Why AI Recommends Your Competitor & What to do About It with Kris Jones

Kris Jones has been in search since the late 1990s. He built and sold Pepperjam, and now runs the agency LSEO. In this latest episode of the SEJ Podcast, he gives Loren Baker a one-word answer to the biggest question in AI search right now, and everything else we cover comes back to it. We get into why AI systems have taken over the comparison step that buyers used to do themselves, why the raw material for those answers sits on websites you don't own, and what that means for where your budget actually goes. Kris makes the case that most of this is still fundamental SEO, names the cheapest immediate step most businesses are ignoring, and explains why brand messaging consistency is the new NAP consistency. We also dig into what happens when AI Overviews get your pricing wrong, how people are really asking these questions, and why sizing your AI budget against today's referral traffic will leave you short.

[06:02] — AI Took Over The Comparison Step

[07:33] — Why Brand Is The Bridge

[13:33] — The Awards Your Competitors Are Applying For

[18:32] — Brand Messaging Is The New NAP Consistency

[21:23] — When AI Overviews Get Your Pricing Wrong

[28:56] — How People Are Actually Asking

[37:29] — Beyond ChatGPT And Google