Navigating SEO in the Era of AI Search

Here’s the thing: SEO “experts” are just guessing

We still rely on traditional search to attract new visitors to web sites despite the arrival of generative search. This means that SEO still matters. A lot. The sector is projected to hit $343.5 billion by 2033. But most of the online guidance that you read today is just opinion dressed up as expertise. You’ve seen the “Top 10 SEO Tactics” lists like this one from dotmarketingsd.com. Maybe they overlap a bit. Most of it veers off into someone’s personal playbook, with little to zero empirical proof.

Our data science team has built the technology to assess and identify the actual content for generative AI search. They have an idea – let’s use IQRush.ai to assess SEO and identify the factors that drive blue links. We ran the analysis because we know that our customer brands live in a world where SEO still matters. GEO is also gaining importance.

Over the coming few weeks, we will be releasing more tactics. They will be statistically grounded and empirically proven. Any marketer can use these tactics to rank in the old world of SEO.

But first up, let’s set up the questions we answered.

• Why “expert surveys” leave you guessing?

• What are the limits of correlation studies and where they fall short?

• How generative AI changes the game for both SEO and GEO?

• What a truly data-driven approach looks like in SEO and GEO?

Quick Teaser Insights

Here are four sneak peeks from our analysis to keep you coming back for Part 2 and beyond:

• The Relevance King: Our data shows a unique content-query matching method outperforms every other factor by 2-3x. We’ll show you exactly how to apply this to your content.

• Technical tactics: Nearly half of every top-10 list consists of technical tactics. However, their true value probably isn’t what you think. We’ll explain the role that technical tactics really play in SERP rankings.

• The Unsung Hero: What you say and how you say it both matter. Ready to learn the ideal structure and placement for your content?

• “Correlation vs. Causation: The Showdown”: We’ll reveal which “proven” tactics are just myths. We’ll also show which ones deliver real, measurable impact. This way, you can stop wasting time and marketing spend.

Expert Surveys vs. Evidence

Today what you see: Big names like Moz and SparkToro polling hundreds of SEOs. Have you ever met an “expert” and quickly realized your more of an expert? Hey, you should write a top-10 blog (we’re kidding)!What you get: Consensus of opinions; no hard data on actual impact. These are tactics that once worked for them. They were effective in their industry at a specific time. Then, Google decided to tweak their ranking algorithms again.

Sure, these reports show what “everyone thinks” works, but they don’t measure anything. It’s steering by crowd wisdom, not by proven results.

Correlation Studies vs Causation:

Correlation Studies: A Half-Baked Answer

Data-driven? Sort of. Studies like those from Backlinko scan millions of SERPs to spot patterns:

• Page speed correlates with higher rankings

• More backlinks often line up with stronger performance

The catch: Correlation ≠ causation. And when factors interact (like they do in the real world), their correlations change and miss the real story.

Our AI SEO Experiment

Use AI to crack SEO optimization – not just for generative search or engine optimization.

At IQRush, we have built the first AI answer engine prediction platform that powers our marketer GEO experimentation platform. It is a place where marketers can build GEO optimizations. They target the precise factors that gen search engines use. Marketers can also test for visibility in real time. For a primer on AI search readiness, see our post: Assess Your Site’s AI Search Readiness.

Our chief data scientist, Ron Sielinski, had a genius thought. Let’s apply our tech to traditional SEO. Let’s see what we could learn.

Our study and math can help you cut through the SEO noise:

• Measure don’t guess. Build predictive models to isolate each factor’s real impact.

• Focus on tactics interactions. Go beyond one-off correlations to understand how tactics work together.

• Translate learnings to SEO. Optimize precisely for what Google’s ranking algos care about.

Key Takeaways

Where We Go Next

We’ve cracked open the data. We built a framework that pinpoints the tactics that matter for SEO. We also did it for GEO. No more opinions. No more half-baked correlations. Just math-backed recommendations you can act on today.

Stay tuned

In our next post, we’ll show you exactly how we did it. We will cover the algorithms and the transparent analysis. You will see the step-by-step playbook to move from guesswork to “knowing what works.”

Want to learn more click the link below to book a demo with us to learn more.