AI has fundamentally changed how brands get discovered. Visibility that once depended on keywords now requires a new foundation of credibility, consistency, and solution-driven content. For distributed brands, this change creates tension between the corporate consistency that algorithms demand and the local authenticity that customers expect.
Helping companies master the transition is Kaia Watkins, the VP of Channel Marketing at Flint Group. As the leader of Flint Direct, the company's specialized local marketing arm, she works with distributed brands to bridge the gap between national strategy and local execution. According to Watkins, many organizations still lack an understanding of generative engine optimization (GEO).
"With AI, you’re not searching keywords anymore. You’re asking questions. AI engines are about synthesizing answers." To feed these answer synthesizers, Watkins explains, businesses must provide the raw material by creating clear, direct answers to the queries real customers have.
Answer the question: Since AI prioritizes authoritative, third-party sources, Watkins says a simple but effective tactic is to build a robust FAQ on the brand's website. "As users, we are no longer just typing simple phrases like 'house cleaners near me.' Instead, we're asking detailed questions, like who the best house cleaner is with environmentally safe products and reviews of four stars or more. You need to think about what your customers truly care about and answer those specific questions."
What's in a name: Even the best content is useless if an AI can’t trust its source, which leads to a foundational GEO pillar: data consistency. Watkins stresses that AI engines are far less likely to surface a business if it presents conflicting information. "We see this often with authorized dealers that might have a formal corporate name and a local 'doing business as' name. Those discrepancies are a major risk." Consistency of a brand's name, address, and phone number (NAP) across all online listings is increasingly important.
Also of high importance are reviews, which Watkins says are a primary factor for building the trust and credibility that AI engines prioritize. "Credibility isn't just about a high star rating. It's about having a high volume of recent reviews, which means getting them within the last three months, and responding to all of them, good or bad. That consistent engagement is what signals to Google and other AI engines that you are an active, trustworthy business."
Keep it human: Applying these rules at scale can be a major challenge, especially for franchise owners and distributed brands with hundreds of locations. Watkins says marketing leaders must find a balance between maintaining digital consistency for AI and projecting local authenticity for human customers. "People can tell when a review response is from a corporate office instead of someone local. While your formal business listings need to be perfectly consistent, the dialogue in your review responses still needs to feel local."
AI to the rescue: To resolve this dilemma, the AI tools themselves can be an asset. She suggests busy owners use AI as a backup to help stay on top of reviews. "You can set a trigger that if you haven't personally responded to a review in 24 or 48 hours, the AI will respond for you. I like giving that 24- to 48-hour window so the human has the first opportunity to provide an authentic response. The AI is there as a safety net."
While optimizing for Google's new AI mode is a key piece of the puzzle, Watkins acknowledges that the old rules of search have not completely disappeared, forcing businesses to manage two playbooks simultaneously. "We're in a tricky transitional period. You have to account for the new AI engines like ChatGPT, Claude, and Perplexity, but you can't ignore traditional SEO because people still use Google search, even if volumes are declining."
Vanishing clicks: The drop in clicks from traditional search engine traffic is leading many marketers to overhaul how they measure success. "The rise of zero-click search means users are increasingly getting answers without clicking through to websites. They get the answer on the results page." Because of this, website traffic has become an increasingly incomplete metric.
Follow the lead: To solve for the clickless conversion, Watkins recommends working backward from the sale and tracking a different set of signals to understand what's truly driving business. "Look at other triggers like phone calls and chat engagements. You might find your website visits are down, but your foot traffic is up. You won't always get perfect information, but you can make a lot of informed assumptions based on these patterns."
For any business owner feeling overwhelmed by the new search environment, Watkins offers a clear and practical starting point. "Start with your Google reviews. Start training your sales team or the people who are at the counter to ask for them. Add QR codes to your invoices and email receipts that invite customers to provide feedback." Even a negative review, she says, can become an opportunity to send a positive signal to AI engines. "Respond to the bad reviews. Acknowledge their point, work to resolve it, and take the conversation offline if needed. That single action is the easiest and most effective place for any marketer to start."
