Last week I needed pest control, so I opened ChatGPT and asked for the best affordable option near me. The top result had great reviews and fair pricing, so I called for a quote. The owner was thrilled to hear from a new customer and asked how I’d found him. When I said ChatGPT, he laughed. I was the 31st caller in two weeks who had found his small, locally run business through AI.

As a PR professional, I had to ask what he’d been doing for marketing. He told me he hadn’t changed a thing and was still focused on the same media coverage, brand mentions and customer reviews he’d always relied on. AI had simply picked up on the reputation he’d spent years building.

So when people get instant answers instead of a page of links, how does your brand become the answer? Brands show up in AI answers when credible third parties consistently say the same clear things about them. At Ascent, we recommend building that credibility with the PESO Model®, a framework PR professionals have trusted for years. Earned media does the most work, while owned, shared and paid media help AI tell one consistent story. It’s how we help brands rise above the noise with strategies rooted in clarity, authenticity and confidence.

What’s the difference between SEO, AEO, and GEO?

Modern search runs on three types of engine optimization: search engine optimization (SEO), answer engine optimization (AEO) and generative engine optimization (GEO). Daniel Murray, creator of The Marketing Millennials, summed it up in a recent newsletter: “SEO gets you found. AEO gets you quoted. GEO gets you remembered.”

Our vice president Beth Bolding breaks down each one in our latest LinkedIn newsletter, “Found, Quoted, Remembered: A Brand Visibility Strategy for 2027.” We’ve also covered how AI exposes gaps in your communication strategy. This piece focuses on how to put PESO to work, starting with the channel AI trusts most.

How does the PESO model work in the AI era?

Earned Media

Earned media is third-party credibility, and it’s what AI relies on most. AI weighs sources very similarly to how people do, by looking at what others say about you. Muck Rack’s December 2025 report, “What Is AI Reading?”  found that about 94% of AI citations come from non-paid sources, with earned media alone accounting for 82%. Yet when Muck Rack compared the most-pitched journalists with those AI engines cite most for a given brand, the overlap averaged just 2%. Pitching more journalists won’t improve your results if they aren’t the ones AI is reading.

That’s why you need a PR partner who pitches with purpose. As one of Inc.’s Regionals: Mid-Atlantic fastest-growing companies, Ascent builds earned visibility through executive thought leadership, original surveys, podcast opportunities, press releases and more. In a December 2025 study MuckRack also found that press releases have seen a notable jump in AI citations over the past year. The result is a brand story that shows up consistently everywhere, so there’s never a question about who you are or what you stand for.

Owned Media

Owned media is the story you tell about your brand on the channels you control. That means keeping your website current, from your About page and leadership bios to career opportunities, and making sure your newsroom is accurate and up to date. If you’ve recently had a leadership change, update it everywhere, or AI may share outdated information with the people searching for you.

Shared Media

Shared media is what your brand posts on platforms like LinkedIn, Instagram and YouTube. Active profiles help you show up in search, and posts that answer common questions give answer engines clear material to pull from. Tools like Perplexity and Google’s AI Overviews frequently cite LinkedIn and YouTube, so consistent bios, messaging and executive posts help AI tell one clear story about your brand.

Paid Media

Paid media is any content you pay to place or promote, like sponsored articles, paid social and search ads. AI rarely cites ads directly, but paid puts your best content in front of more people, driving the engagement and media attention AI does notice. Use it to amplify what’s already working, like a strong earned placement or original research.

Why does AI trust earned media the most?

The pest control owner built a reputation worth repeating over years of good work, and AI repeated it to everyone who asked.

AI builds its answers from what’s already out there about your brand. If your website, press coverage and social channels tell different versions of your story, AI will repeat the confusion. When they all tell the same clear story, AI can become one of your strongest advocates.

At Ascent, we start with who you are, who you want to reach and the story you want to tell. Then we close the gaps with an integrated strategy across every channel.

Contact us to find out what AI is saying about your brand and how we can help shape it.

Frequently Asked Questions