Most entrepreneurs now agree on the massive shift: visibility extends past Google, AI instruments affect how individuals uncover manufacturers, and search engine marketing is altering quick.
What’s much less clear is how a lot of that strategic considering has modified the day-to-day work.
We surveyed 481 entrepreneurs, enterprise house owners, and search engine marketing professionals to know how AI search is affecting workflows, group constructions, content material operations, measurement, and efficiency.
The takeaway is evident: entrepreneurs have up to date the technique, however most groups are nonetheless rebuilding the working mannequin behind it — and those which have are seeing the payoff.
Methodology
We surveyed 570+ entrepreneurs, search engine marketing professionals, and enterprise house owners working with natural progress, then filtered the responses utilizing an consideration verify, leaving us with a pattern of 481.
The pattern included:
- Roles corresponding to advertising managers (29%), content material entrepreneurs (22%), search engine marketing specialists (10%), and enterprise founders (7%)
- Firms starting from 1-10 workers (11%) to 201–1,00zero workers (20%)
- Groups throughout SaaS, retail, companies, skilled providers, media, and different industries
Key takeaways
- Views on search engine marketing and AI search have moved. 85% of entrepreneurs say AI has modified their search technique — 32% “considerably developed,” 53% “some changes.” Solely 12% report “no actual change.” Individually, 77% describe AI search as “an extension of search engine marketing”; simply 15% nonetheless see it as “separate.”
- Execution hasn’t moved as far. Solely 22% of entrepreneurs say their search engine marketing and AI search efforts are “absolutely built-in throughout technique, execution, and reporting.” The opposite 78% are nonetheless getting there. Among the many entrepreneurs who name AI search “an extension of search engine marketing,” solely 28% report utilizing “one shared workflow throughout search engine marketing and AI search.”
- Measurement is the place the hole is widest. Essentially the most generally cited hard-to-measure metrics are: affect of AI on pipeline or income (49%) and visibility in AI-generated solutions (45%). On the identical time, 40% of respondents use handbook ChatGPT checks as their most important monitoring technique.
- The stakes of the execution hole are seen in AI solutions. 37% of entrepreneurs say “opponents are talked about extra usually than us” in AI-generated solutions; 30% say their model is “described inaccurately”; 29% say their “positioning or worth is unclear or generic.”
- Funding is shifting towards AI visibility and cross-platform discovery. Content material creation stays the highest funding space (49%), however 46% of entrepreneurs now prioritize model visibility throughout channels, 38% plan to spend money on AI search optimization (AEO/GEO), and 25% in AI visibility instruments, alongside 36% investing in conventional search engine marketing.
- Closing the operational hole pays off. 81% of groups with absolutely built-in search engine marketing and AI search execution report seeing extra visitors or leads linked to AI platforms, in comparison with simply 36% of groups operating them utterly individually.
1. The view of search has shifted, however virtually nobody treats AI as a separate channel
AI is influencing search technique for many advertising groups. 85% of entrepreneurs say AI has modified how they strategy search, with 32% saying their technique has considerably developed and 53% making some changes.
On the identical time, 12% report no actual change to date.
That shift exhibits up in how entrepreneurs now take into consideration AI search in relation to search engine marketing. 77% put it contained in the search engine marketing tent, 55% see it as an extension of search engine marketing, and 22% say it’s partially overlapping. Solely 15% nonetheless deal with it as a separate channel completely.
Many groups nonetheless lack a constant strategy to AI visibility.
28% have an outlined technique with inconsistent execution, 27% are experimenting, and solely 27% report having a transparent, unified workflow.
28% have an outlined technique with inconsistent execution, 27% are experimenting, and solely one other 27% declare to have a transparent, unified workflow.
The “AI is a unique channel” framing is now a minority view. Most entrepreneurs are planning towards a actuality the place search occurs throughout Google and AI surfaces concurrently.
However performing on these insights persistently — throughout groups, instruments, and workflows — is the place most are nonetheless catching up.
2. Execution hasn’t caught up, but most groups have a seam someplace.
Solely 22% of entrepreneurs say their search engine marketing and AI search efforts are absolutely built-in throughout technique, execution, and reporting. The opposite 78% describe some model of a niche.
The commonest sample — for 30% of respondents — is planning search engine marketing and AI search collectively however operating them as separate tracks on the bottom. One other 23% execute in parallel with some coordination, and 14% are largely separate with occasional overlap.
