The English language is hard and convoluted. Words that are spelled the same but pronounced differently are called heteronyms. English has hundreds of these!

• The farm was used to produce produce
• I read what I read yesterday
• The bandage was wound around the wound

I use AI in my business as a tool. It helps me research while I am writing these posts. I use Perplexity and the Comet Browser to combine writing original content with help in fleshing out facts and concepts. I also use custom keystrokes with my Mac to read my writing back to me, allowing me to proofread the content and ensure it flows in my voice.

One of the quirks when it voices the blog is that the word “Content” can be read back randomly with two pronunciations: ‘Content' (Phonetic spelling: /ˈkɒn.tɛnt/) as a noun or a piece of media where you stress the first syllable: CON-tent, and ‘Content' (Phonetic spelling: /kənˈtɛnt/) as an adjective or to experience a state of satisfaction where you stress the second syllable: con-TENT.

I am guessing that it randomly chooses which word and pronunciation it thinks fit.

SEO vs AEO

Back in the good old days (early 2000s till the 2020s), web traffic was generally owned by SEO and Google Ads. SEO drove around 60% of (search) traffic to your website and had higher click-through rates (CTR), while Google ads created around 15% of clicks.

Direct Traffic (defined as typing the URL, email, and apps) accounted for about 20% of visits to your website, leaving around 5% for all other forms (referral, social media, and undefined).

In the 2020s, with the advent of AI, we ushered in a new term: AEO (Answer Engine Optimization). Since then, web traffic has largely declined. The main reason is the rise of AI-driven “zero-click” searches—such as Google’s AI Overviews and instant answers in search platforms—which give users the information they need without requiring them to visit actual websites. Industry research and surveys confirm this downward trend.

SEO now accounts for around 50% of all traffic to a website, but AEO has decreased the number of website visits by 60%. So if your website was getting 1000 visits before 2020, that number would be around 400 today. That means that current SEO would now give you around 200 visits, whereas it would have been 600 in the past (a 66% decrease).

AEO is not only killing your web traffic, but it has also all but neutered SEO. So how can you stack the odds in your favor?

There's No Place Like Home

Just because your web traffic went down does not mean that you should forget about your website (home base) as a key tool in your marketing arsenal. It is still the best way to convert inquisitive minds into paying customers. Your website is the only place where you have 100% control over the messages, and you can be sure that your users are more interested in your content than in cat videos.

Currently, we are seeing a 5:1 ratio of direct traffic to search visitors on business websites, driven by a combination of social posting, email marketing, and some advertising. How did we achieve that success? By creating high-quality, thought-leadership, original content in the form of blogs and videos.

A website's main goal (unless it's ecommerce) is to build or develop a personal relationship with customers and prospects. That's why every page, post, and landing zone should have a call to action that gives the user an opportunity to identify themselves. Since cookies are now being regulated, you have to tell your audience you are tagging them. Generally, this will be isolated to your own website and not the internet and advertising systems.

Users need to feel safe and trust you for them to want to provide their contact information in exchange for a personal email or phone call. I can assure you that sending that person to a bot or AI answer engine will frustrate them. If you really need to get them information, have a human say, “Here's your answer. Can I send that to you?” Your goal is to make them feel valued, safe, and happy when they visit your website.

Become Content with Content Creation

AI is changing the world faster than you can ChatGPT the words FAST (The word “fast” has at least six distinct meanings and usages in English). I showed you how it's changing the way I create content, and I can only imagine how it's changing your business.

My main point is that your audience needs a constant flow of new and repurposed information to stay interested and informed. Repurposing old content means updating, personalizing, and reformatting old content—not just reposting.

Thought-leadership is about setting the direction for others by sharing valuable expertise and innovative ideas that drive growth, transformation, or best practices for your industry. That requires new and timely information that is original and not a synthesized post created only by AI.

Another change we have noticed is when we share new content within the LinkedIn advertising ecosystem. Ads with new content (or those that appear new through repurposing) have a 50% higher engagement rate than ads that have been rotating for a while. My theory on that is that the image draws attention, and when someone keeps seeing the same image, they think “been there—read that!”

Placing that content frequently and consistently on your website gives people a reason to return and engage with it. Linking back to it with social media posts increases the chance it will be read. Emailing it to your client list ensures that they also see and engage with it. And finally, advertising using it will increase the chance that someone who does not already know, like, and trust you will engage with your company for the first time. They will probably enter your content distribution system as a repeat engager.

Closing Thought

English is hard, and AI is easy. Thought-leadership is hard, and AI thought-leadership is fuzzy. The concept of using content to build a business is challenging, and there is no easy way to establish business relationships solely through AI.

Ultimately, the secret sauce for building lasting business relationships isn’t a clever algorithm or a perfectly optimized answer box—it’s authentic, thought-provoking content carved from real expertise and lived experience.

Yes, English might stump AI readers, and yes, the digital tides keep shifting, but the human need for insight and connection remains unchanged.

Make your new original content reflect your voice, your vision, and your values. In a world that’s speeding toward automation, never underestimate the power of showing up as yourself, again and again. Because in a world where AI can generate a lot of words and meanings, only you can create conversations and relationships that matter.

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Comment below and share your thoughts, ideas, or questions about business-to-business sales and marketing today! Do you have a sales or marketing communications strategy that works for you? What tips or techniques can you share that work for you and your business?

To learn more about this and other topics on B2b Sales & Marketing, visit our podcast website at The Bacon Podcast.