SEO is Still the Foundation and our AEO Experiment Proved It
AI tools and search engines don't find businesses the same way, and if your SEO isn't strong, you may not show up in either. We tested this firsthand when we typed "What is Commonsense Marketing" into Google, Bing, ChatGPT, Claude, and Perplexity and got five completely different answers.
The results said a lot about the future of search and what it could mean for your business.
Key takeaways:
- Search engines and AI tools come up with answers in very different ways.
- Businesses with names that sound like descriptions or concepts are more likely to be missed by AI tools.
- AI tools usually highlight businesses that already have strong SEO.
- The basics of good SEO are still the same. They've just become even more important.
What Google and Bing found
Both search engines found us right away. They showed we're a digital marketing agency in Logan Village, Australia. The information was accurate and clear.
Google even showed an AI Overview using information straight from our website. This is exactly what you want to see when someone searches for your business by name.
Where the AI tools diverged
This is where things got interesting.
ChatGPT and Claude both missed us completely. Instead of seeing it as a business name, they treated "Commonsense Marketing" as a concept, like practical marketing, clear communication, or straightforward strategy. Their answers made sense, but they weren't about our business.
Why this happens and why your business name matters
Our agency name sounds more like a philosophy than a brand name. That's the main issue.
AI tools don't search the web in real time like Google does. Instead, they use patterns from their training data, which is made up of large amounts of text collected up to a certain date. They generate answers based on what seems most likely from that data. If a business name also sounds like a description, the tool will treat it as a phrase instead of a brand. This isn't really a flaw; it's just how these tools work.
Search engines, on the other hand, are built to understand what people mean and match that to content they've indexed in real time. That's why Google found us, but two AI tools did not.
If your business name sounds like a category, a service, or a concept like "Precision Legal," "Fresh Eats," or even "Commonsense Marketing", you're more likely to be missed than a business with a unique, made-up name.
What this means for your business and your SEO
More people are talking about how to optimise content for AI tools, so it gets picked up and cited in AI-generated answers. It's a real and worthwhile idea, and we're keeping a close eye on it.
But here's what this experiment made clear to us: businesses that appear in AI answers almost always have strong SEO already. The content that AI tools use is usually content that already does well in search. There's no shortcut for the basics.
Give clear answers to real questions. Build well-structured pages. Create consistent, useful content based on what your customers actually search for.
That's what helps you get noticed in search, and now in AI as well.
If you want to learn more about what drives AI-generated answers in Google, check out our post on Google's AI Overview. It explains how the feature works and what it means for website owners.
If you're not sure whether your current SEO is helping you get seen across all these platforms, that's exactly what our SEO services are designed to help with.
There are more places than ever where good SEO can help your business. The basics still matter most.
Ready to make sure your business gets found in search and in AI?
If this experiment rang any bells for your own business, it's worth taking a closer look at how your SEO is set up. Book a free marketing chat, and we'll show you where you stand.
