Post | LinkedIn
By Amanda Wolff · October 15, 2025 · Curated by George's Blog
As all the buzz around #GEO and agentic search traffic floods LinkedIn this week (cue Walmart announcement,) I keep coming back to a great post from Ben Parkes at Similarweb (link in comments) a few weeks ago about how Amazon’s RUFUS and other agentic AI tools are impacting conversion first and traffic second -- harkening back to the age old question, "which is more important, conversion vs traffic." (my go-to answer: conversion of course! Why send traffic to pages that don't convert?)
So Yes. Consumers are starting journeys with agents like RUFUS and Sparky. And at #Groceryshop I heard plenty of brands saying they were prioritizing GEO (mentioning ChatGPT especially) over many other "search" tactics - including SEO campaigns, content optimization, and even retail media.
But hear me out:
The more urgent need for brands, IMO isn’t just showing up in search, it’s being conversion-ready when those agents intervene. And sadly, many are NOT with the added scrutiny the interfaces are creating. Not sure what I mean by added "conversion scrutiny?"
RUFUS and Sparky are increasingly embedded deep in the shopper journey, shaping or even interrupting purchase decisions...sometimes right in the cart at checkout. (See my video.)
I might sound a bit contrarian, because of course traffic is important. But I think we’re seeing some binary thinking, treating AEO/GEO as a “new traffic tactic” when it’s actually shifting the way we need to think about conversions. These new conversion disruptors will either amplify or undermine your performance based on how well your products are “marketing to the algorithm.”
The takeaway?
We’re heading into a winner-take-all environment where products that have tuned their pages, reviews, and signals for these algorithms will dominate.
I’ve got a lot of thoughts on how to position your products to win with RUFUS, Sparky, and ChatGPT (hint: start with understanding how shoppers use AND respond to your products.)
At ProductWind, we’ve helped leading brands do exactly that: market to the algorithm by building the organic signals these systems rely on to decide what wins visibility and conversion.
Let’s geek out about it: Which matters more: traffic or conversion? And do you have a plan to respond to agentic search by adjusting your traffic strategy, your conversion strategy, or BOTH?