But ask them: “Is your brand showing up in ChatGPT answers?” Silence. Or worse: “We’re #3 for our keywords this quarter.” That’s not visibility. That’s a ranking on borrowed time. Remember when page one was the goal? That world is gone. AI search doesn’t stop at page one. It summarizes. It cites. It decides who gets trusted. And if you’re invisible there? You don’t exist at discovery. Real visibility example: Your competitor gets cited in Gemini’s answers. Your brand? Ignored. Guess who wins the customer conversation? When you adapt to New SEO: ✓ Every mention compounds your authority ✓ AI engines trust and cite your content ✓ Your brand shows up where buying decisions are made When you cling to Old SEO: ❌ Clicks don’t convert ❌ Bots crawl, but AI ignores you ❌ You’re busy producing, but losing relevance Here’s the uncomfortable truth: If AI engines don’t cite you, buyers won’t see you. Marketers, this is the shift: Stop chasing rankings. Start chasing citations. Because in 2025, AI is the new distribution. And visibility belongs to the brands which AI choose to cite. (Post inspired from Chris Donnelly) Thanks to him.... Ready to future-proof your SEO? Explore how the new Semrush AI Toolkit helps you write, rank, optimize, and convert... All in one place. Try Now: https://lnkd.in/e8zZsBNm ♻️ Repost it to share with your network Follow me Madhav Mistry for insights on marketing

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3 layers of GEO every SEO should know AI search doesn’t just scan content it references structured, layered sources. 1. GEO Strategy - AI Presence - Topic Authority - Messaging - UGC Exposure - Wikipedia Signal - Content Trust - Brand Mentions - Quote Usage - Stat Inclusion 2. GEO Plan - Fresh Content - AI Tracking - SSR Setup - Topic Clusters - Platform Mix - Format Testing - Channel Map - Crawl Budget 3. GEO Execution - Semantic Depth - Rich Media - Clean Code - Schema Markup - Video Assets - Reddit Presence - Quote Blocks - Author Credibility - Snippets Readiness - LLM Signals - Link Hygiene The key: GEO isn’t about more content. It’s about layered structure AI can cite. Structure → Signal → Surface If you want your SEO to thrive in 2025, this layered approach is essential. 🙋 Repost to your network if you found this valuable! Source: Semrush

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AI search is rewriting the rules of SEO. And many brands will be left behind. People aren’t searching as much as before. They’re asking ChatGPT, Gemini, and Perplexity for direct answers. These AI tools generate results based on multiple factors: → Brand authority and credibility → Relevance to the user’s query → Consistent mentions and citations → Topical depth across content → Trust signals from external sources If your brand is not optimizing for AI platforms, it's invisible to these users and how they discover things. That’s where Ahrefs Brand Radar comes in. ↳ It helps marketing teams measure, understand, and improve how their brand shows up across AI-driven discovery. Here’s how it works (step-by-step): Step 1: Access Brand Radar → Sign up or log in to your Ahrefs account → Open the Brand Radar tab to start tracking visibility instantly Step 2: See how AI platforms view your brand → Check how ChatGPT, Gemini, and Perplexity represent your brand → Spot gaps between AI visibility and traditional search Step 3: Benchmark against competitors → Compare visibility and reputation side by side → See which brands dominate your key topics or categories Step 4: Track branded search demand → Monitor branded search volume to measure awareness → See how AI exposure drives more searches for your brand Step 5: Monitor brand mentions → Discover which sites and communities mention your brand → Strengthen citations so AI tools reference you more often Step 6: Turn insights into AEO growth → Find new content and citation opportunities → Optimize for Answer Engine Optimization to appear in more AI results AI is redefining how discovery works. Brands that measure their visibility now will own the users' attention later. 📌 Try Ahrefs Brand Radar today: ahrefs.com/brand-radar 🔄 Repost to help others boost brand visibility in AI search P.S. This post is in partnership with Ahrefs, #partnership #sponsorship #AISearch #AEO #Marketing #SEO #LLMs #DigitalMarketing #Ahrefs #BrandRadar #AhrefsPartner #SponsoredByAhrefs

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The easiest way to improve your ads? Improve your offer. Because when the offer is irresistible: → CTR improves instantly → Conversions double → Scaling becomes possible No amount of targeting tricks or creative tweaks will save a weak offer. Strong offers make weak ads work. Weak offers kill strong ads.

