Episode 31: Customer Journey 2.0: The Rise of AI-Powered Decision-Making
Tim and Robbie return for Part 2 of the Customer Journey Evolution series to explore how AI and generational shifts are transforming the way customers research and convert. Learn how trust, reputation, and content quality impact AI-driven recommendations—and what marketers can do to stay ahead.
“Maybe people used to check 18 sites. Now they might use one—AI—but that AI is checking those 18 sources on their behalf.”
Objectives
In this episode, you will be able to:
Understand how AI tools like ChatGPT and Google’s AI Overviews are reshaping the mid-to-bottom stages of the customer journey
Learn the importance of reputation, trust signals, and real-time content in today’s search and AI-driven landscape
Discover how generational differences influence how people research and convert online
Identify practical ways to prepare your content, products, and brand for AI-driven decision-making and recommendations
Explore how marketers can adapt to rising conversion rates from lower traffic channels like large language models
Transcript
Robbie Fitzwater: [00:00:00] Okay, so Tim, this is our first sequel episode. What should we shoot for?
Tim Lowry: Yeah, I’ve been watching a lot of sequels to see where the bar’s at, and I feel like if we can match or exceed Space Jam 2, we’ll be off on the right foot.
Robbie Fitzwater: Wait, Space Jam 2? I didn’t even know that movie existed.
Tim Lowry: Yes. You’d be amazed. LeBron is almost as good an actor as he is a basketball player.
Robbie Fitzwater: Okay. I don’t need to sing anymore already, but this is a sequel. Be ready.
[Intro]
Yes. Okay. Hello everybody, this is Tim and Robbie with the Content Community Commerce podcast. We talk about topics at the convergence of content, community, and commerce. And today we’re entering the world of our first sequel—Customer Journey 2.0.
Tim Lowry: Stage two. To be real, I feel like probably everything we’ve covered so far requires a sequel at this stage. Just based on where marketing’s at... everything needs a part two.
Both: This was true a year ago.
Robbie Fitzwater: Not anymore. Back then it totally made sense. Right now, we have a burning pile of chaos. We lied to you. We hope you can forgive us. We’re trying really hard here, and we’re turning these episodes around fast, but marketing just moved.
Tim Lowry: It’s moving faster than people can talk about it.
Robbie Fitzwater: I think the tactics and tools are different here. In Part One, we focused on the early stages of reaching an audience and giving them what they need to activate. Now, we want to dial that in more—but also figure out how to actually get them to convert. What information do they need at this stage? What will make them feel confident enough to purchase from us?
That’s where the dynamics have really shifted. You mentioned some research that totally upended our perspective. I’m kind of blown away by it. Like Neil Diamond said, pack up the babies and grab the old ladies—everyone’s gonna want to hear what Tim has to say.
Last time we talked about how to go from problem-aware to solution-aware. Now we’re going from solution-aware to product-aware. What does someone need before they convert? How are they thinking?
In a previous life working in higher ed, I was selling college education, and there were a lot of different decision-making factors and sources of information—18, on average. Probably more now. The higher the investment, the more info people want. So you’ve got to give that to them. But what else will they need to convert?
Tim Lowry: The journey itself has shifted. The one we talked about last time looks very different now. The tools people have access to and the trust they put in them has changed everything.
We’ve got large language models—ChatGPT, Claude, Perplexity—all in one bucket. Then you’ve got Google with AI Overviews and now AI Mode, which is like the search engine of the future.
They’re all influenced by the same thing: trust and reputation. If your brand isn’t trustworthy, you’re not even in the conversation. A black eye on your brand is a black mark in AI results.
So yeah, the journey shifted. Maybe people used to check 18 sites. Now they might use one—AI—but that AI is checking those 18 sources on their behalf.
Robbie Fitzwater: That’s where they now have a thought partner guiding their decision. Before, they were just doing it on their own. Now, they’ve got help.
Social proof is huge when it comes to conversion. If they’re at the product-aware stage, they know what they want and are just looking for the best place to get it. Is it reputable? Will it work? We’re aggregating that info through large language models now.
You also mentioned differences in how generations interact with these tools. What was that research?
Tim Lowry: Yeah. For older generations—say 45 or 50-plus—they use these tools like Google. Very basic prompts, hoping for a simple answer. Even in Google’s AI Overview, that group skips over it because they don’t trust it. They still go for the traditional blue links or even the ads.
But younger audiences—those under 40, especially in their 20s and 30s—use these tools as life partners. They turn to them for everything: job hunting, school decisions, product buying, dating advice. It’s a filter for their whole life.
They take AI Overviews at face value or interact directly with them without even scrolling further. So it’s a very different usage pattern based on age. Knowing your audience is key.
Robbie Fitzwater: Yeah, that generational gap is bigger than ever. Their behavior is completely different. It’s almost flipped—young people are more comfortable with tech, while older people are still in digital adolescence.
Everyone has a parent who does weird stuff on Facebook because they don’t know how to use it. Their adoption isn’t as fast or confident. It’s wild how the same person who doesn’t trust AI results will fall for fake news on Facebook.
But yeah, thought partners for the younger generation. Research tools for the older one.
Tim Lowry: And Google’s leaning into that. Sundar Pichai talked about how Google’s moving from a search engine to a personal assistant. That means hyper-personalized results—based on your email, searches, everything.
So you’re no longer casting a wide net. You’re focusing on being hyper-relevant to a niche. You want trust and association with a topic so that AI models pick you up.
Robbie Fitzwater: The puck is going everywhere. We're icing the puck everywhere and nowhere at the same time. Superposition mode.
