A conversation with HAVAS Red’s Courtney Myers, SVP, AI-Driven Innovation Lead, and Joseph Giumarra, SVP, Corp & Tech
Earned media used to mean one thing: get the coverage, build the reputation. But as more people turn to AI tools to research, compare and decide — skipping search results entirely — the rules have changed. What AI cites is now as important as what gets published. We asked HAVAS Red’s own GEO experts what that means for communications.
Lesley Sillaman, Managing Director of HAVAS Red, sat down with Courtney Myers, SVP and AI-Driven Innovation Lead, and Joe Giumarra, SVP of Corporate and Technology, to find out.
Lesley: How has the definition of earned media changed?
Courtney: It’s expanded. Earned media used to be about reputation — getting your brand talked about in the right places. Now it’s also about discoverability. If AI isn’t citing you when someone asks a relevant question, you effectively don’t exist in that conversation. Eighty-four percent of links cited by AI come from earned media sources. That’s not a footnote; that’s the whole game.
Lesley: So, brands can’t just rely on being well-known?
Joe: Not anymore. We ran GEO assessments for several clients and kept finding the same pattern: strong brand recognition, but little to no presence in zero-click responses. Meanwhile, competitors are showing up and defining the category. If you’re not in those first answers, you’re already behind. You’re letting someone else define you.
Lesley: What does it actually take to show up in AI responses?
Courtney: Credible, consistent, structured content — across the right sources. AI models aren’t rewarding flash. They’re rewarding authority. That means securing coverage in outlets AI trusts, making sure your messaging is clear and repeatable, and backing claims with real data. Vague brand language doesn’t make it into a synthesized answer. Specific, citable facts do.
Lesley: Does this change how PR teams should think about their work?
Joe: It does, but it’s not a reset. A 360 approach still matters, arguably more than ever, along with a strong, consistent narrative across everything you do.
What’s changed is you’re adding another layer. Now it’s about where you show up AND where you get cited. Most teams haven’t adjusted for that yet. They’re still measuring coverage and reach, but not whether they actually appear in AI responses, or who’s taking that space instead. That’s where the gap is right now.
PR has always been about visibility, influence, and reputation. GEO is just the next step, where that influence extends into how AI surfaces and shapes information.
Lesley: Where should brands start?
Courtney: This is the question we get asked the most. Find out where you actually stand. Use a GEO monitoring tool, like our EchoWeave or tools like GenAI from Meltwater, to understand how your brand shows up in key LLMs like ChatGPT, Gemini and Perplexity. It can be daunting to think about every question your customers are asking so start with the questions consumers use AI for most — awareness. What are the broad questions about your category, service or product that customers are going to ask first? See who shows up — and who’s defining your category when you don’t. That gap is the start of your roadmap.
Red Hot Take is a HAVAS Red Group series featuring perspectives from across our global network.
Take the next step and reach out today.
