“Blend Commerce deliver real value from day one. The practical, actionable information they share in their emails is remarkable.
- Subscription sign-ups increased by 61%.
- Overall store conversion rate improved by 14%.
The most impressive part is that we achieved all of this purely by using the data and tools Blend make freely available.”
“Is GEO something we should be doing?“ — - redacted
Right now, AI traffic is still tiny.
Nowhere near paid or email or traditional search.
And yet there is still a ton of hype around it.
Adobe just reported that traffic from AI sources to U.S. retail sites grew 393% year over year in Q1 2026.
And in March, that traffic converted 42% better than non-AI traffic.
So yes, the hype is probably justified.
Because it is growing fast.
And it is high quality traffic.
By the time someone clicks through from AI:
- They have already got the answers to their questions.
- They have narrowed their options down.
- They have already made the comparisons.
They are very warm and they are half sold already.
So, yes, I believe focusing on getting more mentions is important.
But the bigger opportunity right now is making sure your site does not waste the traffic those mentions send.
Chat soon,
Peter
About the author
Peter Gardner Co-Founder and Chief Strategy Officer
Peter Gardner is the Australia-based co-founder and Chief Strategy Officer of Blend Commerce, the specialist Shopify CRO agency named Global CRO Agency of the Year 2026. He helps established Shopify brands improve conversion rate, average order value and repeat purchase by combining quantitative data, qualitative customer insight and structured experimentation.
Peter writes the Shopify CRO Newsletter and is known for the Buy Trifecta®, a framework focused on helping customers Buy Now, Buy More and Buy Again, while using prioritisation models such as PECTI to help brands focus on the highest-impact CRO opportunities.
Peter also co-founded the eCom Collab Club®, a dynamic eCommerce community that connects and empowers eCommerce professionals through events, networking opportunities, and educational resources.
“Blend Commerce deliver real value from day one. The practical, actionable information they share in their emails is remarkable.
- Subscription sign-ups increased by 61%.
- Overall store conversion rate improved by 14%.
The most impressive part is that we achieved all of this purely by using the data and tools Blend make freely available.”
