AI firms pay to shape product recommendations

Companies are already paying for visibility in AI searches, Yle reports. As traffic from traditional search engines declines, businesses are increasingly competing to have their products and services recommended by artificial intelligence.

When users ask AI for the best running shoes, air-source heat pump or accounting firm, they receive an answer within seconds. The systems summarise information, compare alternatives and respond in a confident, conversational tone that can make their recommendations seem impartial.

Behind the scenes, however, Finnish digital agencies are selling companies ways to make AI highlight a particular brand over its competitors.

ChatGPT advertising arrives in Finland

SDM Digital, a digital agency, offers services designed to optimise AI searches. Its AI director, Pasi Viinamäki, says commercial influence took a new step in early autumn when paid ChatGPT advertising became available in Finland.

The first client campaigns began immediately, and demand for the new channel surprised the agency, Viinamäki says.

In a ChatGPT conversation, a paid advertisement appears after the answer in a separate card that directs users to the company’s website.

According to Viinamäki, the minimum daily advertising budget starts at 15 euros, while click prices are around 40 cents and upwards. The cost of the digital agency’s services is not included.

Advertising is relatively affordable because there is still little competition, he says.

Companies also optimise for unpaid recommendations

Alongside paid advertising, companies are investing in AI optimisation. This involves changing websites and their content so that a company is more likely to appear in AI-generated answers without paying for an advertisement.

The change is already visible in website traffic. A customer may still rank first in Google search results, but the number of clicks through to its website may have fallen by half, Viinamäki says.

Fewer visitors do not necessarily mean lower sales, because AI can compare products during the search process.

“Previously, the person searching decided which link to click. Now the decision about what appears on the screen has shifted to AI,” Viinamäki says.

Businesses seek influence in online discussions

In the United States, competition for visibility in AI systems has also moved into online discussions. Reddit, for example, sells AI companies direct access to its data and discussion threads.

The Wall Street Journal has reported on companies entering discussion threads to influence the recommendations produced by AI. Because AI searches forums for genuine user experiences, online discussion boards have become a new target for covert influence.

Finland is not yet seeing the same trend, Viinamäki says. SDM Digital’s services focus on optimising clients’ own websites and content.

AI acts as a digital salesperson

Joel Mero, an associate professor of marketing at the University of Jyväskylä, describes AI’s arrival in the purchasing process as a fundamental change.

He says the biggest shift is from clicking through product-focused search results to having an interactive dialogue. AI acts like a digital salesperson that immediately addresses the customer’s actual needs.

For example, if someone types “running shoes” into a traditional search engine, AI may first ask what the shoes will be used for, Mero says.

Research shows that personalised recommendations are among the most effective forms of marketing. Mero says AI imitates an expert or a friend, making its answers particularly influential.

He notes that human salespeople have never been completely objective either.

AI is also changing business-to-business sales. Purchasing professionals use it to filter large amounts of information, while salespeople use it to analyse customer companies’ annual reports and tailor their sales pitches.

However, Mero points out that the scale of the change is still limited. Only a relatively small proportion of consumers currently use AI to support their purchasing decisions.