The Cannes Panic, Explained
The panic coming out of this year’s Cannes advertising festival was easy to understand. Advertisers are no longer just asking how to win human attention. They’re asking how to show up in AI-generated answers.
For years, digital marketing was built around a familiar path: people searched, links appeared, users clicked and traffic flowed to websites. Now AI summaries, chatbots and answer engines are beginning to interrupt that path.
A 2025 Pew Research Center analysis of over 68,000 Google searches found that people were less likely to click traditional search links when an AI summary appeared. When an AI summary was present, users clicked a traditional search result link in only 8% of visits, compared with 15% of visits where no AI summary appeared. Pew also found that users ended their browsing session 26% of the time after seeing an AI summary, compared with 16% of the time when no AI summary was shown.
That change deserves attention. It will affect website traffic. It will change how consumers compare options. It will make the bottom of the funnel less predictable than it has been for the last two decades.
But it should not create panic.
The Lower Funnel Is Changing. The Fundamentals Are Not.
AI is changing the interface between consumers and information. It is not changing the fundamental reasons people choose brands.
The lower funnel is changing. The fundamentals of brand building are not.
AI tools can summarize options, compare providers and recommend products or services. But most of the time, they are responding to demand that already exists. A person has a question, a problem, a need or an upcoming purchase. AI may help organize the answer, but the brand still has to earn a place in the customer’s mind before that moment arrives.
If someone asks an AI engine for the best hospital, bank, restaurant, college, law firm, contractor or marketing agency, the answer matters. But so does what that person already knows. Have they heard of the brand? Do they trust it? Have their friends mentioned it? Have they seen it in the community? Does it feel credible and familiar?
That’s where bold, memorable brand strategy and creative still matter.
Why Brand-Building Still Matters in the AI Search Era
Awareness Channels: Video, Audio and Outdoor
Reach and frequency are not outdated concepts. They are how brands build recognition.
Video advertising through TV, cable and streaming still creates broad awareness and emotional connection. Audio advertising through radio, podcasts and online audio builds familiarity through repetition. Outdoor advertising creates a local presence. Social media drives engagement, storytelling and conversation. Public relations still builds credibility through trusted third-party validation.
The AI Search and Brand Strategy Connection
These channels matter because most customers are not ready to buy today. But when they are ready, the brands they remember have an advantage.
In an AI-driven environment, that advantage becomes even more important. If AI tools narrow the visible options, then being known before the search begins matters more, not less.
AI search and brand strategy are not separate conversations. They are increasingly connected. Search visibility may help a brand appear in the moment of need, but solid brand familiarity helps a person know who to trust when that moment arrives.
A brand that is known to users before the search begins has a stronger chance of being chosen after the answer appears.
What AEO Means for Brands
What is AEO (Answer Engine Optimization)?
Businesses can’t ignore the technical side of this shift. They need to pay attention to AEO (Answer Engine Optimization).
AEO is about making sure your brand’s information is clear, accurate, structured and easy for search engines and AI tools to understand. Traditional SEO focuses on ranking and clicks. AEO is focused on making sure your brand and what it offers can be understood, summarized and cited by AI.
In plain terms, Answer Engine Optimization for brands is about helping AI search platforms understand who you are, what you do, which customers you serve and why your brand is credible enough to recommend.
What AEO Requires in Practice
Effective AEO means clear website content explaining your services, audience, location and areas of expertise. It means answering real customer questions, keeping business listings updated, earning strong reviews, publishing case studies and being consistent in how your brand describes its services and points of difference from competitors.
AEO is not about tricking AI. It is about making your brand easier to understand.
For brands, the mistake would be treating this as a choice between traditional brand building and AI visibility. Smart businesses need both.
They need to remain visible to people through advertising, PR, content, social media and customer experience. They also need to be understandable to machines through clear information, structured content, accurate listings and credible digital signals.
That is where a strong SEO and AEO strategy becomes part of a larger brand strategy, not a replacement for one.
An AEO for Brands Checklist
- Clear service pages that explain what the business does and who it serves
- FAQ content that answers real customer questions in plain language
- Consistent business information across directories, listings and profiles
- Strong reviews and reputation signals
- Case studies that prove experience and results
- Credible earned media and third-party mentions
- Structured content that makes information easier to crawl and summarize
- Clear authorship, expertise and trust signals on important pages
The Bottom Line: The Funnel Changes, Fundamentals Don’t
AI will change how consumers search, compare and decide. It will reduce clicks. It will compress parts of the funnel. It will create new winners and losers in search visibility.
But it will not eliminate the need for awareness, trust, reputation, differentiation and consistency.
The brands that win will be the ones that are known by people and clearly understood by AI.
The funnel is changing. The fundamentals are not.
Not sure if your brand is ready for the AI search era? mhp.si can help evaluate your visibility, credibility and AEO readiness. Get in touch to start the conversation.
FAQ: AEO for Brands
Q: What is Answer Engine Optimization (AEO)?
A: AEO stands for Answer Engine Optimization). It is the process of making brand information clear, structured and credible so search engines, chatbots and AI answer engines can understand it and potentially include it in AI-generated answers.
Q: Does AI replace the need for brand marketing?
A: No. AI changes how consumers search and compare options, but it does not replace awareness, trust, reputation or differentiation. Brand marketing still matters because people are more likely to trust and choose brands they already know.
Q: How does AEO help brands?
A: AEO helps brands improve AI search visibility by making their information easier for answer engines to interpret. That includes clear website copy, helpful FAQs, accurate listings, strong reviews, case studies, earned media and consistent messaging.
Q: How can brands build awareness in the AI era?
A: Brands can build awareness in the AI era by combining traditional awareness channels with stronger digital discoverability. That means investing in video, audio, outdoor, social media, PR, content, SEO and AEO so the brand is both known by people and understood by AI.