As consumers become more reliant on AI for answers, the way they discover products and services is changing. Similarweb’s 2026 Generative AI study found that 95% of ChatGPT users also use Google, a figure that’s remained unchanged between September 2025 and May 2026. This suggests AI is being added to the search journey, rather than replacing traditional search.
This shift is already evident among UK consumers, with consumer champion Which?, finding that 51% of Brits admit to using AI tools in their personal lives to search for products, services, and advice on the internet. As AI becomes another way for consumers to research and make decisions, it’s essential for brands to consider not only where they appear in traditional search results, but also how they appear in AI answers.
The shift in how people search is changing how brands need to build visibility online. In an era of AI search, digital PR now has another role: helping brands stand out not only in traditional search results, but also in Google’s AI Overviews and LLM responses. This visibility depends not just on what a brand says about itself, but also on what third-party trusted sources say about the brand, and increasingly, on the earned media coverage that puts those sources on record.
What AI search changes for Digital PR?
- The value of brand mentions
For years, the success of a digital PR campaign has often been based on the number of backlinks generated. While earning high-quality backlinks remains an important outcome, AI search makes what is being said about a brand increasingly important, and that is where the value of brand mentions comes into play.
When an AI tool is asked to recommend a product or service, it needs to draw on information across the internet – from news publications, industry websites and other authoritative third-party websites to help form its response. What credible sources say about a brand can help shape how understood and represented that brand is in AI answers.
For digital PR, this creates a shift in focus. Rather than measuring the success of a campaign on backlinks alone, brands should also consider the quality, relevance and context of the mentions they earn. A mention in a relevant, authoritative publication can reinforce what a brand is known for, create a credible reference point beyond its own website and demonstrate expertise.
A December 2025 study by Ahrefs which analysed over 75,000 brands, revealed that brands with more mentions across blog posts, titles and anchors are more likely to appear in AI Overviews. This is particularly relevant as AI-powered search becomes increasingly prevalent in the UK, with Ofcom’s 2025 Online Nation report finding that 53% of people in the UK say they often see AI summaries, while 30% of keyword searches deliver AI-supported overviews.
- Create information worth citing
AI search is also changing the type of information that can help a brand stand out. Rather than simply being mentioned, brands need to create information that is useful for other sources to reference, and therefore, for AI tools to draw upon.
For digital PR, this puts a greater emphasis on expert insight, original research, unique data and genuinely newsworthy findings. Campaigns that provide exclusive data or expert insight provide journalists with a reason to cover a brand, and for their readers to click on news articles. Once published, this information is ingested by AI systems, who use this information to cite a brand once a topical question is asked.
- Get into the sources AI trusts
Not only is what is said about a brand important, but AI search is also changing where brands need to be visible. As AI tools draw on a wide range of third-party sources, the websites and publications a brand appears in can influence how it is represented in AI answers.
Muck Rack’s ‘What is AI reading’ report released in May 2026, analysed over 25 million links cited by AI, and found that journalism accounted for 27% of all AI citations, with a wider pattern where 84% of links cited came from earned media. By building a presence across trusted earned, third-party sources, brands can strengthen their external authority that both search engines and AI tools use to understand and represent them.
What this means in practice for Digital PR
The changes brought by AI search mean digital PR must look beyond traditional campaign outcomes. While generating high-quality backlinks will always remain important, Digital PR now needs to consider how campaigns can build a brand’s wider online presence and how represented it is in AI search.
From the campaign ideation stage, it’s essential to consider not only what topics will gain media attention, but also what a brand wants to be known for, and how its coverage can contribute to AI visibility.
In practice, this means a few shifts to how agencies plan and report on campaigns:
- Reporting should include mention volume and quality alongside backlinks, not instead of them
- Campaign ideation should ask, ‘would this be citable by an AI tool answering a question in our category?’ alongside ‘would this campaign gain media attention?’
- Target lists should weight authoritative, category-relevant publications rather than raw domain volume
AI search broadens the job of digital PR. It’s no longer only about securing coverage and links; it’s about supporting your client’s brand to be visible in both traditional and generative search.
Why Digital PR is more important than ever
As AI search becomes an increasingly common way for consumers to discover information, products, and services, brands face a new visibility challenge. While ranking highly in traditional search results has its advantages, brands must also be visible across the wider web, where AI tools can draw in relevant information for their answers.
A 2025 study by the University of Toronto found that AI search relies heavily on earned media over brand owned content when sourcing information. This is supported by a separate study by Ahrefs, which in December 2025 found that brand mentions correlate more strongly with AI Overview visibility than backlinks. Together, these findings highlight the importance of growing a brand’s presence beyond its own website.
If a brand isn’t being talked about, referenced, or recognised by authoritative third-party sources, AI tools have less external evidence to draw on when answering questions about it.
This makes it more important for brands to adopt digital PR than ever before. By creating referenceable content, building a consistent presence across trusted sources, and securing credible third-party coverage, digital PR can shape how a brand is understood beyond its own website. Digital PR is now an essential part of building the authority, credibility, and visibility that brands need to compete in an increasingly AI-powered search landscape.
