At BrightonSEO’s 10th anniversary event this October, roughly 4,500 marketers gathered. One theme dominated: the shift from ranking on Google to being considered by AI systems during customer research.
SEO gets you found. GEO gets you recommended – according to practitioner consensus, not a fixed standard
One of the conference’s most-engaged sessions, led by Jean Dejsuvan , drew a sharp distinction: being recommended by an AI system appears to require being a brand genuinely worth recommending, being easy to recognize, and leaving consistent evidence of who you are across the web. This is practitioner experience converging around a pattern – useful directional signal, not an established scientific framework.
Proprietary insight vs. generic content
A recurring observation, synthesized by StrategiQ’s conference hub , was that generic content seems to carry less weight with models trained to reward novelty. Measured citation lift from original research is a promising early signal, though it comes from individual practitioner testing rather than peer-reviewed research – worth building strategy around cautiously, not treating as settled fact.
Accessibility as a possible machine-readability signal
Several sessions noted that many LLMs parse pages through the Accessibility Tree, the same structure used by screen readers. This suggests accessibility work may have a secondary benefit for AI readability, in addition to its primary purpose of serving users with disabilities.
Trust and memory still decide outcomes
“The algorithm gets you seen – psychology gets you remembered,” from Chloe Blades’s session , was one of the most repeated lines of the conference. Visibility is a starting point; durable recall depends on accurate information paired with genuine differentiation – a theme Ross Simmonds’s keynote pushed further into territory where audiences effectively “install” a brand into a model’s memory through what they say about it.
What this confirms and what it doesn’t for businesses competing globally
The conference reinforced that basic SEO audits are now table stakes, and that diagnostic prioritization not volume is where value lies. That’s the premise behind the Three-Layer Approach: a structured assessment across Human/UX trust, Search/SEO fundamentals, and AI/GEO extractability.
One important caveat we want to be explicit about: a strong LayerScore is diagnostic, not predictive. It identifies where your content is structurally weak relative to three audiences — it does not guarantee that any specific AI system will cite or recommend you. Treat it as a prioritization tool for where to invest, not a promise of outcome.
Who built this framework
The Three-Layer Approach was developed by Nickolass Jensen , a digital strategist and software developer with 25+ years of professional experience in technical SEO, WordPress, and AI visibility, and founder of Nettpilot AS – now in its 20th+ year of operation. He previously consulted for Omnicom Media Group , delivering work for StarCom, RedPerformance, and Semway, and has delivered measurable results for companies including ABAX (+26M NOK in growth) , BOVG (450%+ growth over 10 years), and Komplett Group.
Curious where your brand stands? Get in touch to discuss a 3LA audit, or explore the framework directly at threelayerapproach.com.