Pioneering AI and AEO-Powered Commerce
Services:
AI search optimization
Content strategy development
AI-driven Insights Integration
Social-first content approach
Platform-specific optimization
The rise of LLM-powered shopping solutions has fundamentally changed how consumers browse and buy. In 2025 alone, we saw a 4,700% jump in referrals from AI chat bots to retail websites. As more people ditch traditional shopping methods in favor of AI-optimized, personalized experiences, retailers need find new ways to stay top of mind — especially during the busy holiday season.
JBL felt the shift early but needed a partner who could translate that instinct into a long-term, actionable strategy that met shoppers where they are and delivered results.
JBL tapped Code and Theory to help them boost their presence in the new world of AI-driven shopping. We developed a sharp, end-to-end strategy that supercharged the brand’s discoverability where it matters most: online feeds fueled by AI algorithms. To do it, we built the platform-specific best practices from scratch, grounding them in real shopper behaviors. Then, we dropped JBL’s first wave of LLM-optimized social content across Youtube Shorts and .com gift guides, championing a social-first approach that not only reached, but resonated, with target audiences.
Impact
- 2,434 Growth in JBL's LLM referrals YoY
- 200x Higher Youtube video engagement than JBL’s 30-day average
- 54% Of new site content in AI overviews earned #1 position for JBL target keywords
- ‘Search is everywhere’: How JBL is retooling its search efforts for AI, Marketing Brew
Key Takeaways
- We helped get JBL first-mover advantage in the AI search era by pivoting early to “surround search” (social + LLM + web), before most brands even started.
- By rewiring its editorial engine, JBL now matches real search intent to the right platforms and makes content readable for humans and AI gatekeepers.
- The transformation is already paying off — JBL’s new, AI-readable, social-native editorial system is boosting discoverability and positioned them to grow as LLM's become the standard path to purchase.
Adapting to AI Shopping Trends
From speakers to headphones to earbuds, JBL’s brand is all about joyful expression and amazing sound. But to connect with customers, you need to be heard in search.
BBL’s younger consumers are social-first searchers: 77% say they’re “Googling” when they’re searching on TikTok. And as LLM use explodes, ChatGPT, Gemini and Claude have become gatekeepers, tastemakers and reputation-breakers. The emerging reality: any brand that’s invisible to AI and social platforms is at risk of disappearing at critical moments.
By zeroing in on LLM-driven experiences, we re-engineered JBL’s content to be instantly discoverable, highly browsable and perfectly aligned with how consumers navigate AI-powered shopping.
Partnering with Code and Theory, JBL shifted to an “all-of-the above” strategy for organic visibility — call it ‘surround search.’ Kicking off research in April, the team launched a rewired editorial strategy in October, with a focus on Black Friday.
Code and Theory’s proprietary brand and product intelligence tool deployed AI agents to reveal how people were searching and where JBL was being under-discovered. The agency synthesized data from native social analytics, Google Analytics, SEMrush and Rival IQ. to match the right topics to the right platforms.
A holistic, platform specific content strategy
We brought JBL answers to audiences everywhere they were asking questions.
On Youtube Shorts, we prioritized hitting the keywords that LLMs love without sacrificing the social creativity audiences crave—turning real expertise into social-first moments. On Instagram, we used search trends to make a splash across feeds with posts that anticipated audience needs before they even knew they had questions. And for a deeper dive? We crafted long-form .com articles that turned audience queries into engaging edutainment and builds a rich online presence.
All optimized for AI. All created with search trends top of mind.
A foundation designed for scale
While the YouTube shorts skyrocketed to the top of JBL’s channel and earned some of the brand’s highest engagement, their content became instantly more discoverable and highly browsable.
By blending real-time seasonal trends and long-tail opportunities, they created a consistent, optimized presence — and undeniably proved that when LLM-driven strategy and platform-native creativity come together, the impact resonates.