Influencing AI results isn't about traditional SEO tactics. It's about getting your brand mentioned in the sources AI models are trained on, like Reddit, industry publications, and news articles. The most effective way to achieve this is through modern PR and consistent social media activity, as journalists and writers use these platforms for discovery.

Reddit frames its business in a new, third chapter: not just media or social, but the human-generated fuel for AI. This strategy positions its vast archive of conversations as a critical data source for LLMs, creating a valuable licensing business with partners like Google and OpenAI.

Every piece of content you create today is being indexed and will be used to train AI models. In the near future, when consumers ask AI bots for recommendations, the AI will pull from this content. Creating content now is a long-term strategy to ensure your brand is visible in future AI-driven search funnels.

To get mentioned in AI search (AEO), brands must be visible across numerous platforms with positive sentiment. LLMs synthesize data from diverse sources like review sites, forums, and social media, so a broad, positive, and citable online presence is crucial for training the models.

Unlike traditional SEO's focus on backlinks, ranking in AI search depends on the density and authority of brand mentions across diverse sources like PR, podcasts, Reddit, and review sites. AI models look for consensus in online conversations to determine which brands to recommend for specific queries.

Conversations happening now on platforms like Reddit about the "best" products or solutions are actively being used as training data for LLMs. Brands must facilitate and engage in these dialogues today to influence the AI-driven search results of tomorrow.

As users turn to LLMs for answers, brand visibility depends less on optimizing owned web content. The focus must shift to nurturing the community and third-party content (e.g., Reddit, forums) that AI models are trained on. What customers say about you is the new SEO.

AI search tools like Perplexity and ChatGPT train their models on community forums like Reddit. If your competitors are actively discussed and advocated for in these spaces, AI search will recommend them over you. Therefore, fostering authentic community advocacy is now an essential part of your search strategy.

Platforms like Reddit are primary data sources for AI models. To shape their narrative in AI-driven search, B2B brands must overcome their fear of these communities. Proactive, human engagement is now a crucial part of brand reputation and Answer Engine Optimization (AEO).