This is such an important question, and we’re incredibly passionate about this at Frontier15. We grew up in the world of content, communication and experience strategy, long before ‘optimisation’ became part of everyday vocabulary. For us our work has always been about people: connecting ideas, emotion, and clarity to move someone to action.
Now, as AI-powered search reshapes discovery, that same principle still stands. It just needs balance.
Read time: 5 minutes
Why this balance matters
AI search pushes a deep understanding of the consumer even higher up the funnel. It’s no longer enough to know what someone is searching for, we need to understand why they’re searching: their intent, pain points, motivations, and even the emotions behind their query.
That means creating content that doesn’t just answer questions with facts or opinions but resonates with the why behind them. We’re not just informing people, we’re empathising with them, helping them to solve a problem, feel differently, or make a decision.
Daniel Hulme, writing about the rise of GEO in The Drum this month put it perfectly: “Teach AI who you are, not just what you sell.”
This is the essence of balancing writing for humans and machines. It’s about helping AI, and therefore your future customers, understand your values, your tone, your expertise, and your purpose.
The trap of soulless optimisation
We see it all the time. Traditional SEO teams, scrambling to ‘go GEO’, spinning up AI-assisted content engines that churn out hundreds of articles ticking all the technical boxes… but missing the point entirely.
Yes, they might appear in AI search results, but what’s the experience like for the reader? Often thin, repetitive, and forgettable. The brand ‘shows up’ sure, but it doesn’t connect.
Visibility without humanity is a hollow win, and a temporary one at that. Succeeding in GEO isn’t about playing the algorithm, it’s about earning trust.
You. Just. Can’t. Fake. That.
The foundations: facts, structure and schemas
We already know that strong GEO content has to start with structure. Machines love to be able to ‘read’ your content easily. That means clearly answering questions, providing accurate facts, and using the right schemas (FAQ, Article, HowTos, Product etc.) to make your information understandable to machines. Without this, AI systems can’t interpret your authority or cite you.
These technical signals are your foundation. But on their own, they’re not enough.
The real growth happens when you add meaning, emotion and experience on top — when your content actually improves lives, informs decisions, or sparks ideas.
Because this is what builds authority and trust, two of the most powerful ranking signals in generative search. When users feel something from your content, they share it, cite it, and review it. It‘s that vital activity builds the brand signals AI engines rely on to decide who’s credible.
Emotion, consistency and the halo effect
When you speak to users consistently, both on your own channels and across the digital universe, you create what we call a ‘halo of humanity’.
Really understanding your personas and speaking to their hearts as well as their heads drives emotional responses that can ripple outward. People who feel supported, inspired or informed will share that experience (and people who feel let down, or abandoned by your brand will do the same).
Reviews, social mentions, community forums: these are the very signals that reinforce visibility in AI ecosystems. If you’re getting it right, they will tell both humans and machines: this brand is trustworthy.
But how do you actually balance the two?
Here’s how we approach it at Frontier15:
- Start with empathy.
Get right under the skin of your personas. Build them out in as much detail as possible. What problem are they really trying to solve? What’s frustrating them? What language do they use?
Speak like you’re helping a person, not chasing an algorithm. - Build clear structure.
Use question-based headings, concise answers and transparent formatting. Make video content accessible, provide transcripts, and notes. Make it easy for both humans and machines to extract value. - Optimise for meaning, not manipulation.
Use factual accuracy, schema markup and conversational phrasing, not keyword stuffing. AI models reward clarity and context, and humans love to get to the details quickly. - Prioritise accessibility.
Accessible content, such as plain language, clear contrast, alt text, and transcripts, doesn’t just help people; it makes your content easier for AI to understand too. Deliver inclusivity and optimisation. - Balance volume with experience.
Don’t sacrifice depth for scale. Yes, you need coverage across key topics, but experience-led content (the stuff that is truly useful, human, and memorable) will always outlast a thousand forgettable posts.
The outcome: visibility with soul
When you blend structure with story, empathy with evidence, you create something more powerful than SEO ever promised.
You create discoverability with meaning; content that AI can understand, humans can feel, and both can trust.
Remember “Teach AI who you are, not just what you sell.”
Do that, and you won’t just appear in AI search results, you’ll imbed in people’s minds.
About the author
What we do
Frontier15 helps brands achieve visibility in the era of AI search, creating content strategies that make your expertise discoverable and trusted by both people and machines. Get in touch and ask us how we can map a GEO-informed content strategy that helps future-proof your brand.
Further reading
- BrightonSEO Report: If You Didn’t Go (or Think You Shouldn’t Care)
- What are the basics of GEO optimisation?
- Finding the balance: How can I create content for humans and AI? And does it matter for AI search visibility?
- How can I measure my brand’s visibility in AI search?
- Can I test how my site appears in ChatGPT, Claude, Co-Pilot, Perplexity or other LLMs?