How Courtney Messerli Is Future-Proofing SEO with AI Strategy

In this episode of the Clarity Digital Pod, host Al Sefati sits down with Courtney Messerli, Director of SEO and AI Strategy at The Center, a brand incubator and investment firm based in West Hollywood. Courtney shares her extensive SEO journey, how AI is transforming the search landscape, and why marketers must adapt now to stay ahead.

With over a decade of experience across e-commerce and wellness brands like Nasty Gal, Anthropologie, and Goop, Courtney brings a unique perspective on navigating SEO in this era of rapid AI evolution.

The SEO Landscape Is Changing Fast

Courtney doesn’t mince words when asked about the current state of SEO: “It’s the craziest time ever to be in SEO right now.”

And she’s right.

AI isn’t just changing how we search—it’s changing user behavior, expectations, and how search engines interpret intent. Whether you’re a brand, a consultant, or an in-house SEO, the rules of the game are evolving fast.

At the heart of these changes is how tools like ChatGPT and Perplexity are influencing how users interact with information. Gone are the days of ten blue links. Now, LLMs (Large Language Models) are giving users direct answers, blending citations, summaries, and sometimes, skipping the need for users to click altogether.

AI Prompts Are the New Search Queries

Courtney was an early adopter of ChatGPT, diving deep into its capabilities from the moment it launched. She immediately saw prompts as a parallel to traditional search queries.

Where Google rewards short-tail and long-tail keyword targeting, LLMs rely on natural-language prompts. That means content needs to evolve. We’re no longer just writing for Google’s crawlers—we’re writing for LLMs that synthesize context and relevance at a much deeper level.

She notes, “Prompts are changing the way users think about search. We’re now looking at a much more conversational interaction, and that means SEOs need to think about how their brand narrative shows up across different LLMs.”

Brand Visibility Is More Important Than Ever

With LLMs pulling from multiple sources—Reddit, Instagram, TikTok, third-party publications, and brand websites—visibility isn’t just about organic rankings anymore. It’s about how your brand shows up across the digital landscape.

Courtney emphasizes the need to own your brand narrative. When ChatGPT or Perplexity is asked about your brand, what do they say? Do they quote your homepage, or are they pulling outdated info from Reddit threads or third-party reviews?

She shared how her strategy involves actively prompting LLMs with queries like, “What do you know about [Brand Name]?” Then reverse-engineering how that answer was built: what sources were cited, and what language was used?

That feedback loop informs her content strategy and helps identify opportunities to improve content on brand-owned properties.

Leveraging Traditional SEO Tactics for AI Optimization

Despite the AI evolution, traditional SEO isn’t dead. In fact, it’s more critical than ever.

Courtney focuses heavily on optimizing homepage content, About pages, FAQs, and blog posts—especially for owned properties. These elements are often where LLMs are pulling core brand information.

In one example, she noted how a new brand she managed got prime placement in both ChatGPT and Perplexity thanks to earned media citations in Marie Claire and Harper’s Bazaar.

She says, “The media outlets that work for one brand may not work for another. You’ve got to dig into which publications LLMs are favoring and then guide your PR and content teams accordingly.”

Informational and Transactional Intent Are Blurring

Courtney highlights how user intent is changing in AI-driven search.

In the skincare vertical, users are asking complex prompts like:
“What’s the best skincare routine for dry skin?”

That query blends both informational and transactional intent. The answer needs to educate the user and lead them toward a purchase decision.

SEOs need to think in terms of funnel-blending content. It’s not just about top-of-funnel blogs or bottom-of-funnel product pages anymore—it’s about hybrid content that can serve both.

This shift requires a more holistic view of user journeys across search engines, LLMs, and social media platforms.

The Off-Page Challenge

Al brought up a key challenge in the LLM world: many tools don’t link back to your site. ChatGPT might pull your content, paraphrase it, and credit your site in a footnote—but the traffic doesn’t always follow.

Courtney’s stance? It still matters.

“If we’re not there, our competitors are. And if the LLM is quoting us, even without traffic, we’re still influencing the narrative.”

That’s why she continues to prioritize off-page SEO tactics like PR, reviews, and high-authority citations—even without the guarantee of direct traffic.

Multi-Channel Thinking: SEO Must Work with Paid, PR, and Social

Courtney emphasized the growing need for SEOs to work cross-functionally. At The Center, she partners with paid teams, PR teams, social teams, and even helps craft messaging for Reddit ads.

Her advice: “You can’t operate SEO in a vacuum anymore. Every channel has to align. The messaging around a product or brand needs to be consistent whether it’s showing up in ChatGPT, on Reddit, in a press release, or on a product page.”

She even cites use cases where paid Reddit ads can influence AI perception, especially when AI tools like Perplexity scan those threads for context.

Metrics Are Getting Fuzzy—But You Still Need to Track Something

One of the biggest challenges right now is measurement. Google Search Console still drives the majority of insights, but when it comes to tracking LLM performance, we’re in the Wild West.

Courtney is experimenting with tools like Neva, Profound, and Athena to get early insights into LLM placements. While the tools are still early-stage, she believes that even directional data can help shape content and visibility strategies.

In the meantime, she’s watching for:

• Branded search lift
• Direct traffic spikes
• Referral traffic from LLMs
• Improved visibility in LLM citations

Reverse Engineering AI Answers = Next-Gen Keyword Research

One of the simplest ways SEOs can adapt right now? Use LLMs themselves.

Courtney recommends prompting tools like Perplexity with a primary keyword and then studying the follow-up queries it suggests. Those “related” queries can fuel your FAQ strategy and blog content clusters.

It’s an evolution of Google’s People Also Ask and Auto Suggest—except now, it’s being driven by real-time conversation patterns, not just past search data.

Al emphasized the value here too, calling this “the new SEO goldmine.”

SEO Is Now Digital Discoverability

Perhaps the most important insight from Courtney is this:

“My job isn’t just SEO anymore. It’s digital discoverability.”

That means thinking beyond rankings. Whether a user finds your brand via AI, social media, Reddit, or Google—it doesn’t matter. What matters is that they find you and convert.

As LLMs mature, discoverability will become more fragmented—and more critical.

Final Thoughts: Future-Proofing the Right Way

Courtney and Al agree: SEO today is about future-proofing.

You still need to serve Google. But you also need to serve ChatGPT, Perplexity, and whatever AI-driven platform users adopt next.

The strategy? Own your brand narrative, stay visible across channels, and optimize for both human users and AI models.

Al summed it up perfectly:

“LLMs aren’t like Google. You don’t need to reverse engineer them—you can just ask them. They’ll tell you what they’re looking for. That’s the opportunity.”

Key Takeaways

• LLMs are changing user behavior and redefining how brands get discovered
• SEO strategies must now incorporate AI, PR, social, and paid cross-functionally
• Owned content like homepages, About pages, and FAQs are key LLM data sources
• Off-page authority still matters—even when traffic doesn’t follow
• Use LLMs for content ideation and FAQ inspiration
• Think in terms of digital discoverability—not just rankings

Guest Bio: Courtney Messerli
Director of SEO and AI Strategy at The Center. Previously at Goop, Nasty Gal, Anthropologie, and Ninth Wonder. Focused on content strategy, AI integration, and driving visibility across beauty, wellness, and lifestyle brands.

Host: Al Sefati
Founder of Clarity Digital and long-time enterprise SEO strategist and digital marketer focused on helping brands grow through future-proof digital strategies.