The AI Crash Test
How we survived a -44% traffic drop to return 3x stronger with the GEO strategy.
A Survival Timeline
Period of stability before massive AI deployment.
Google AI Mode captures clicks. Brutal traffic drop.
GEO strategy implemented. Historic traffic record.
1. THE FREE FALL (March ➔ June 2025)
“Google AI Mode” in Portugal caused the Visibility Paradox: more impressions but fewer clicks.
Expert Diagnosis:
Google and AI showed the brand more often (+15% impressions), but AI answered instead of the site. CTR was halved (2.6% ➔ 1.3%). The site wasn’t dying from lack of visibility, it was dying from uselessness in the face of AI.
2. THE STRATEGIC RESPONSE (GEO Plan)
“Anti-AI” Content
We pivoted towards Expert Opinion and Unique Data content that AI cannot invent.
Citation Linking
Forcing LLMs (ChatGPT/Gemini) to cite FedFinance as THE source of data.
Entity Sculpting
Associating “Finance Recruitment” = “FedFinance” in Google’s Knowledge Graph.
3. THE RENAISSANCE (January 2026)
Comparison: The Bottom (June 2025) vs Today (Jan 2026)
| KPI / Metric | June 2025 (The Crash) | January 2026 (Current) | Growth |
|---|---|---|---|
| Visits / month | 2,520 | 6,120 | 🚀 +143% |
| Impressions | 200,000 | 419,000 | 🔥 +109% |
| Avg. Position | 19.8 (Page 2) | 6.7 (Page 1) | ✅ Top 7 |
| CTR | 1.3% | 1.5% | Stabilized |
Why This Is a Historic Success
Victory Over “Zero Click”
We achieved 2.4x traffic growth from the low point. We proved that traffic can be acquired even when AI answers simple questions.
Trusted Entity
Going from position 19 to 6 is technical proof that Google considers us an authority (E-E-A-T) over aggregators.
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