Over the past year, the way enterprises acquire customers has changed significantly. Previously, discussions centered on Baidu advertising, information feed ads, and brand promotion channels. Now, more clients are asking us: With AI search, will customers stop clicking on web pages? Can smart customer service help capture this traffic? Is website SEO still useful? Behind these questions lies a common trend—AI is restructuring the path users take to obtain information, and also restructuring the customer acquisition chain for enterprises.
As a digital marketing service provider serving SMEs nationwide for 20 years, Yunxuan Network Technology feels this shift every day. Our clients range from engineering manufacturers to trading stores and local life service providers. They are spread across different cities and face different markets, but in the past six months, their inquiries have become increasingly focused: How can I get AI to recommend me? How can customers find me on Douyin, Baidu, or even Doubao and DeepSeek? How can I handle more inquiries with fewer staff? The answers to these questions are exactly what we have been doing—connecting website SEO, GEO (Generative Engine Optimization), AI agents, and smart customer service into a cohesive customer acquisition system adapted to the new environment.
1. AI Search Is Changing Customer Decision Paths, but the Underlying Logic of Website SEO Remains Valid
Let's start with the most basic and often misunderstood aspect: website SEO. Many people think that with AI search, users will directly ask AI for answers, so websites will lose traffic. This view is somewhat one-sided. AI search answers are not generated out of thin air; they need to crawl information from the internet, and websites remain the primary source of information. However, AI tends to cite pages that are well-structured, professionally written, and regularly updated. So website SEO is not obsolete—it's just more demanding. Your website needs to be not only indexed by Baidu and Google but also understood, trusted, and recommended by AI.
When we do website SEO for clients, we never just stuff keywords. First, the technical foundation must be clean: standard code, fast loading, and mobile-friendly design. Second, the content architecture should match user search intent, covering not just product descriptions but also common questions, use cases, and comparisons. Finally, consistently produce high-quality content to establish your site as an authoritative source in your field. These tasks may seem traditional, but they are precisely the scarce capabilities in the AI search era.
For example, we served an engineering company in Zhanjiang. Their original website was just a display page with almost no organic search traffic. We restructured the site, created a content matrix around engineering cases, technical solutions, and FAQs, and optimized titles, descriptions, and internal links. Three months later, their organic search traffic from Baidu tripled, and customers began finding them through searches like "Zhanjiang engineering company." Later, we discovered that some of these searches were driven by AI recommendations—users asked AI tools "Which reliable engineering companies are in Zhanjiang?" and AI cited our pages as references. This is the value of website SEO in the new environment: it makes your brand an AI's "recommended option."
2. GEO: Seizing the New Blue Ocean of AI Search Traffic
If website SEO makes AI "understand" you, then GEO makes AI "actively recommend" you. GEO, short for Generative Engine Optimization, targets AI platforms like Doubao, Qianwen, and DeepSeek. These platforms are becoming the new search gateways, especially for younger users and B2B buyers who increasingly ask AI directly: "Which brand of equipment offers the best value?" or "Which company is reliable for website building?" If your brand isn't in AI's answers, you lose that traffic.
The core of GEO is to make AI willing to cite your brand information when generating answers. This involves several steps: First, build high-quality brand content on authoritative platforms, including company introductions, product details, customer cases, and industry insights, while ensuring consistency. Second, optimize the presentation of content so AI can easily extract key information, such as using clear headings, bullet points, and FAQ structures. Third, continuously monitor AI search queries related to your brand and adjust your content strategy accordingly.
We did GEO for a manufacturing factory that produces industrial components, with clients mainly being foreign trade companies and domestic buyers. Previously, they relied on trade shows and referrals, with almost no online presence. We helped them create content on platforms like Zhihu, Baidu Baike, and industry media, focusing on high-frequency questions like "Recommended manufacturers of XX parts" and "How to choose XX parts." Within a few months, when searching such questions on Doubao and DeepSeek, their brand began appearing in answers, leading to an increase in inquiries, and even some foreign trade orders where customers said, "I saw you on AI." That's the power of GEO—it embeds your brand into AI's "knowledge base," turning AI into your free salesperson.
3. AI Agents and Smart Customer Service: The Key to Converting Traffic into Inquiries and Orders
Once you have traffic, the next critical step is conversion. Many enterprises spend significant money on promotion, but when visitors arrive, no one attends to them promptly, or customer service responds too slowly, and they leave. Especially during non-working hours, inquiries go unanswered, leading to lost opportunities. This is where AI agents and smart customer service come into play.
