The Future of Content(ly)

The End of Content Marketing as We Know It

We’re witnessing another ‘once in a lifetime’ event (lots of those lately, it seems).

Traditional search is dying. Dramatically. According to Gartner’s latest research, we’re facing a 25% reduction in traditional search engine use by 2026, leading to a 50% drop in organic traffic by 2028.

Why?

Because content discovery mechanisms that marketers have relied on for decades are being fundamentally disrupted. Users are bypassing the entire traditional search ecosystem and instead asking AI for answers directly.

And AI’s answers are simply a better user experience. The answers are nuanced to the user, clear, and complete. The answers are actually answers, not just a list of blue links.

So it makes sense that the question I hear most often from enterprise CMOs is “how do I get our content seen in an AI world?”

The New Reality with AI as Gatekeeper

Your content now faces a new gatekeeper before it ever reaches human eyes: LLMs (Large Language Models) decide what information is relevant, trustworthy, and worth surfacing.

While many see this as a threat, I’ve come to view it as the most significant opportunity in content marketing since the rise of social media. It’s a chance to reset the playing field, where the best content wins, not just the content with the biggest SEO budget behind it.

Seeing this change, we’ve spent months talking with customers, testing, and completely rethinking our product roadmap. I wanted us to be ahead of this change, not scrambling to catch up.

Introducing Contently AI

We’ve been hard at work over the last 6 months preparing Contently for this new reality. After countless conversations with customers and months of development, I’m excited to share the first parts of our new vision:

1. Contently AI Studio

I’ve watched our clients struggle with the classic content dilemma: you can have it fast, good, or affordable – pick two. This impossible triangle has forced difficult compromises, especially as content demands continue to increase.

When we started developing Contently AI Studio, I was actually skeptical. I’ve seen plenty of AI tools that produce hollow, generic content. But what changed my perspective was watching how our managing editors worked with early versions of the platform.

Rather than replacing their expertise, AI became an extension of their capabilities. Our editors remain firmly in control of the creative process: they’re the conductors, and AI is simply a new instrument in their orchestra. They guide the research, shape the narrative, and ensure every piece aligns with strategic goals and brand voice.

What excites me most is seeing how this partnership between our editors and AI technology is delivering real outcomes:

• Our managing editors can now produce thoughtful, strategic content in hours instead of days
• Clients are getting more content for their budget without sacrificing quality
• The consistency and accuracy of content has actually improved, not declined

I’ve been particularly struck by the feedback from our early adopters. In blind tests, content created through this editor-led AI process was actually preferred over traditionally created content. We’re seeing production timelines compressed by 14x and ROI improvements exceeding 450% in some cases.

And let me be clear – we’re not forcing anyone down this path. We will continue to offer a choice. Our network of 160,000+ freelancers remains fully available to those who prefer a completely human-created approach. What matters to me is that our clients get exceptional content that drives business results, regardless of how it’s created.

2. LLM Optimization Blueprint™

I’ve been fascinated watching how SEO has evolved over the years. But what we’re developing now is fundamentally different.

While SEO focused on keywords and backlinks, our LLM Optimization Blueprint service actually gets your content into LLMs and AI search results. It sounds simple: just create content that AI systems recognize as genuinely valuable and authoritative. But there’s a lot more to it.

Through months of testing, we’ve developed an approach that ensures your content:

• Appears prominently in AI-generated responses from systems like ChatGPT, Claude, and Google AI Overviews
• Maintains factual authority that AI systems recognize and prioritize
• Builds consistent brand presence across emerging AI discovery channels

What’s remarkable is how quickly we’re seeing results. In our early beta programs, we’ve placed clients in the top position of AI search results in just 6 weeks. One client is now receiving 32% of their sales qualified leads from AI search results, a channel that didn’t even exist for them six months ago.

I believe this represents a fundamental power shift in content marketing. For the first time in years, smaller players with great content can outperform giants with massive budgets. That’s why I’m excited to announce we’re expanding our LLM Optimization Blueprint beta program to more clients.

Bridging Creation and Discovery

What I find most powerful is how these two components – creation and discovery – work together. It’s not enough to just create great content if no one sees it. And it’s frustrating to optimize for visibility if your content isn’t worth reading.

Our early adopters are telling me that this integrated approach is giving them confidence that their content investments will actually deliver business results. Which is our mission at Contently. And these new capabilities are taking it to another level.

What This Means for Content Teams

I understand that integrating AI into established content workflows can feel daunting. Our team has worked hard to make this transition as smooth as possible, with our strategists guiding implementation every step of the way.

What I’ve observed is that most clients start small, applying these new approaches to a subset of their content. As they gain confidence and see results, they gradually expand. There’s no need for a dramatic overhaul of your entire content operation overnight.

Leading the Next Era of Content

Content marketing is undergoing a significant transformation. I believe we’ll see companies with modest budgets outrank enterprises spending millions, all because they understand how to adapt to AI as both a creation tool and distribution channel.

At Contently, I want us to help our clients lead this transformation. We’ve already been working with select enterprise clients and are excited to expand to more with the launch of Contently AI Studio and LLM Optimization Blueprint.

I guess this isn’t really the future of content, because everything I’m talking about is already here. The opportunity exists now, and the companies that move quickly will establish advantages that become increasingly difficult for competitors to overcome.

I’m excited to partner with you on this journey. Whether you want to fully embrace these new approaches or take incremental steps, our team is ready to help you navigate this changing landscape.

Let’s get started.

– Brandon