What LinkedIn's own marketers are seeing

In January 2026, LinkedIn's marketing team shared what happened to their own website traffic as AI answers took over search. Their summary of the shift:

"Buyers increasingly encounter brands inside AI‑generated answers, often before a click ever happens."

They reported that, across the industry, non-brand, awareness-driven traffic fell by up to 60% across a subset of B2B topics, while rankings stayed stable. People were still searching. They were getting their answers from AI instead of clicking through.

Their conclusion was to stop thinking "search, click, website" and move to a new model:

"Be seen, be mentioned, be considered, be chosen."

This isn't only true for brands

LinkedIn was writing about companies. I think the same shift applies to experienced professionals.

A recruiter, a client or a conference organiser can now ask ChatGPT, Google's AI Mode or Perplexity who the experts are in your field, or what someone like you is known for. The answer they get depends on what AI can find and understand about you.

LinkedIn is a big part of that. In a Semrush study of answers from ChatGPT Search, Google AI Mode and Perplexity, LinkedIn was the second most cited source, behind Reddit. LinkedIn's marketers mention the same thing: "LinkedIn already the #2 most‑cited source".

What AI looks for

LinkedIn's team shared what helped their content show up in AI answers. Two points stand out for anyone with a LinkedIn profile:

  • Structure and clarity. "The more structured and logical your content is, the easier it is for LLMs to understand and surface."
  • Real expertise, written like a person. AI tools favour content "authored by real experts, clearly time-stamped, and written in a conversational, insight-driven style on platforms like LinkedIn."

In plain terms, a profile that says clearly what you do, who it helps and what you've delivered is easier for AI to understand and repeat. A vague one is easier to skip.

Three questions to ask about your profile

  • Could AI tell what you're an expert in from your headline alone? A list of job titles doesn't say what you know.
  • Does your About section answer a question someone would ask? For example, "Who helps teams fix stalled projects?"
  • Are your results written down anywhere? AI can only repeat what it can find.

Try asking an AI tool about yourself by name this week. What comes back is a good snapshot of how visible you really are.