The AI agents we build for clients are essentially enterprise-specific digital assistants. Trained on the company's product knowledge, FAQs, and business processes, they operate 24/7, automatically answering customer inquiries, guiding lead capture, and even scheduling store visits. For example, we built a smart customer service for a trading store that automatically answers high-frequency questions like business hours, product prices, and promotions, and sends map links when customers ask for directions. More importantly, it can identify high-intent customers, proactively ask for contact information, and sync conversation records to the sales team. After implementation, the store's nighttime inquiry lead capture rate increased by 40%, and many customers came to the store the next day saying, "I asked on your website last night."
The value of AI agents goes beyond saving labor—it enhances response speed and customer experience. Today's consumers have limited patience; if your website doesn't respond promptly, they'll go elsewhere. With an AI agent, every visitor gets a dedicated customer service representative, always available, professional, and consistent. This itself is a brand competitive advantage.
4. How Website SEO, GEO, and Smart Customer Service Work Together: A Complete Customer Acquisition Loop
Many clients ask if these tools should be implemented separately. The answer is no. In Yunxuan Network Technology's view, website SEO, GEO, AI agents, and smart customer service form a complete customer acquisition loop. Website SEO is the foundation, giving your brand presence in traditional search; GEO is the extension, getting your brand recommended in AI search; AI agents and smart customer service are the converters, turning search traffic into inquiries and orders. They are interconnected and indispensable.
Here's how we typically implement it in four steps. First, diagnose the enterprise's existing acquisition channels to identify traffic gaps and conversion bottlenecks. Second, optimize the website's technical foundation and content to build a solid SEO base, while creating a GEO content matrix to gradually increase brand visibility in AI search. Third, deploy AI agents across channels like the website, WeChat Official Account, and Douyin to enable 24/7 automated reception. Fourth, continuously monitor data and adjust strategies—for example, optimize content based on AI search Q&A feedback, and use smart customer service conversation logs to discover customer pain points, which in turn guide SEO and GEO content direction.
This approach applies to SMEs across different industries nationwide. For instance, we served a foreign trade manufacturing company with an English website. We did English website SEO, GEO optimization on major overseas AI platforms, and deployed a multilingual smart customer service that automatically answers questions about product parameters, delivery times, and logistics. As a result, their overseas inquiries increased by 60%, many driven by AI recommendations. Another example is a local life service provider aiming to attract same-city customers. We focused on local keyword SEO and GEO, such as "Which local life service provider is best in Zhanjiang," while using smart customer service to handle appointments and inquiries, with significant results.
5. National Promotion Perspective: From Local to National, Methods Differ but the Underlying Logic Is the Same
Although Yunxuan Network Technology is based in Zhanjiang, our services cover the entire country. We understand that enterprises in different regions face different acquisition challenges: first-tier cities are highly competitive and value brand differentiation; third- and fourth-tier cities may rely more on local reputation and referrals. But regardless of location, the underlying logic is the same: make it easy for customers to find you, see you, trust you, and contact you when they need you. Website SEO, GEO, and AI agents are tools—the key is how to use them. We tailor combinations based on the enterprise's market scope, industry characteristics, and target customers. For enterprises targeting the national market, we focus on brand keyword GEO optimization to ensure AI prioritizes you in recommendations; for local market enterprises, we combine local life platforms and local keywords to make it easier for same-city customers to find you.
6. What Should Enterprises Focus on in the Next Six Months?
The trend is clear: AI search will account for an increasing share, and the adoption of smart customer service will rise rapidly. For SMEs, now is the time to position yourself. The earlier you start website SEO and GEO optimization, the easier it is to build a first-mover advantage in AI search; the earlier you deploy AI agents, the sooner you accumulate customer data and service experience. By the time everyone jumps in, costs will be higher and results will be diluted.
Yunxuan Network Technology has been deeply involved in the internet industry for 20 years, focusing on helping enterprises turn "technology empowers growth, marketing creates value" into reality. We are not tool sellers; we are problem solvers. From website building, SEO, GEO, to smart customer service, we provide a full-chain, one-stop service. If you are pondering how to respond to the customer acquisition changes brought by AI, feel free to talk to us. We will provide specific advice and solutions based on your industry, market, and budget.
The future is already here, just unevenly distributed. Those enterprises that embrace AI agents, smart customer service, and GEO optimization are quietly widening the gap with their competitors. We hope your enterprise is one of those leading the way.