Data Collected: Analyzed brand mention patterns across three AI search engines to understand:

• Brand density variations by query intent

• Platform-specific recommendation strategies

• Journey stage impact on competitive landscapes

• Citation patterns across informational, consideration, and transactional queries

• Category-level variance in brand mentions

Key Finding: All three AI engines adapt brand recommendations based on query intent, with consideration queries showing 26% more brand competition than transactional queries. Google AI Mode peaks at 8.3 brands for consideration, while Google AIO mentions only 1.4 brands for informational queries despite appearing 30.3% of the time.

The Intent Framework

Query Classification

• Informational: Educational queries where users learn about products ("What is OLED?")

• Consideration: Research queries where users evaluate options ("best coffee maker")

• Transactional: Purchase-ready queries with commercial intent ("Samsung TV Walmart")

Brand Mention Patterns by Intent

The Universal Pattern

Google AI Mode - Comprehensive Throughout

• Informational: 6.6 brands per query

• Consideration: 8.3 brands per query

• Transactional: 6.6 brands per query

ChatGPT - Journey-Adaptive

• Informational: 5.1 brands per query

• Consideration: 6.5 brands per query

• Transactional: 4.7 brands per query

Google AI Overviews - Selective Presence

• Informational: 1.4 brands per query

• Consideration: 3.9 brands per query

• Transactional: 3.9 brands per query

• Overall presence: 18.4% of queries

The Competition Landscape

Highest Competition: Consideration Stage

The 8.3 Brand Reality

• AI Mode averages 8.3 brands for consideration queries

• ChatGPT follows with 6.5 brands

• Even Google AIO jumps to 3.9 brands

• 26% more competition than transactional stage

Hidden Opportunity: Informational on Google AIO

The 1.4 Brand Advantage

• Google AIO appears for 30.3% of informational queries

• Mentions only 1.4 brands on average

• Lowest competition across all engines and intents

• Prime opportunity for educational content

The Transactional Divide

Platform-Specific Strategies

• ChatGPT drops to 4.7 brands (28% reduction from consideration)

• Google AIO appears only 14.3% of the time

• Google relies on shopping carousels for purchase intent

• AI Mode maintains 6.6 brands consistently

Citation Patterns Tell Another Story

Authority Signals by Engine

• Google AIO: 9-12 citations per query (highest)

• AI Mode: 5-8 citations per query

• ChatGPT: 4-6 citations per query

Google values source authority more heavily, particularly for informational content.

Google's Strategic Division of Labor

Where AI Overviews Appear

• Informational: 30.3% presence (highest)

• Transactional: 14.3% presence

• Consideration: 13.8% presence

Why the Pattern Makes Sense

Google uses AI Overviews to enhance education and research, while relying on established commerce features (shopping carousels, product grids, merchant listings) for transactional queries. This explains both the low presence and low brand counts for purchase-intent searches.

Category-Level Insights

High Variance Categories

Categories like Furniture show massive swings:

• AI Mode: 11.5 brands

• ChatGPT: 5.8 brands

• AI Overviews: 0.1 brands

Consistent Categories

Small Kitchen Appliances remain steady:

• AI Mode: 6.5 brands

• ChatGPT: 5.7 brands

• AI Overviews: 5.2 brands (when present)

Strategic Implementation Framework

For Consideration Content

Your Biggest Battleground

• Create comprehensive comparison guides

• Build detailed feature tables

• Develop use-case scenarios

• Expect to compete with 8+ brands

For Informational Content

Your Best Opportunity

• Target "how does X work" queries

• Create "what is" educational guides

• Build "difference between" content

• Capitalize on low competition in Google AIO

For Transactional Content

The Reality Check

• Google AIO rarely appears (14.3%)

• Traditional SEO still dominates

• Focus on shopping feed optimization

• Product pages matter more than AI optimization

Platform-Specific Strategies

Google AI Mode Strategy

• Consistently high brand mentions require differentiation

• Focus on comprehensive content that stands out

• 36% of queries show 10+ brands

ChatGPT Strategy

• Biggest journey adaptation (28% drop at transaction)

• Optimize for middle-funnel content

• Balance between information and recommendation

Google AIO Strategy

• Appears selectively but cites heavily

• Win with authoritative educational content

• Remember: complements shopping results, doesn't replace them

Action Items for Implementation

Immediate Actions

1. Audit by Intent: Map your content to informational, consideration, and transactional buckets

2. Gap Analysis: Where are you missing content for each intent stage?

3. Competitive Assessment: Count how many competitors appear for your key queries

Content Priorities

1. Consideration Content: Comparison guides, "best of" lists, evaluation criteria

2. Informational Content: How-to guides, educational resources, feature explanations

3. Transactional Optimization: Traditional SEO, shopping feeds, product pages

Technical Methodology

Data Source: BrightEdge AI Catalyst

• Tens of thousands shopping-related queries analyzed

• Brand mention counts per query

• Citation analysis per result

• Intent classification based on query patterns

Measurement Period: November 2024

Key Takeaways

• The 26% Rule: Consideration queries see 26% more brand competition than transactional

• The 8.3 Peak: AI Mode's consideration queries represent maximum brand density

• The 1.4 Opportunity: Google AIO's informational queries offer minimal competition

• The 18.4% Reality: Most queries still rely on traditional search results

• The Journey Principle: All engines adapt to user intent, just differently