A Conversation with Holly Rollins, 10x Digital

The way people search for businesses is changing quickly, with more consumers and decision-makers turning to AI platforms such as ChatGPT, Gemini, Claude and Perplexity for answers and recommendations. That shift means companies must think beyond traditional Google rankings and consider a new question: When someone asks AI about your industry, will your company be part of the answer?

Holly Rollins, CEO of 10X Digital, discusses why AI visibility is becoming an essential part of digital marketing and how businesses can position themselves now for this rapidly changing search landscape.

UpstateBizSC:
Holly, congratulations on the launch of 10X Luma. AI seems to be the topic everyone is talking about right now. Tell us what prompted you to develop this platform.

Holly Rollins:
Thank you. The idea actually came from our clients. Late last year they started asking us a question we hadn’t heard before: “How do we make sure our business can be found by AI?” They understood SEO and Google rankings, but they were noticing people were beginning to ask ChatGPT, Gemini and other AI platforms for recommendations instead of using traditional search. We realized there weren’t many tools available to answer that question, so we decided to build one ourselves.

UpstateBizSC:
For people who may not understand the difference, how is AI search different from traditional Google search?

Holly:
With Google, you’re usually presented with a list of websites and you choose which ones to visit. AI is different. It gives you an answer. It may recommend a company, summarize information, or compare vendors without requiring you to click through multiple websites. That’s a fundamental shift. Businesses now need to understand not only how they rank on Google, but whether AI even knows they exist and whether it considers them a trusted source.

UpstateBizSC:
That’s a pretty significant change. So what exactly does 10X Luma do?

Holly:
We like to think of it as an AI Visibility assessment. The platform evaluates how visible a company is across AI platforms and traditional search. It automatically identifies competitors, analyzes the questions customers are asking, looks at the company’s digital footprint, and generates an AI Visibility Score. Then it tells you where you stand compared to your competitors and, more importantly, what you can do to improve.

UpstateBizSC:
So it’s more than just a score.

Holly:
Much more. The score is simply the starting point. We also analyze content gaps, website readiness, third-party citations, earned media, backlinks, SEO performance and thought leadership. Then we provide a roadmap with practical recommendations. Businesses don’t need another dashboard full of technical data. They need to know what actions will actually improve their visibility.

Good SEO hasn’t gone away. High-quality content, authoritative backlinks, media coverage, LinkedIn activity and a technically sound website are all still important. What’s changed is that those same signals are now helping AI decide which businesses to reference and recommend. So companies with a strong digital foundation already have a head start.

UpstateBizSC:
We’ve noticed a change in how people search for information ourselves. More and more, people are opening ChatGPT before they open Google. Are you seeing that shift across the marketplace?

Holly:
Absolutely. We’re seeing consumers and business buyers becoming much more comfortable asking AI direct questions. Instead of searching for “best accounting firm” or “best HVAC contractor,” they’ll ask AI who they should trust. That’s why visibility across these platforms has become so important.

UpstateBizSC:
Does the platform look at different AI models individually?

Holly:
Yes. Different AI platforms can produce different results. Depending on the industry, one model may recognize a company more often than another. We help businesses understand where they’re showing up and where they have opportunities to improve.

UpstateBizSC:
What kinds of organizations are using 10X Luma today?

Holly:
We’ve worked with companies in manufacturing, packaging, mortgage and financial services, student housing, healthcare and home services. But honestly, any organization that depends on being discovered online can benefit. Even nonprofits can improve their visibility when people ask AI about organizations in their community.

UpstateBizSC:
If a company thinks they’re falling behind, what’s the first step?

Holly:
Start by understanding where you stand today. We offer a complimentary AI Visibility Assessment that gives companies an initial score, shows how they compare to competitors, and identifies areas for improvement. Once you know your baseline, you can make informed decisions about your content strategy, SEO, earned media and overall digital presence.

UpstateBizSC:
Finally, where do you see all of this heading over the next few years?

Holly:
AI search is only going to become more common. Just like businesses had to adapt to websites, then social media, then mobile, they’ll now have to adapt to AI. The companies that start building their authority and visibility today will be much better positioned as AI becomes the primary way people discover products, services and businesses.

About 10X Digital

10X Digital is a US-based woman-owned full-service digital marketing agency specializing in AI Visibility, search engine optimization (SEO), thought leadership, earned media, content marketing, paid media and lead generation. The 20+ year-old-Greenville-based agency helps organizations increase visibility, build authority and generate qualified leads by combining strategic marketing with emerging AI technologies.