The hole is sharpest among the many entrepreneurs whose considering has moved probably the most.
Of the 263 who describe AI search as an extension of search engine marketing, solely 28% really use one shared workflow. 40% plan collectively however execute individually, and 24% use completely different instruments and workflows for every.
Content material planning exhibits extra alignment than different workflows, however full integration remains to be uncommon.
Solely 22% of entrepreneurs use one unified content material course of for Google and AI search. 38% are largely unified with some variations, and 20% run separate processes completely.
Integration depth is strongly tied to efficiency.
Amongst respondents who chosen both “extra visitors/leads from AI serps” or “extra leads referencing AI instruments,” 81% had absolutely built-in search engine marketing and AI search execution, in comparison with simply 36% of groups with utterly separate workflows.
Technique alignment is already occurring.
Execution is the place most groups nonetheless wrestle: shared workflows, unified briefs, and content material processes that join Google and AI search as an alternative of treating them individually.
3. Groups really feel aligned, however their workflows inform a unique story
90% of entrepreneurs say their groups are at the least considerably aligned on model and search technique. 41% say absolutely aligned.
However that alignment usually doesn’t carry by to execution.
Among the many 197 entrepreneurs who say their groups are absolutely aligned, solely 41% additionally report absolutely built-in search engine marketing and AI search execution.
The opposite 59% say their groups nonetheless function with separate execution workflows, restricted coordination, or solely strategic alignment.
Possession tells the same story.
Duty for AI search is scattered throughout seven capabilities, with no single proprietor above 18%. A devoted AEO/GEO specialist or group leads at 18%, adopted by search engine marketing at 16%, content material at 15%, and shared possession at 14%.
One in ten groups has no clear proprietor in any respect.
2-Three instruments to know search visibility, 18% use 4-5, and 4% are managing 5 or extra.
When possession sits throughout a number of groups, firms usually find yourself utilizing disconnected instruments and workflows. That makes it tougher to get a constant view of brand name visibility throughout Google and AI platforms.
Groups really feel aligned on the place they are going. However the natural visibility work now spans a number of groups, and in some organizations, no one owns the ultimate final result.
Groups with out clear possession and a unified view of Google and AI visibility wrestle to execute persistently.
4. The execution hole has an actual price, and it is displaying up inside AI solutions
This execution hole shapes how AI instruments describe manufacturers to potential prospects on daily basis.
57% of entrepreneurs say they act when their model is lacking from AI outcomes, just like how they deal with drops in Google rankings.
When entrepreneurs take a look at how their model seems in AI solutions, most discover one thing they need to enhance.
37% say opponents are talked about extra usually than their model in AI-generated solutions. 30% say their model is described inaccurately, and 29% say their positioning comes throughout as unclear or generic.
These points are the predictable outputs of a fragmented working mannequin.
An AI description of your model is assembled from many sources: your personal content material, third-party opinions, PR protection, and competitor pages. When these inputs sit on completely different groups, no one is chargeable for what they produce collectively.
The repair begins with auditing the way you seem in AI solutions, assigning clear possession, and aligning the groups chargeable for the inputs that form that description.
5. Measurement is the place the hole is widest
Measurement is the a part of the working mannequin that has modified the least.
49% of entrepreneurs say measuring the affect of AI on pipeline or income is one among their high challenges. 45% wrestle to measure visibility in AI-generated solutions, and solely 9% say they’ll measure all of the metrics that matter.
Solely 32% of entrepreneurs say AI search visibility is clearly measurable and actionable when it comes to enterprise outcomes. 39% say partially measurable, 17% say very tough, and eight% say not measurable in any respect.
The strategies most groups are utilizing mirror the identical fragmentation as the remainder of the working mannequin:
- 40% depend on manually typing prompts into AI instruments to verify if their model seems. It really works as a spot verify, but it surely would not scale and produces no comparable information over time.
- 38% use a conventional search engine marketing platform, 36% a specialised AEO/GEO instrument, and 13% haven’t any constant strategy in any respect.
Entrepreneurs report three most important friction factors: restricted AI visibility monitoring (34%), fragmented information throughout instruments (33%), and issue connecting information to enterprise outcomes (32%).
29% additionally say they haven’t any unified view of Google search and AI-generated discovery.
