Why Topical Authority and Brand Mentions Matter in AI Search

Dennis Lazard, Founder of ESA Digital, joins E-Coffee with Experts to unpack how search is changing as brands compete for visibility in ChatGPT, Gemini, Claude, and Google AI Overviews. Dennis traces his path from building an early AI project for Google Ads to growing an agency that works with funded and established SaaS, AI apps, and technology brands. He shares what he learned from starting ESA Digital during the UK lockdown, winning its first client, and building the agency largely through referrals. The conversation then moves into international SEO, including multi-language testing, AI-assisted content, human rewriting, and the difference between traffic and revenue across markets. Dennis also explains how he thinks LLMs evaluate brands: topical authority, answers to the questions people ask, brand authority, mentions, and citations. He discusses why classic SEO metrics do not yet translate neatly to LLM visibility, why reliable query-volume and click-through-rate benchmarks are still missing, and how agencies may evolve toward AI-native service-as-software platforms. 🔗 Get Your Exclusive AIO Growth Plan - We’ll kick off with a Live AIO Audit to see how shoppers find you, followed by Competitor Research to steal their spotlight: https://lunacal.ai/team/dws/dws-meetings In this episode, we discuss: 00:00 - 01:05: Introduction 01:05 - 03:42: From Google Ads AI to LLMs and GEO 03:42 - 05:23: Starting ESA Digital during lockdown 05:23 - 06:59: First client and referral-led growth 06:59 - 08:04: Why specialize in SaaS and tech 08:04 - 09:21: When startups are not ready for SEO 09:21 - 11:18: Building an ROI-led SEO strategy 11:18 - 14:01: What international SEO taught Dennis 14:01 - 16:47: How LLMs surface brands 16:47 - 18:12: The measurement gap in AI search 18:12 - 20:04: Dennis’s favorite SEO tools 20:04 - 22:42: The future of AI-native agencies 22:42 - 23:33: Writing the next SEO chapter 23:33 - 25:36: Final thoughts 🔗 Connect with Dennis Lazard 👥   / dennislazard   💻 https://www.esadigitalagency.com/ Check out 155 AI ranking factors list here: https://www.esadigitalagency.com/ai-r... 🔗 FOLLOW US Website: https://www.digitalwebsolutions.com/ Facebook:   / digiwebsol   Instagram:   / dws_global   LinkedIn:   / digital-web-solutions.