What is the difference between regular SEO and AISO? And why do you need both?

SEO and AISO are not just two different, cool-sounding English acronyms – they are two approaches to website optimization that require different actions. The difference lies in the objectives of both strategies.

SEO is primarily focused on improving Google search engine positioning. It is the basis of the organic traffic acquisition strategy. Google still accounts for about 90% of organic traffic on the Polish market in 2025(1). Here, the mechanism is pretty simple and easy to measure – we start by building the visibility of the website on Google, then we increase organic traffic, and thus also conversions. The goal of SEO is to attract users from Google to your website and increase sales of your products/services, while the KPIs can be considered to be the website’s position for given keywords and conversions.

Source: Statcounter

AISO is all about building visibility in AI search results—in Google’s AI Overview, but also LLM models like ChatGPT, Perplexity, and Gemini. While AI traffic is just a drop in the bucket compared to the number of Google queries, one day it may eventually turn into an ocean. That’s why you should make room for AISO in your marketing activities, preferably starting now. What will be the goal of AI positioning? Building brand awareness and reaching users at various stages of the purchase path with your offer. Users are increasingly asking AI models for recommendations for different products or services, and your goal should be to be included in their answers.

You already know that SEO and AISO goals are different, but can they be achieved using the same methods? Yes and no.

Of course, a well-run SEO process will also help build visibility in AI. Properly constructed, high-quality content, technical transparency of the website, and creating valuable backlinks will be helpful and may make you appear in some AI results. However, obviously, it is worth helping luck along.

Why do you need a strategy other than just SEO?

Google and LLM models have different ways of processing content. Google scans and indexes the entire page it visits. LLM models, due to limited resources, process only some elements of content (chunks) and then use fragments based on them to create responses.

This means that content hubs, FAQs, structured data, and the context of the content created will be particularly important for AISO. Paragraphs of text designed for AISO should be high-quality, consistent, and specific. AI models don’t like to read about the history of pasta in a recipe for spaghetti bolognese—those days are long gone.

SEO = a continuous process, results often take several months to appear, offers stable results in terms of traffic and conversions, is scalable, and is more reliable in terms of profit.

AISO = effects can appear very quickly because LLM models scan the web for answers in real time. It requires different actions from SEO. It can bring results in the form of mentions in AI models, which potentially translates into recognition and increased trust in your brand.

Source: Emarketer

SEO is the foundation of traffic, especially for B2B and e-commerce businesses. However, it is necessary to respond to changing user behavior, as users are increasingly turning to AI models for help with more confidence. In some industries, this will be more visible than in others. For example, in the SaaS industry, as much as 20% of information already comes from LLM. AI traffic is a new, rapidly growing channel that can be a real benefit to your business.

We tested this ourselves – in June, Delante acquired three leads from ChatGPT.

That is why this is the right time to think about a strategy for building visibility in AI and introducing AISO as a new element for acquiring potential customers.

Check out: 10 Myths About SEO in AI

Firstly, don’t give up on SEO. It is still the primary channel for generating traffic and sales. Don’t let anyone convince you that SEO is dead (we’ve been hearing that for about 10 years now).

Secondly, plan an appropriate AISO strategy as a parallel course of action. SEO and AISO can be a very harmonious and beneficial duo, provided you implement well-thought-out measures.

Thirdly, don’t wait for your competition to overtake you. As we mentioned, AISO can bring instant results and is definitely worth considering before AI models become friends with your competition.

What should you take away from this article? Standard SEO, while still vital, won’t be enough to compete for visibility in AI-powered search results. In response to changing user behavior and the growing popularity of LLM models, it’s essential to address this area and implement an AISO strategy. If you want AI to talk about your business, start acting today!

Sources:

https://gs.statcounter.com/search-engine-market-share/all/poland/#monthly-202501-202506-bar