LLM Marketing: Will Your Brand Be Seen?

Navigating the New Frontier: Boosting Brand Visibility Across Search and LLMs

The digital marketing sphere is in constant flux. The rise of Large Language Models (LLMs) presents both a challenge and a monumental opportunity for marketers. How do you adapt your strategies to ensure brand visibility across search and LLMs, and continue to drive growth? It’s a question every marketer is grappling with.

I remember back in late 2025, I was working with a small bakery, “Sweet Surrender,” nestled right off the Marietta Square in Cobb County. Their website was beautiful, their pastries were divine, but their online presence? Let’s just say it needed some serious help. Sweet Surrender relied heavily on foot traffic from the Strand Theatre and the Earl Smith Strand Senior Center events. They had a basic website, a neglected Facebook page, and zero understanding of how to appear in search results, let alone in the outputs of LLMs.

Their owner, Sarah, came to me desperate. “I’m losing customers to that new cupcake place down on Roswell Road,” she lamented. “They’re everywhere online! I don’t even know where to start.” Sarah’s problem isn’t unique. Many businesses, especially smaller ones, are struggling to adapt to the AI-driven changes in search and content discovery. The solution requires a multi-faceted approach, blending traditional SEO principles with new strategies tailored for LLMs.

Understanding the LLM Landscape

LLMs are changing how people find information. Instead of just searching for “bakery Marietta GA,” users might ask, “Where can I find the best chocolate croissants near the Marietta Square that are open late?” or even “Give me a detailed itinerary for a day trip to Marietta, including a stop for a delicious pastry.”

This shift demands a change in content strategy. Marketing now needs to focus on creating content that answers specific questions, provides detailed information, and showcases brand personality. Consider, for example, how Google’s Search Generative Experience (SGE) is incorporating AI-powered summaries directly into search results. A business that doesn’t have robust, well-structured information is going to be invisible in that context.

One key aspect of succeeding with LLMs is understanding their limitations. While powerful, these models are only as good as the data they’re trained on. Accuracy and reliability can vary, and they are prone to biases. It’s crucial to verify information from LLMs and to provide them with accurate, up-to-date information about your business. This is where structured data markup becomes so important.

Structured Data: Your Secret Weapon

Structured data markup, using schemas like those available at Schema.org, helps search engines and LLMs understand the context of your content. By adding structured data to Sweet Surrender’s website, we could tell Google (and by extension, many LLMs) that they were a bakery, their opening hours, the types of pastries they offered, and their location.

We implemented schema markup for:

• LocalBusiness
• Restaurant (as a subtype of LocalBusiness)
• OpeningHoursSpecification
• MenuItem
• Review

This allowed search engines to display rich snippets in search results, including star ratings, prices, and popular menu items. More importantly, it provided LLMs with the structured information they needed to accurately answer user queries about Sweet Surrender. We used Google’s Rich Results Test to validate our implementation.

Content is Still King (But It Needs a New Crown)

Creating high-quality, informative content is still paramount. However, the type of content that resonates with both search engines and LLMs is evolving.

Here’s what nobody tells you: It’s not enough to just churn out blog posts. You need to create content that is:

• Comprehensive: Answer every possible question a user might have.
• Structured: Use headings, subheadings, and bullet points to make your content easy to scan and understand.
• Engaging: Write in a clear, concise, and compelling style.
• Authoritative: Back up your claims with data and cite your sources.

For Sweet Surrender, we created a series of blog posts answering common questions about baking, local events in Marietta, and the history of different pastries. We also created detailed product pages for each of their pastries, highlighting their ingredients, flavor profiles, and origins. I had Sarah write a blog post about her grandmother’s croissant recipe, which resonated particularly well with the local community.

Don’t forget video. According to a recent Nielsen report, video consumption continues to rise, and LLMs are increasingly able to extract information from video content. We started creating short videos showcasing Sweet Surrender’s pastries and the baking process.

The Power of Local Citations

Local citations are mentions of your business name, address, and phone number (NAP) on other websites. These citations help search engines verify your business information and improve your local search ranking.

We ensured that Sweet Surrender was listed on all the major online directories, including Yelp, Foursquare, and Google Business Profile. We also reached out to local blogs and websites to get them to mention Sweet Surrender. A listing in the Marietta Daily Journal’s “Best of Cobb County” guide was a huge win. Consistency is key here. Make sure your NAP information is identical across all platforms. Even small discrepancies can hurt your ranking.

Case Study: Sweet Surrender’s Transformation

Over six months, we implemented the strategies outlined above for Sweet Surrender. The results were remarkable.

• Website traffic increased by 150%.
• Local search rankings improved significantly. They went from page three to the first page for “bakery Marietta GA.”
• Online orders increased by 80%.
• Sarah reported a noticeable increase in foot traffic, especially during events at the Strand Theatre.

The most impressive result? When users asked LLMs about bakeries in Marietta, Sweet Surrender was consistently mentioned as a top choice, often with detailed information about their pastries and opening hours. This was a direct result of our structured data markup and comprehensive content strategy.

We invested roughly $2,000 in tools (Ahrefs for keyword research, Moz Local for citation management) and spent about 40 hours on content creation and optimization. The return on investment was substantial. Sarah even hired a new baker to keep up with the increased demand.

Beyond the Basics: Thinking Like an LLM

To truly succeed in this new era, you need to think like an LLM. What information do these models need to accurately understand and represent your brand?

Consider these strategies:

• Create a knowledge graph: A knowledge graph is a structured representation of your brand, its products, and its relationships with other entities. This can help LLMs understand your brand in a more nuanced way.
• Monitor LLM outputs: Regularly check what LLMs are saying about your brand. If you find inaccuracies or biases, take steps to correct them.
• Participate in the conversation: Engage with users on social media and online forums. Answer their questions and address their concerns. This can help shape the narrative around your brand.

I’ve seen firsthand how proactive engagement can pay off. One of my clients, a local law firm near the Fulton County Courthouse, noticed that an LLM was incorrectly stating their areas of expertise. By contacting the LLM provider and providing accurate information, they were able to correct the error and improve their online reputation.

It’s a constant process of refinement. What works today might not work tomorrow. The key is to stay informed, adapt quickly, and never stop experimenting.

The rise of LLMs presents a significant challenge for marketers. However, by embracing structured data, creating comprehensive content, and thinking like an LLM, you can ensure that your brand remains visible and relevant in this new era. Are you ready to adapt, or will you be left behind?

The single most important step you can take right now? Review your website’s structured data. Make sure it’s accurate, complete, and up-to-date. This will lay the foundation for success in the age of LLMs and ensure your marketing efforts are not wasted.