2026 Marketing Predictions: The 2000s Playbook Pivot for Zero-Click SEO
At a Glance: In 2026, marketers will prioritize Brand Journalism, Reddit communities, and PR to influence AI search results
Stop me if you’ve heard of these before:
Blogs
Public Relations
Forums
No, you didn’t just see someone in a Von Dutch hat walk by you, we’re just reusing marketing tactics from that same early 2000’s era. Why?
Marketers realize if they don’t win the AI search results battle, they will lose the entire daggum war.
AI Search Results Will Outrank Everything Else
Whether you’re using ChatGPT, Google Gemini, or God help us, Microsoft Bing, more than 50% of the internet’s collective search results now receive some form of AI response — these responses going above ‘normal’ search results hence the name “zero click.”
While traditional Search Engine Marketing (SEM) and Search Engine Optimization (SEO) (our 2026 digital strategy services) still have a place in the marketer’s playbook, the future display order for all search results will be:
AI Search Results
SEM (sponsored) Search Results
SEO (organic) Search Results
And after decades of marketing on the internet, we know being the first (or among the first few) results is what drives marketing success — which makes prioritizing Zero Click Attribution (AI Search Results) now the most important thing your marketing team should be thinking of.
How To Execute a Zero Click Attribution Strategy
Purpose-filled Article Writing Fuels AI Search
Okay, I was having a little bit of fun with the whole “blogs” thing, but they do have an essential place in your playbook right. We think of these today as articles you’re publishing directly or as us marketers like to call it Brand Journalism. At the core of this effort is knowing your audience, answering their questions directly, and publishing them proactively in a helpful manner.
Establish 20 to 30 article ideas (AI can and should help you here!) about your company and its products.
Make these articles specific! This is a great time to connect with your customer service department, sales teams, etc. and ask them “What questions do you get asked?”
Create extra stickiness by scheduling these against company activities, seasons, etc. to help drive extra traffic (you could also promise them to a media outlet…see below)
We know what to do from here: video reels, social posts, sharing with employees through internal communications, and more.
Over time, AI is gathering your responses and those specific questions you asked? You guessed it — they’ve now become someone's specific AI search result. (It feels like your blog post was learning how to walk just yesterday!)
TLDR? A recent article by Google says it best:
“The Best ads are just answers” - What the breakout Search trends of 2025 mean for your marketing strategy in 2026
The ROI of Public Relations in a Generative AI Era
Something tells me the owners of ChatGPT will want to recoup on their many investments into content licensing deals with the AP, News Corp, Hearst, and so on. What news outlets are saying about you has always been important, and it will continue to be in this new era.
It’s no secret that newsrooms are smaller than ever, so make their job incredibly easy. Send ready-to-use images, easy-to-pull quotes, and new, timely information their readers / listeners will find useful.
Why Reddit and Community Forums Control 2026 AI Search Results:
All of the real-world discussions are happening on Reddit, and the conversations happening here have an outsized thumb on AI search results. If someone has questions about a product you have, they’re asking it here.
Unlike LinkedIn where users are in a ‘work’ mindset, Redditors are often in a ‘learning and exploring’ mindset. Enabling comments can act as a high-conversion, realtime FAQ section; however, requires active monitoring.
Preparing for Reddit can and should be simple:
Join Reddit! I always hear “I know I should be on the platform” replies in Reddit conversations. Some of my more favorite subreddits to start following? r/whatisit, r/AccidentalWesAnderson, r/LinkedInLunatics, and my favorite tv show (rebooting next month!) r/Scrubs.
Use your Brand Journalism content as a springboard for topics to post about on your subreddit.
Bring prepared question and answer documents to help you quickly reply to comments and questions.
Reddit tends to be a cheekier place - some of the best branded pieces of content I see on the platform use memes to clearly convey the type of brand they are in a way that speaks directly to target audiences. Be ready for this tone!
Content Strategy Drives Marketing Success with Zero Click Attribution
“Khaner!”
“Yes?(!)”
“Are you telling me we should think about how a blog should be exploded into 5 to 20 posts on Reddit?!”
“YES!”
The ArcSense Framework: Human Resonance Loop
Know your audience. Know your product. Know both intimately. Then connect the points in between with conversations, pathways, and mechanisms to make it happen. Create a content strategy for the entire year and beyond that runs in between the tactics and platforms above. Why?
“In AI Mode, people bring complex queries directly to Search, confident that Google’s AI can handle the nuance in ways that traditional Search couldn’t in the past.” - 5 AI-powered Search behaviors that have flattened marketing
Get specific. Embrace the longtail. Google is telling us this is where it’s going.
About the Author
Khaner’s 20+ year career has spanned all areas of marketing and communications. He’s held leadership positions with global, publicly traded companies in both technology and pharma, spearheaded the public affairs team at PR Daily’s 2022 Midsize Agency of the Year, was a reporter in the NC Capital Press Corp, and led communications for a startup on its way to an IPO.
He is now sharing his extensive corporate experience and agency background across multiple industries with clients in founding ArcSense Communications.
He has been published in communications textbooks, was featured in PRWeek for his work in leading one of the world’s first corporate communications responses to the COVID-19 pandemic, and is a frequent guest and speaker on industry focused podcasts and events. You can find him on LinkedIn or Instagram!
last updated Jan. 7, 2026
