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The New SEO Paradigm

From Ranking to Sourcing

September 2025

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The Shift in Search: From Keywords to Knowledge

*Should be in-sourced

Search is Evolving: The rise of large language models (LLMs) and generative AI is fundamentally changing search visibility.

Success is no longer just about ranking #1 on a search engine results page. It's about becoming a trusted source that AI tools cite.

From Keywords to Entities & Semantics: AI understands the relationships between concepts, not just word-matching. Content should be built around topic clusters to reflect this.

From Queries to Conversations: Users are asking complex, conversational questions, and content needs to provide direct, digestible answers that LLMs can easily extract.

From Ranking to Sourcing: The new success metric is being cited as the primary source of truth in AI-generated answers.

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Our Strategy: The Four Pillars of AI Visibility

*Should be in-sourced

We are focusing on four key pillars to strengthen our AI visibility

and establish leadership in LLM search:

Pillar 1

Strengthen AI Search Citations

Ensure Palo Alto Networks is the trusted source AI engines cite.

Pillar 2

Create AI-Friendly Content Formats

Ensure published content is specifically optimized for LLM retrieval and recommendations

Pillar 3

Expand AI Search Measurement

Monitor and prove the impact of our strategy with custom dashboards and tracking.

Pillar 4

Build Authority Through Third-Party Platforms

Monitor and prove the impact of our strategy with custom dashboards and tracking.

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Pillar 1: Strengthen AI Search Citations

Build Reference-Ready Content: We are creating fact-dense, definitive resources on core cybersecurity topics, such as Cyberpedia and Unit 42 research, which are designed to be easily cited by AI.
Optimize Existing Content: We are consolidating and structuring our threat intelligence, research, product documentation, and whitepapers into a single, machine-readable data source to be used as a foundation for Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG).
Expand Authority: We are expanding our authority across news, blogs, and professional discussions on platforms like LinkedIn, Reddit, and Quora.
Amplify E-E-A-T: Our strategy focuses on enhancing E-E-A-T (Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, and Trustworthiness) signals, which matter more than ever. This includes using author bios and credentials, publishing original research, and gaining citations in industry media.

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Pillar 2: Create AI-Friendly Content Formats

Structured Data & Formatting: We are using structured data like Schema.org and JSON-LD to help AI models correctly interpret and cite our content. We are also using Q&A formats and FAQs to make answers scannable.
Front-Loading Key Information: Our articles now start with concise answers and summaries to allow for quick recognition by AI systems.
Develop "How-To" Content: We are launching new "How-To" solution guides and repurposing technical documents into structured, citable pages.
Integrate AI-Powered Tools (GEMs): Our team has created a suite of Gemini-powered tools to optimize content creation, including GEMS for YouTube video optimization, meta description creation, and diagnosing ranking drops.

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Pillar 3: Expand AI Search Measurement

Tracking New Metrics: We are tracking key metrics beyond traditional SEO, including:

AI Referrals: Traffic from platforms like ChatGPT, Gemini, and Perplexity.
Citations: Monitoring when LLMs reference our content.
AI Overviews: Measuring when Google links to us in AI results.
Queries: Surfacing long-tail, conversational searches.

Establishing a Baseline: We have established a new presence in AI search, growing from 0 to over 3,500 AI Overview results for our Cyberpedia pages.

Competitive Benchmarking: We are tracking our visibility in various LLM platforms using tools from Conductor and are beginning to benchmark against competitors like CrowdStrike and Zscaler.

Performance Snapshot (Cyberpedia):

Total Keyword Ranks: 44.6K, up 11.1K since Aug 2024.
Total Modeled Traffic: 136.7K, up 31.4K.
Impressions: Doubled awareness content visibility from 1.09M to 2.19M in three months, a 101% growth.

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Pillar 4: Build Authority Through Third-Party Platforms

Dominate Third-Party Authority Sites: We are focusing on getting featured in high-quality articles and reviews on respected industry sites like CNET and NerdWallet, as they are prime citation sources for AI engines.
Establish Foundational Authority: This includes ensuring we have a strong, accurate Wikipedia page and Google Knowledge Panel, which reinforce credibility for AI models.
Engage in Communities: We are participating authentically in forums like Reddit and Quora, which Google's engines heavily rely on, to build a balanced web presence.
Target Industry-Specific Hubs: We are identifying and aiming for presence on go-to expert sites in our niche, such as TechTarget, which Perplexity often favors.

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What's Next?

Stay Agile: The SEO team will remain agile, staying informed on new AI developments, model updates, and emerging best practices to stay ahead of the curve.
Feedback Loop: We will use LLM citation data and query insights to continually refine our content strategy and maintain our authority.
Expand Publisher Partnerships: We will explore co-branding research and guest articles with key publishers whose content is known to train AI models to lend credibility and increase the likelihood of citations.
Ongoing Education: We will continue to educate internal teams, such as Product Marketing and Customer Advocacy, on how to optimize their content for AI search.