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✅ Start With Exact + Phrase Match → Avoid Broad Match until you have enough conversion data. Saves money. ✅ Use Ad Extensions Everywhere → Call, Location, Sitelinks, Price, Promotion → boost CTR by 15–30%. ✅ Leverage Geo-Targeting → Run ads in high-value ZIP codes instead of blanketing your entire city. ✅ Time-Based Scheduling → Show ads when your customers are active. Example: A pizza shop runs ads from 4–10 PM, not all day. ✅ Use Competitor Keywords Smartly → Bid on competitor names but use offers to stand out. Example: “Better than Domino’s – Free Delivery in 30 Mins 🍕.” ✅ Feed-Only Performance Max Setup (eCommerce) → Upload product feed, let AI optimize across Google Shopping, YouTube, Maps, Display, and Search. Works better than old Shopping campaigns. ✅ Layer Audiences With Keywords → Combine keyword targeting + in-market/custom intent audiences → more qualified clicks. Example: “Wedding photographer near me” + “Recently engaged couples.” ✅ UTM Tracking + GA4 Insights → Tag every ad with UTMs → see which keyword, ad group, or audience drives actual conversions in GA4. ✅ First-Party Data Retargeting → Upload your customer list to Google Ads → run loyalty/upsell campaigns. Example: Send “20% off next purchase” ads only to past buyers. ✅ Smart Bidding AFTER 30–50 Conversions → Don’t enable Target CPA or Target ROAS too early. Let campaigns gather enough data first → then AI becomes powerful. ✅ Cross-Channel Retargeting → Run Google Ads remarketing + Meta Ads remarketing to catch users everywhere. Example: A user clicks a Google ad but sees a Facebook ad reminder later → higher conversion chance. #PPC #SEA #SEM #Ads #GoogleAds 

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How to dominate B2B SaaS SEO in 45 days: (Real case study, real results) Before: • No organic presence • Heavy PPC spend • High CAC • Zero content strategy After (45 days later): • Multiple #1 rankings • 10+ first-page positions • Reduced ad spend • Inbound leads coming in already Here's the exact blueprint: 1. Strategic Focus • Choose 10 winnable keywords • Target commercial intent • Ignore vanity metrics 2. Technical Foundation • Optimize site architecture • Build internal link structure • Enhance crawl efficiency 3. Content Authority • Create targeted assets • Optimize existing pages • Build topical clusters 4. Link Building • Quality backlinks only • Industry-relevant sources • Strategic anchor text The key takeaway? Success in B2B SEO isn't about volume. It's about precision.

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Traditional SEO was about backlinks. LLM SEO is about mentions. As search shifts from "10 blue links" to AI-generated answers, it’s about being part of the answer training set. LLM SEO consists of 2 core strategies: 1. Earned = Mentions LLMs like ChatGPT don’t pull answers out of thin air. They generate responses by: - Running a query - Retrieving relevant URLs - Summarising from those pages If your brand is consistently mentioned across those sources, you’re more likely to be included in the answer (even if your site isn’t the one being shown). It’s the new version of link building. But instead of asking: "How do I get more backlinks?" You’re asking: "How do I get mentioned in content LLMs trust?" You win by: 1. Identifying influential source URLs 2. Getting your brand mentioned by them 3. Monitoring your mentions across AI results Tip: Use a tool like Mentions for steps 1 and 3. 2. Owned = Content This is your own domain. When you optimise your site to answer specific questions clearly (using Q&A blocks, semantic HTML, topic hubs), LLMs can lift your content directly into answers. It’s like building a mini knowledge base. But not for people... for LLMs. Earned and owned together help you: - Influence what LLMs know about you - Control how you’re represented - Stay visible as search shifts to conversations So the real question now is: “Are you part of the answer training set?” PS. Here's an example of earned and owned working together to help Adobe dominate LLMs:

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