This episode of the Marketing AI SparkCast features Aby Varma, founder of Spark Novus, a strategic partner to marketing leaders adopting AI responsibly. Aby is joined by Todd Sawicki, CEO and co-founder of Gumshoe, an emerging platform built to help brands understand what large language models (LLMs) think about them and how to act on it. The conversation dives deep into the paradigm shift from traditional SEO to AI-driven brand discovery. Marketers will walk away with a much clearer view of AI Optimization (AIO), Generative Engine Optimization (GEO), the mechanics behind AI answers, and how to align messaging with LLMs to improve brand visibility.

Topics Covered:

• From SEO to AIO and GEO: Traditional SEO is losing ground as LLMs define how users discover brands

• AI’s Personalization Power: LLMs generate contextual recommendations based on user behavior and profile

• Understanding AI’s Brand View: Gumshoe audits show how often and why LLMs recommend your brand to specific personas

• AI’s Impact on Paid and Organic: Even paid search is affected as AI models push answers above ads

• Probabilistic Nature of LLMs: Discovery is no longer ranked and deterministic but context-driven and dynamic

• Gumshoe’s Methodology: Uses synthetic personas and chats to audit brand visibility in AI

• Training the AI Sales Rep: Brands must actively shape how AI perceives and represents them

• Key Channels LLMs Trust: Product pages, FAQs, knowledge bases, expert mentions, and academic citations

• How to Get Found: Crawlability, structured content, and relevance to AI queries now define visibility

Todd Sawicki is the CEO and co-founder of Gumshoe, a platform that helps brands audit and optimize their visibility within AI-driven discovery platforms. His career spans Disney, early-stage internet startups, performance marketing, and building programmatic ad platforms—all culminating in his latest venture, Gumshoe.

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/toddsawicki

Aby Varma is the founder of Spark Novus, a firm that partners with marketing leaders to adopt AI responsibly and strategically. He specializes in fusing brand, content, and growth through modern marketing strategy.

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/abyvarma/