Introduction to the Evolution of Search in 2025
The year 2025 marked a significant shift in how people discover information online. With the rise of Artificial Intelligence (AI) systems, the way we search for and find content changed dramatically. This evolution led to less predictable and less consistent organic traffic for many brands, making it challenging for them to maintain their online presence.
The Impact on Brands and Marketing Leaders
As a result of this shift, Chief Marketing Officers (CMOs) faced increasing pressure to justify their marketing spend while demonstrating growth. This required them to rethink their strategies and focus on building resilience across their owned channels. Relying solely on rankings was no longer a viable option. Instead, brands needed to ensure stable visibility across AI surfaces, develop stronger and more coherent content operations, and establish cleaner technical foundations that support both users and AI systems.
Priorities for 2026
The first and second quarters of 2026 (Q1 and H1) are critical periods for implementing these changes. During this time, brands need to prioritize funding and executing initiatives that drive stability and experimentation.
Principles for 2026 SEO Budgeting
A well-structured SEO budget for early 2026 should be built on clear principles that guide both stability and experimentation. These principles include:
- Protecting a baseline allocation for core SEO activities such as technical health, site performance, and content maintenance.
- Creating a separate budget for experimental AI discovery initiatives, including testing answer-led content, entity development, and evolving schema patterns.
- Investing in measurement tools that capture real user behavior and provide insights into how users interact with the brand across different platforms.
Where to Allocate Budget in Q1
In Q1, brands should focus on stabilizing their foundation while preparing for new patterns in discovery. This includes:
Technical Foundations
Improving site health, resolving crawl barriers, modernizing internal linking, and strengthening information architecture. A strong technical environment is crucial for supporting subsequent content, GEO, and measurement initiatives.
Entity-Rich, Question-Led Content
Investing in structured content programs that address real customer problems and journeys. This type of content should prioritize clarity, usefulness, and authority over volume.
Early GEO Experimentation
Assessing how the brand appears across different discovery systems, reviewing answer hubs, evaluating entity relationships, and examining how structured signals are interpreted. This initial experimentation will inform budget allocation in H1.
H1 View: Scaling What Works
In H1, brands should focus on scaling initiatives that have shown promise in Q1. This includes:
Rolling Winning Experiments into Business-As-Usual
Incorporating successful LLM discovery or structured content initiatives into regular SEO activities. This allows them to grow consistently without requiring new budget conversations every quarter.
Cutting Low-ROI Tools and Reinvesting in People and Process
Reviewing tool usage, identifying duplication, and retiring underused platforms. Redirecting this spend towards people, content quality, and operational improvements can produce stronger outcomes.
Adjusting Budget Mix as Data Emerges
By the latter part of H1, brands should have clearer evidence of where visibility is shifting and which activities influence discovery and engagement. Budgets should be adjusted to support what is working, maintain core SEO activity, expand successful content areas, and reduce investment in experiments that have not produced results.
CMO Questions Before Sign-Off
Before approving any budget, CMOs should consider the following questions:
- Does the budget balance defensive activity (technical stability and content maintenance) with offensive initiatives (expanding future visibility)?
- How clearly does the plan demonstrate where movement will come from in early 2026, and how momentum will be protected and strengthened throughout H1?
- Which elements of the program directly enhance the brand’s presence across AI surfaces, GEO, and other emerging discovery engines?
- How effectively does the proposed content strategy support both immediate user needs and longer-term category growth?
- How will changes in brand visibility be tracked across multiple platforms?
- What roles do teams, processes, and first-party data play in sustaining movement and momentum, and are they funded appropriately?
- What reporting improvements will allow the leadership team to judge the success of both defensive and offensive investments by the end of H1?
Conclusion
In conclusion, the evolution of search in 2025 marked a significant shift in how brands approach their online presence. To succeed in 2026, brands must prioritize stability, experimentation, and adaptation. By focusing on technical foundations, entity-rich content, and early GEO experimentation in Q1, and scaling what works in H1, brands can position themselves for success in the changing landscape of search and discovery. CMOs should carefully consider their budget allocations, ensuring a balance between defensive and offensive strategies, and prioritize initiatives that drive both movement and momentum.