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Guiding principle:

Shift from traditional search engine optimization (SEO) to "Answer Engine Optimization" (AEO). This means creating content specifically designed to be easily consumed and synthesized by LLMs —use clear, authoritative language and include easy-to-parse elements like FAQs and video transcripts.

Optimize content

For existing content

Consolidate and meticulously structure all of PANW's threat intelligence, research from Unit 42, Perspectives, product documentation, whitepapers, and customer case studies into a single, high-quality, and machine-readable data lake. This data will be the foundation for Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG) and model fine-tuning

For new content

Prioritize Clarity and Accuracy: Focus on creating concise, factual content that directly answers common B2B customer questions (e.g., "How does SASE work?" or "What is the best way to secure a multi-cloud environment?").
Structured Data and Schema: Use structured data formats (like JSON-LD) to clearly label key information, making it easy for AI models to identify and reference PANW as the source. This includes clear definitions of products, features, and threat categories.
Focus on "Why" and "How": Instead of just listing features, explain the underlying principles and methodologies of PANW's security solutions. This positions us as a thought leader and subject matter expert, which LLMs will favor.

Suggested deep-dive on each of the 3 pillars. Can potentially use as template for Gaurav and team to develop

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Data of Tool:

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Efforts underway led by Content team

[Insert summary of Jocelyn’s + David Moulton’s work here]

Jocelyn:

SEO-GEO work (from 2024)

David M:

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Guiding principle:

…

Establish trust and authority

Analyst and Review Coverage: Ensure consistent, positive mentions in analyst reports (Gartner, Forrester) and on review platforms (G2, Gartner Peer Insights)

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Efforts underway to establish trust and authority

Will duplicate format similar to page 6 (Content) if it resonated

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Guiding principle:

…

Build publisher relationship

Identify and partner with key publishers whose content is known to train AI models (domains like clutch.co, upcity.com, gartner.com have a strong "AI Education Score")
Co-brand research, guest articles, and webinars with respected industry experts and publications. This partnership approach lends credibility and increases the likelihood of being cited by AI models

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Efforts underway to build and expand publisher relationships

Will duplicate format similar to page 6 (Content) if it resonated

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What are we currently doing to achieve leadership in SOM

Our SEO^* team has helped us achieve #1 position in SEO for several brand attributes such as [insert here]. To meet the needs of the shifting Search landscape, they are already thinking about SOM and several efforts are underway to achieve leadership for PANW in SOM

Create and Optimize High-Quality Content: Develop comprehensive, data-driven "category hub" content on our own website, structured to fairly cover competitors and optimized for "best X" queries. Additionally, use tools to monitor AI citations and adapt content strategy by engaging with repeatedly cited sources or identifying influential categories.
Establish Foundational Authority: This includes building a strong, accurate presence on key platforms like Wikipedia and Google's Knowledge Panel, as these reinforce credibility for all AI models. It also involves amplifying your E-E-A-T (Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, and Trustworthiness) signals through author bios, citing sources, and collecting positive user reviews.
Dominate the Broader Web Ecosystem incl. Publishers: Focus on getting featured on influential third-party sites like CNET and industry-specific publications, as these are prime citation sources for AI engines. At the same time, engage authentically in relevant community forums like Reddit and Quora, which Google's engines heavily rely on, to ensure a balanced web presence.

*SEO efforts are led by Gaurav Sirohi and Loren McKecknie, sponsored by Deepthi Katta. Detailed plan here

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Partnership Business Models

Lead Seller-Data Broker: The publisher monetizes its audience data and insights, sells leads. Great example is Techtarget

Paid Content: This model relies on readers paying for content through subscriptions or micropayments. A prime example is The New York Times.

Advertising: This includes traditional native advertising and programmatic advertising.

Agency: Publishers create and sell branded content for advertisers

Retail: Publishers use their platform to sell products and services, often targeting a niche audience with exclusive items, like the fashion retailer Net-a-Porter.

Events Organizer: Publishers host branded events to create new revenue streams, gather data, and generate content.

Philanthropy/Crowdfunding: Publishers secure funding from patrons or their audience to support their operations, as seen with The Guardian.

IT Provider: Publishers develop and sell software or technology to other media companies.

PANW areas of interest:

Get our Leadership & thought processes, in front of CXO audiences that natively visit a site. i.e. Techtarget.

Analyze publisher sources getting pulled into LLM references, then “natively” contribute to those conversations, how we solve problems.

Of Limited Interest:

Agency content creation services inclusive to the platform. Sold as SEO.

Paid publishing content for SEO Backlinks, doesn’t work anymore. Value sanity check IF traffic is going to the linked site, via chrome data.