Tim Lowry: Nice.
Robbie Fitzwater: So yeah, when you mentioned Sundar, that’s Sundar Pichai—the CEO of Google. I’ve had too many Sundars in my life.
Tim Lowry: He’s got your name tattooed on his back.
Robbie Fitzwater: We’re safe—only two people listen to this podcast, and they probably work at Google. Or my mom, who turns the volume down. Or maybe my oldest son. “Dad, stop making me listen to this!”
Tim Lowry: “You’re gonna be a marketer one day!”
Robbie Fitzwater: So for decisions like buying a product, the process is now more curated. Google Shopping, for instance—price, location, reputation—all that factors in. Getting them over the hump of entering their card info and actually converting is a big deal.
Tim Lowry: Yeah. Practically, you can look at the features in search: AI Overviews, Popular Products, Explore Brands. What brands show up in those spots? Household names, sure—but also rising brands with strong sentiment and traction from TikTok or other sources.
That’s real-time demand driving Google results.
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Tim Lowry: On the flip side, large language models are curating results. People aren’t doing 25 Google searches anymore. They’re asking ChatGPT for everything and trusting the answers. You get three product recommendations, not 50. If you’re not one of the three, you’re out.
Robbie Fitzwater: I experienced this firsthand trying to buy a garden bed. I used real-time voice on ChatGPT—it felt like talking to someone at Home Depot. I told it my space was 2.5 x 7 feet and asked what my options were. It gave me detailed suggestions, links, and a recommendation. Super smooth.
Tim Lowry: You didn’t need to read 40 reviews. It was like a sales assistant packed into GPT. For brands, this means conversion rates go up. One agency’s research showed that while AI referrals drive less traffic than Google, they convert at 16%. That’s insane.
Robbie Fitzwater: Yeah, compared to a 2% ecomm conversion rate, that’s a huge difference.
Tim Lowry: You might have fewer visitors, but if 16% convert, that’s a revenue game-changer. This could be a major source of revenue in the coming years. You want to be in that AI recommendation zone.
Robbie Fitzwater: We’re outsourcing decision-making to digital assistants. That’s the shift. And if you’re not in a good place with those systems, you’re out of the conversation.
Tim Lowry: And if that assistant gives two options, you’ll pick one. You’re not bouncing around afterward. That site that got the referral is winning.
Robbie Fitzwater: That’s why we need to capture email addresses early, even if it’s just a blog visit. With automations in place, we can nurture them back: view a product—follow up. Add to cart—follow up. Start checkout—follow up.
Plus, if your promotional content gets picked up by Google Merchant Center, it could surface faster.
Tim Lowry: Right. For B2B, maybe someone isn't ready to buy. But if you capture email, you keep the conversation going. Especially if Google becomes your assistant and starts pulling in data from Gmail, it will recommend brands it knows you’re engaging with.
Robbie Fitzwater: Familiarity. That’s the word. If you’re subscribed to Chubbies emails, maybe Google shows you more from them.
Tim Lowry: It’s going to be more personalized and unique than ever. Not every brand needs every channel, but if your product works well in video—do video. Feed that content into the ecosystem.
Robbie Fitzwater: One wild example: we were tracking ChatGPT results for a client and it pulled in a webinar their sales guy did. He was shocked to see himself recommended in GPT. That’s the kind of granular, specific content we need to create.
Tim Lowry: Rich content, specific content. Be everywhere your customers are looking. This is the time to get ahead.
Robbie Fitzwater: Good marketers who lean in now are going to win. Try mixed media. Understand how the systems work. Make sure your content is indexing and discoverable. We’re still in the cowboy phase—but it’s getting more structured fast.
Tim Lowry: The adoption rate of these tools is accelerating. If the trend continues, ChatGPT could rival Google traffic-wise. And Gemini’s being pushed by Google, so that helps it grow fast too.
Robbie Fitzwater: It’s becoming like “Kleenex”—people use “ChatGPT” to refer to any AI tool. It’s that early dominant player.
Tim Lowry: I want to get into how to write for these models and surface better, but that’s a rabbit hole.
Robbie Fitzwater: That’s Episode Three. The trilogy. Space Jam 3: Return of MJ.
Tim Lowry: Alright, let’s wrap with some takeaways.
Robbie Fitzwater: First: Know your audience. Understand how they behave and how that affects your strategy. If they only act on direct mail, they’re probably not switching to AI tools anytime soon.
Tim Lowry: If they’re carrying Werther’s Originals, they’re clicking the blue links and ignoring AI Overviews.
Robbie Fitzwater: Exactly. Younger people are using voice. Everyone’s in dark mode. These behavior shifts are real.
Tim Lowry: Second takeaway: Reputation is everything. It always was, but now it’s more visible. AI tools are scanning sentiment across Reddit, YouTube, reviews—everywhere. If people are bashing you, those tools will know.
Robbie Fitzwater: And finally, this episode may self-destruct in 3 to 6 months. Things are moving that fast.
Tim Lowry: So we’re not releasing this in Fall 2026?
Robbie Fitzwater: That would be a bad idea. It’d be ancient by then.
Tim Lowry: And if you’re on LinkedIn feeling overwhelmed by all the trends—remember, good marketing always works. Good marketers know how to apply it to whatever the new channel is.
Robbie Fitzwater: Most human brand wins.
Tim Lowry: Even if it's pitching to robots.
Robbie Fitzwater: Till next time, Tim.
Tim Lowry: Until next time.
Both: Did you like it? Leave us a review. Five stars all the way. Or at least three and a half.
[Outro]
