How far would you go to discover the secret behind new SEO, which is these days known as GEO or AIO (AI Overview) optimization?

Well, you can stay in your room on a moody sunday afternoon, no need to go too far.

But let us start from the …past.

Ten years ago, link building was paramount and do-follow links were considered essential. Anything less was deemed inadequate. We all understood that quality do-follow placements could significantly help with site rankings.

Some agencies became wealthy by selling links. While agencies continue to buy and sell links, there is a noticeable shift in the market known as linkless comments.

This is not another links are dead post, rather:”SEO is alive, but it evolved”

This new approach is connected with Generative Engine Optimization (GEO)

What is GEO and Why Linkless Comments Matter?

GEO is becoming a significant factor in the search world. As large language models (I always forget what LLM stands for) change how people find brands and make choices, the job of a GEO (yep,we are GEO experts now) expert is to ensure that your content and brand appear in AI-generated answers, not just in traditional search results.

However, it’s important to remember that old-school SEO is only part of a larger optimization strategy now.

As you can see in the infographic above, GEO is SEO done the right way plus linkless comments and video mentions. This is not a brand new thing. It is just getting seious traction. I am sure you already saw linkless comment spam on forums.

How linkless comments work and why are they good for SEO?

Linkless Comments extends beyond traditional content optimization. It is a simple approach that includes:

Strategic Publishing: Placing content in locations where AI tools are most likely to discover it. Think Reddit (and many other niche forums, such as Pinside). This increases brand visibility without relying solely on backlinks.

Positive Brand Mentions: Earning mentions across the web can enhance brand credibility and recognition in AI-generated responses. You are basically shaping public opinion thorugh AI. If AI falls for your smart placements, buyer will trust AI.

Lots of it and make it human: You never know which comment or video will end up in AI overview (in the future in full AI mode, this is coming, be prepared) so you need many comments…everywhere.

Process of placing Linkless Comments and Mentions

Placing linkless comments and video mentions for the purpose of brand exposure should be done properly. Latest research shows that 50% of your comments should be placed on Reddit ,while 50% should be elsewhere (think of Quora, Medium, Instagram, YouTube videos and reels, Blogs, any forum related to your brand, even remotely.)

You can place linkless comments using auto-mode which is something many will choose to do as it is easier. But this will lead to getting your brand lost rather than found.

Your comments and video mentions should be natural, here are a couple of rules:

1. Comment to help someone, do not try to push your narative, be natural
2. Mention other brands (your competitors) next to your brand, offer AI a way to put you in a certain niche.
3. Video mentions such as “Tool1 vs Tool2” or “Best tools under $300” are now also a part of GEO. No links but mentions and comments are there.

Every piece of content you are placing needs to be well researched. Give clear confident answers and first hand data and experiences.

And if this is not something you are interested in, try searching a product or a service, I am sure some of the top results will be a one year Reddit thread. The same way you are clicking this Reddit link to read what are they saying about your company, the same way Google feeds their AI with these threads.

So let us look at what is in front of us and if you are too late to the party:

YEAR	PREDICTION	THE SHIFT
2026	The “Hybrid” Era Ends	AI Overviews will expand to 75% of all queries globally. The “10 blue links” will move permanently “below the fold” on mobile devices.
2027	The Tipping Point	ChatGPT & AI Search volume surpasses Google Traditional Search. Users stop “searching” and start “asking.”
2028	Legacy Mode	Traditional search results become a “Legacy View” feature (similar to how we view cached pages today). 90%+ of user needs are met without clicking a website link.

How much of Google is now AI?

60% of U.S. Queries now feature an AI Overview.

The “Old School” 10 blue links are rapidly disappearing from the top of the fold.

PREVALENCE BY INTENT: Not all searches are equal. AI aggressively targets questions over shopping.

• Informational Queries (How/What/Why): [||||||||||] 99% (Virtually Guaranteed)
• General U.S. Search Volume: [||||||----] 60%
• Commercial/Shopping Queries: [|||-------] 3-15% (Google still protects ad space)
• YMYL (Your Money Your Life): [|||||-----] 50%+ (Health/Legal/Finance)

AI systems don’t rely solely on backlinks to assess your authority. They consider every mention of your brand across the web, including mentions without clickable links.

Yes, you still have a higher chance of getting that mention if you are ranked higher in traditional SERPs. But everything flows, fast.

People will get their answers via AI overviews and AI mode, no more reading 2000 word articles saying nothing new. But, there will be citations. The more you get cited the more authority you get in the “eyes” of AI.

In my next article I will post new study on pillar articles and why all your articles should look like that.