Advertise inside the answer — where buyers are actually looking.
AI search marketing is the discipline of placing your brand inside AI-generated answers — on ChatGPT Ads, Google's AI Overviews and AI Mode, and the surfaces still to come. I build and run paid AI search campaigns while the channel is young, cheap, and wide open — and manage the organic side that makes the paid side cheaper.
Get an AI Search Readiness AssessmentPaid AI search, explained.
Search is splitting in two. The organic side is GEO — getting your brand cited inside AI answers. The paid side is advertising inside those same answers: sponsored placements that appear directly in ChatGPT conversations and Google's AI Overviews and AI Mode.
AI search marketing is how you buy those placements deliberately — choosing where your brand appears inside the answers buyers actually read, at a cost per acquisition you can measure. It's the first new ad channel in a decade, and the auction is still young.
The surfaces you can buy today.
ChatGPT Ads
Contextual sponsored placements inside ChatGPT conversations. Self-serve opened in May 2026 with CPC bidding and daily budgets any local service company can afford. The prompt a user types tells you more about intent than any keyword ever did.
Google AI Overviews & AI Mode
Sponsored results now surface directly inside Google's AI-generated answers — currently in 25.5% of AI results, up from 5% a year ago. Most advertisers haven't touched these placements yet, so the inventory is wide open.
What's next
Perplexity dropped ads entirely — the landscape is fracturing. New AI surfaces will keep launching, and platform strategy matters more than budget size. I track each one as it opens and tell you which deserve your spend.
Bidding, placement, and budgets — for AI answers.
Placement & targeting
AI ad placements are contextual, not just keyword-driven. I map which conversational contexts and query types fit your offer, then target the surfaces where your buyers actually ask questions.
Bidding & budgets
ChatGPT Ads runs CPC bidding alongside CPM; Google AI placements use your existing Smart Bidding signals. I set daily budgets that fit a local service company and structure campaigns so the auction works in your favor while inventory is still cheap.
Measurement
AI referral traffic and conversational conversions need new measurement. I set up dashboards that attribute AI-driven visits and conversions so you know what's working, not just what's spent.
This is Google Ads in 2005.
ChatGPT Ads hit $1B in annualized run rate almost immediately after self-serve opened. Google now shows ads in 25.5% of AI results. US AI search ad spend is projected to grow from ~$1B to ~$26B by 2029. The auction is young, inventory is cheap, and the advertisers who build platform expertise in the next 12 months will pay the lowest CPCs they'll ever see.
$1B
ChatGPT Ads run rate after self-serve
25.5%
of Google AI results carry ads
~$26B
projected US spend by 2029
Five steps from audit to scale.
Readiness audit
I assess which AI ad placements fit your budget and offer today, and what your Google Ads needs to qualify for AI Overviews and AI Mode placements.
Campaign architecture
I restructure or build campaigns so you surface inside AI answers — ChatGPT Ads, Google AI placements, or both — with the right bidding and budgets.
Paid pilot
We launch a controlled pilot budget to learn what the channel does for your economics before you scale into it. Early movers win, but only if the math works.
Hybrid optimization
Paid and organic feed each other. I manage both sides of the loop — ads drive awareness, content drives AI citations, citations lower your blended cost per acquisition.
Scale & stage
Once the unit economics hold, we scale what works and stage you for the next AI surface that opens — so you're never starting from zero.
Paid and organic feed each other.
Pure paid would leave money on the table. The real advantage in AI search is running both sides as one loop: ads drive awareness and traffic, strong content drives AI citations, and those citations lower your blended cost per acquisition over time.
That's why I manage hybrid search engine marketing — not just campaigns, but the content and structure that make the campaigns cheaper. It's what differentiates this from agencies doing only one side.
Paid side
ChatGPT Ads + Google AI placements, bought while inventory is underpriced.
Organic side
Content and structure that earn AI citations and lower blended CPA.
Questions I hear most.
Is it too early to advertise on ChatGPT?
It's early, but it's live. ChatGPT Ads' CTR benchmarks are still settling, attribution is different from Google, and not every offer works conversationally. That's exactly why I start with a paid pilot budget — find out what the channel does for your economics before you scale. The advertisers who build platform expertise in the next 12 months will pay the lowest CPCs they'll ever see.
Do I need a big budget?
No. Self-serve opened in May 2026 with daily budgets any local service company can afford. The bigger question is fit — which AI placements match your offer and where your buyers actually ask questions. I'll tell you that before you spend a dollar.
What about my existing Google Ads?
Your existing Google Ads can already surface inside AI Overviews and AI Mode, but most advertisers haven't enabled or structured for those placements. I restructure your campaigns so you're in the 25.5% of AI results that carry ads — not watching competitors take them.
Is this SEO or paid search?
It's paid search first — advertising inside AI answers. But paid and organic now feed each other, so I manage both sides of the loop as a hybrid. Ads drive awareness; strong content drives AI citations; citations lower your blended cost per acquisition.
The early-mover window is measured in months, not years.
Book a free AI Search Readiness Assessment — I'll map which AI ad placements fit your budget today, what your Google Ads needs to qualify for AI placements, and what to stage for 2027.
Book a free AI Search Readiness Assessment