With out measurement infrastructure, the remainder of the working mannequin has nothing to react to. You possibly can’t act on what you may’t see, and proper now, most groups are solely seeing a part of the image.
Essentially the most sensible first step is monitoring Google search efficiency and AI visibility in a single place utilizing an answer like Semrush One, moderately than piecing it collectively from disconnected instruments and handbook checks.
6. Funding and techniques are shifting, however main gaps stay
Entrepreneurs are beginning to shift each budgets and techniques towards AI visibility and cross-platform discovery.
Content material creation leads deliberate funding at 49%, adopted by model visibility throughout channels at 46% and AI search optimization at 38%, all forward of conventional search engine marketing at 36%.
Two different numbers stand out:
- Model visibility throughout channels now ranks forward of conventional search engine marketing as a deliberate funding, displaying that entrepreneurs more and more deal with search visibility as a cross-platform downside.
- 25% are planning devoted spend on AI visibility instruments, a price range line that hardly existed a couple of years in the past.
However the funding sample follows the narrative extra carefully than it follows the recognized gaps. Solely 14% plan to spend money on analytics and measurement, despite the fact that measurement is the place groups wrestle probably the most.
The techniques image tells the same story.
Most of what entrepreneurs are doing to enhance AI visibility is content-focused: 54% are creating structured, well-organized content material, 43% are bettering product and repair pages, and 37% are publishing extra authoritative content material. These are the suitable foundations.
However some vital AI visibility techniques nonetheless see comparatively low adoption. Solely 8% of entrepreneurs report utilizing digital PR, 9% handle on-line opinions, and 11% actively construct exterior mentions by communities and social platforms.
7. The working mannequin is the work left to do
The entrepreneurs already seeing AI-driven progress have one factor in widespread: their working mannequin matches their technique. They personal the work, they measure it, they usually execute it persistently.
The extra built-in the working mannequin, the extra possible a group is to see actual outcomes from AI search.
Amongst respondents reporting both extra visitors/leads from AI serps or extra leads referencing AI instruments, 27% had absolutely built-in search engine marketing and AI execution, in comparison with simply 12% of groups not seeing these outcomes.
Solely 3% of groups seeing outcomes from AI search report having no clear proprietor for AI visibility, in comparison with 22% of groups that aren’t seeing outcomes.
Measurement stands out as one of many strongest differentiators.
41% of groups seeing outcomes from AI search say AI visibility is clearly measurable and actionable, in comparison with simply 15% of groups that aren’t. 45% use a devoted AEO/GEO instrument, versus 19% of the remainder.
On the identical time, 27% of groups not but seeing outcomes say they haven’t any constant solution to measure AI visibility. Amongst groups already seeing outcomes, that quantity drops to six%.
One counterintuitive discovering we noticed: groups already seeing outcomes report extra friction, not much less.
38% say their information is fragmented throughout instruments, versus 25% of the remainder. Groups managing visibility throughout extra surfaces and workflows are extra uncovered to the restrictions of disconnected programs.
However the general sample is constant — groups with built-in workflows, clear possession, and measurable AI visibility are more likely to report outcomes from AI search.
The underside line: The best way to shut the operational hole
85% of entrepreneurs say AI has modified their search technique. However solely 22% have absolutely built-in execution, and 9% can measure the metrics that matter. The hole is in execution, possession, and measurement.
For the groups nonetheless increase their processes:
- Merge search engine marketing and AI search possession on the execution degree. These aren’t separate workstreams anymore. One operate must personal each, with clear accountability for the output, clear processes, and outlined KPIs.
- Break down group silos. Content material, search engine marketing, PR, and model groups all form AI visibility, and the groups seeing outcomes align these capabilities round shared objectives.
- Construct a unified view of Google and AI efficiency. A single platform that tracks each conventional search and AI visibility turns commentary into motion. Disconnected instruments and handbook prompt-checking make constant execution practically unattainable.
- Guarantee model consistency throughout each channel. How AI describes your model is assembled out of your web site, opinions, third-party mentions, and PR protection. Inconsistent messaging throughout these sources produces inconsistent AI descriptions.
Semrush One helps groups join the dots and combine their visibility efforts. It brings your Google search efficiency, AI visibility, and AI model positioning into one place, so your group can see the complete image and act on it persistently.
