Your brand’s public reputation in zero clicks

The zero-click phenomenon

Let me share a mind-boggling statistic: 

Today, 80% of online searches are “zero click.” This means the user asks CoPilot, Gemini or Claude a question, is served up an AI-generated answer, reads it and considers their query answered. They aren’t clicking through to a website or media source to verify that answer or even exploring sources for more information.  

That’s where Generative Engine Optimisation (GEO). And it’s a bit scary when you think about it. Because this isn’t just consumers asking AI to shape their product decisions. It is 80% of everyone seeking information online: investors, journalists, analysts. AI is shaping our attitudes to potential partners, hires or brands without us realizing it.

So, if AI is now the frontline for information about your business, it is also the basis for reputation and stakeholder trust. GEO holds the key to your brand visibility; if you fail to make the cut in the AI-generated answer, you are effectively cancelled. 

But is there an upside? 

AI-enablement in sustainability communications

Let’s talk about what AI enables us, as sustainability communicators, to do better.  

And in particular, the huge opportunity that AI affords us in identifying and exposing greenwashing. Because despite all the flip-flopping over the Green Claims Directive, starting in late September this year, it will be illegal to mislead consumers through greenwashing under the EU’s Empowering Consumers for the Green Transition. But let’s not fret! This is an opportunity — not a risk — for those who are ready for it. 

Why? Because of what is feeding AI. 

FACTS. Credible, substantiated facts. Not high-reach, unsubstantiated and highly-promoted content. But trustworthy information — the higher the trust score, the better. 

For those dedicated to communicating accurately and effectively on sustainability, this is a standout opportunity. And that’s why we need to talk about greenwashing. 

Greenwashing and greenhushing: What GEO means to both

What does AI search mean for businesses that are making “green claims” that are not evidence-based, aren’t consistent across external channels or are full of hyperbole? What about a creative PR headline that stretches the truth far beyond what’s buried in your ESG report? A corporate announcement pledging care for communities versus a Facebook post slamming the real-world situation? AI is scarily good at pointing out these kinds of inconsistencies.  

So those brands will pay the ultimate price by being either called out or canceled. Those clever LLM crawlers reference information from the most relevant, credible and consistent brands, and the independent commentators who advocate for them. So, if your story is weak or inconsistent, at best you lose your online prominence, and at worst, the inconsistencies actually become the story: AI infers from these that you’re not the organisation you’d like to be seen as and aren’t credible. Then, it presents that back to the world. 

And remember that 80% zero-click statistic? That means your customers, employees and investors will either see what you don’t want them to see or won’t see you at all.  

ESG data company RepRisk recently reported that 4.4% of U.K. companies were linked to greenwashing risks in 2025, an increase on the previous year. In Banking and Financial Services, it reported a 19% year-on-year increase in companies making promotional claims around sustainable funds and green bonds that did not align with their actual practices. Clearly, greenwashing is no longer confined to marketing, and it’s a growing liability. 

The value of credible sustainability communications in a GEO era

At ERM MCA, we like to talk about the “market advantage” afforded to businesses who CAN communicate from a place of science and proof, not spin. For them, greenwashing regulations are not something to be feared, but rather embraced, because they offer a distinct advantage over the competition. We know from our own research that two-thirds of consumers today want to hear from brands about their efforts to reduce their environmental impact, and over 80% of B2B decision-makers want the same from the companies they partner with. We also are aware that a business known to be a high performer in sustainability is automatically credited with wider performance attributes, such as delivering high-quality products and being a reliable service provider and well-run organization.  

Kantar tells us that perception of sustainability contributes up to 10% of the market value of the world’s top 100 brands … therefore, doing it and not talking about it (greenhushing) is a strategic and commercial miss. It’s made more damaging in an AI search world where it’s less about what you meant to say, and more about whether a wider body of evidence backs you up. Where AI cannot find information from you to answer a query, it either hallucinates an answer, or pulls from other voices like critics, campaigners and third parties. That is rarely the answer your CEO wants to see. 

In effect, the risk of greenwashing in an online world ranked by AI goes far deeper than committing a reputational faux pas; if you cannot communicate substantiated sustainability claims, your story can be rewritten by those who are leveraging it for their own advantage.

The rules are changing 

The rules of this game are changing so rapidly, even digital marketing gurus don’t have all the answers. What we can do, and must do, is observe trends and patterns in how AI is sourcing and surfacing information. 

It’s no longer about highly promoted campaigns but whether your narrative holds up across your report, website, filings, announcements and on the ground. Joined-up. Consistent. Defensible. As a sustainability communicator, it’s both a shift and an opportunity. One key message rings clear through this intersection of greenwashing and AI search: the content currency of online visibility and trust is fact-validated data, credible expertise and external accreditation. 

One of those newer strategies is to couple owned media with more strategic and robust earned media. Third-party sources that espouse your evidence-backed sustainability initiatives and wins will support the GEO function, bolster your sustainability story and help mold the narrative to be accurate and credible for the AI results that show up and replace traditional webpage results exploration. 

At ERM, we’ve seen the tide turning against businesses that cannot communicate ESG performance and impact with evidence — and that is what ERM’s thousands of technical specialists arm us with. Additionally, GEO builds on that, presenting a stand-out opportunity for those dedicated to communicating accurately and effectively on sustainability.  

AI has reshaped the rulebook for communicators. And for those of us advising businesses on how to communicate on ESG, it has helpfully made the most compelling case yet to corporate leaders for the need to invest in doing sustainability communication right.