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Tally.so, the free online form builder, recently announced that AI search has become their biggest acquisition channel, driving the majority of their new signups.
Tally.so, the free online form builder, recently announced that AI search has become their biggest acquisition channel, driving the majority of their new signups.
When a SaaS company claims that 10% of their referral traffic comes directly from ChatGPT, we need to pay attention. It signals a fundamental change in how users discover products and how brands should approach visibility. In this comprehensive analysis, I'll break down exactly how Tally.so achieved this through Generative Engine Optimization (GEO), and what actionable insights you can apply to your own marketing strategy.
Let's dive in and decode this new frontier of digital marketing.
According to data from SimilarWeb, Tally.so receives approximately 9 million visits worldwide. Of these visits, about 19% (roughly 2 million) come from referrals. And here's the kicker: 💡 ChatGPT alone accounts for 10% of all referral traffic to Tally.so This translates to ChatGPT sending over 3,000 leads to Tally every week. Not just visitors - qualified leads that convert. The implications are profound: if your brand isn't optimizing for AI search engines, you're potentially missing out on your most valuable traffic source.
Understanding what prompts users type into ChatGPT is crucial for any GEO strategy. Unlike traditional SEO where we have tools like SEMrush or Ahrefs to analyze search volumes, the AI search landscape is still developing its analytics infrastructure. At Qwairy (the tool used for this analysis), we approach this by first examining traditional search queries and then transposing them into likely AI prompts. We did a full analysis on how Tally generated 1$M in revenue with ChatGPT:
💡 For a step-by-step guide on identifying prompts that users actually ask AI search engines, check out How to Identify Prompts on AI Search Engines .
We added those keywords on Qwairy to transform them into prompts:
When analyzing Tally's performance across these prompts, we found they have exceptional visibility for certain query categories:
Query Category | Brand Mention Rate on ChatGPT |
Free form creator | 70% |
Form creator online | 68% |
Google Form alternatives | 31% (opportunity) |
This means when someone asks ChatGPT about free form creators, Tally.so appears in the answer 70% of the time - an impressive achievement in the AI search landscape.
There are two primary ways to appear in LLM responses:
Tally.so has masterfully optimized for both, but their source strategy is particularly clever.
The analysis revealed that Tally.so created specific content pieces designed to be picked up by LLMs:
These pages are among the most frequently cited sources when ChatGPT answers questions about form builders. (data from Qwairy )
By creating comprehensive, well-structured content that directly addresses common user queries, Tally has positioned themselves as an authoritative source that LLMs naturally reference. 💡 Key Insight: LLMs prefer to cite content that itself appears to be objective and comprehensive, even when that content comes from a brand discussing its own category.
💡 🔍 Want to know which exact sources ChatGPT uses in its answers? This deep-dive on how to know ChatGPT's sources breaks it all down.
Despite their success, the analysis identified several opportunities for Tally to further improve their AI search visibility:
Run a free audit: in a few minutes, ChatGPT, Gemini and Perplexity answer 8 buying questions about your market live, and you see who they recommend.
While Tally performs exceptionally well for "free form creator" queries, they have lower visibility for "Google Forms alternatives" prompts. Their competitor Jotform currently dominates this category.
The audit identified specific high-authority sources that ChatGPT frequently references but where Tally is either:
For example:
This is what you discover on the backlink opportunity tab on Qwairy:
By securing mentions on these key third-party sites, Tally could significantly increase their already impressive AI search visibility.
Tally's success with AI search is no accident. It's the result of a deliberate content strategy focused on Generative Engine Optimization. Here's how to replicate it with a proven playbook that works across LLMs like ChatGPT, Perplexity, Gemini, and beyond.
💡 Here is a complete guide on Generative Engine Optimisation that you should read 😉
If you're only going to create two types of content for AI search visibility, make it these:
This is your cornerstone for appearing as a source in LLM responses.
Title: Use a clear and time-sensitive title like "Best Free CRM Tools in 2025"
Introduction: Set the context. Who is this list for? What problems does it solve?
Main List:
Use bullet points like:
[Tool 1] – Best for small teams
[Tool 2] – Best value for money
[Tool 3] – Best integration with Notion
```
This gives LLMs clear indication about all the products in your niche.
🧠 To understand why comparison and alternative content is so effective, read our guide on how to rank on ChatGPT .
This format targets commercial intent queries like "What are alternatives to Google Forms?" - a high-converting category.
You can't optimize for LLMs if you don't know what people are asking.
^(what|which|best|how|why)\s)Connect your server or CDN logs to see which pages known AI crawlers request, how often, and how that evolves.
LLMs frequently rely on third-party sources to generate responses. You need to be mentioned in those sources - not just on your own site.
Want LLMs to quote your content? Write like them. Based on analysis of over 32,000 AI-generated answers, here's what we know:
💡 You can read our comprehensive study on 32 961 queries on ChatGPT and other LLMs to learn more about how LLMs talk.
GEO is evolving fast. What works today might need tweaking tomorrow.
Here's the simplified version of the strategy:
Start now - this space is still early, and visibility compounds over time. The brands that move fast will dominate AI search tomorrow. Finally here is a video if you want to use Qwairy to find hidden AI Opportunities:
What is GEO (Generative Engine Optimization)?
GEO is the practice of optimizing your digital presence to appear in AI-generated responses from tools like ChatGPT, Gemini, and Perplexity.
How is GEO different from SEO?
While SEO focuses on ranking in search engine results pages, GEO focuses on being mentioned directly in AI-generated answers. The strategies overlap but have distinct differences in content structure, authority signals, and measurement.
How can I track my brand's visibility in AI search?
Tools like Qwairy allow you to monitor your brand mentions across multiple LLMs, analyze which sources are being used, and identify optimization opportunities.
What types of content work best for GEO?
Comprehensive comparison content, alternative analyses, and objective guides tend to perform best. Content should be well-structured with clear headings, lists, and concise explanations.
Is it too late to start with GEO?
Not at all. The field is still emerging, and many brands haven't begun optimizing for AI search. This presents a significant opportunity for early adopters to establish dominance in this channel.
Track the questions that matter to your business, see which brands each answer mentions and which sources it cites, then work on the gaps.
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