As AI-powered search tools like ChatGPT and Google Gemini grow in popularity, businesses need new strategies to stay visible. Unlike traditional search engines, AI models work in unique ways that impact how users discover websites, brands, and products.
In this guide, we introduce you to “SEO for AI” with practical steps to help your digital presence shine in AI-driven search results.
The four pillars of AI search visibility
To help your business gain visibility in AI search results, here are four key approaches to focus on:
- Answer Engine Optimisation (AEO)
- Artificial Intelligence Optimisation (AIO)
- Share of Model Optimisation (SOMO)
- Text Sequence Optimisation (TSO)
Each of these pillars supports a different aspect of AI visibility, and together they create a strong foundation for boosting your presence in AI generated search results.
Answer engine optimisation: How to get your website cited by answer engines
Getting your website cited more frequently in answer engine results involves making targeted content optimisations that make it more trustworthy and fit-for-purpose to their information retrieval systems.
AI search tools rely heavily on a specific set of value indicators to assess the quality of content and its relevance to a search term. Incorporating these indicators into your content can enhance your citation rate, boosting both visibility and engaged traffic.
Here are four straightforward ways to start:
- Add facts and figures: Reliable stats make your content trustworthy; a quality AI tools favour when choosing sources.
- Use quotes and credible sources: Well-sourced quotes help position your brand as an authority.
- Keep language clear and engaging: Well-written, readable content helps both readers and AI understand the material.
- Stand out with unique terms: Using unique or original phrases can help differentiate your content. Technical terms that show expertise are also helpful when used sparingly — but be sure to add a simple definition or analogy to explain these terms to readers.
Pro tip: Test different combinations of these strategies to see which one best suits your niche. For instance, a law site may benefit more from stats and citations, while a science blog might gain from simplified, easy-to-understand language(1).
What kinds of websites benefit from AEO?
All websites can benefit from AEO, no matter how big or small. However, statistically, smaller, less authoritative websites see the most gains for their efforts(1).
This is because additional value indicators like backlinks - which are easier for sites already dominating the SERPs to achieve - don’t matter as much to answer engines.
Consequently, AEO is a great way to level the playing field and get your brand noticed ahead of the big players in your niche.
Artificial intelligence optimisation: How can you make your website more AI friendly?
To optimise content for artificial intelligence systems and improve its accessibility, it's crucial to focus on both technical and content strategies that enhance how AI interprets and ranks your pages.
AI systems rely on structured data, clear content hierarchy, and relevant and helpful, high-quality information.
Exploring this in more detail shows how these tactics not only make it easier for AI to crawl and understand your content but can also boost engagement and drive more targeted traffic.
- Use structured data markup: Structured data (specific tags or codes on your website) helps AI understand what’s on each page. These data points provide context, making your content more accessible to AI.
- Check site speed & mobile access: Fast-loading, mobile-friendly sites tend to rank better on both traditional and AI search. Compress images, use browser caching, and consider upgrading hosting if needed.
- Use natural language: Write in a conversational tone that mirrors how people speak. Directly answering common questions or using question-based headers also helps.
Share of model optimisation: How to build brand visibility in AI search results
AEO and AIO can significantly improve your chances of being cited in AI generated search results, but what if you want tools like ChatGPT, Gemini, and Perplexity AI to actually mention your brand?
Building brand visibility in AI search results relies on persistent, targeted PR to ensure your brand is being talked about in the right online spaces.
AI systems are often trained on specific types of resources. Although they search external sources, they often prioritise high-quality, reliable information similar to that found in their training data. In other words, they’re more likely to look in certain places for information.
Understanding how to identify these places and the factors AI uses to select brands for generated results is key in building brand visibility in AI-driven search.
How does AI choose which brands to mention?
Traditional search engines use a multitude of ranking signals to determine the visibility of your webpages, including backlinks, authority, and on-site content quality.
But when it comes to brand visibility in AI generated search results, also known as “share of model”, it’s almost exclusively about targeted, off-site brand mentions(2).
This is because of the way large language models (LLMs) like ChatGPT string language together.
They repeatedly ask themselves, “based on the text so far, what word should come next?”. And to answer this question, they check which words commonly follow the text so far in online content(3).
The LLM then ranks these words based on frequency. Those that appear the most have a higher chance of being mentioned.
For example, if Bosch is mentioned shortly after the keyword ‘dishwashers’ in the online content more often than Hotpoint, the LLM will prioritise Bosch when responding to queries related to dishwashers.
How to get started with SOMO
Step 1: Identify relevant sites: Look for authoritative spaces where your industry or topic is discussed.
Step 2: Get your brand mentioned: Collaborate with industry publications, get included in online lists, and work with influencers if relevant to your audience.
Step 3: Build mentions over time: Mentions in well-respected online spaces can improve your visibility on both traditional and AI-driven platforms. So, although this can be quite a long-winded process, the results can be incredible.
Text sequence optimisation: How to get your products or services mentioned in AI search results
Text sequence optimisation involves using strategic text sequences (STS) on product pages. An STS is just a sentence or passage of writing that uses keywords in a natural but targeted manner.
By incorporating keywords that AI models are likely to pick up on, you can improve the odds that your products or services will be recommended(4).
How to get started with TSO
Step 1: Keyword research
Start by identifying the keywords people are likely to use when searching for products or services in your niche.
Although tools specifically for AI search keyword research aren't available yet, you can adapt traditional SEO research by focusing on longer-tail, more conversational keywords.
Step 2: Draft product descriptions
Craft natural-sounding product descriptions that incorporate these keywords and relevant attributes.
For example, if you sell headphones and want to target the keyword “best noise-cancelling headphones for travel,” you could place something like the following STS in your product description:
"Voted best in class by Headphones Monthly, the SNT-B240s are compact, noise-cancelling headphones for travel. They’re designed to block out all unwanted sounds, keeping your journey quiet and comfortable, whether you’re on a plane, train or bus."
Step 3: Track progress and refine
Check if your products appear in AI-generated results and adjust the language as needed. By refining your descriptions, you can increase the chance of appearing more prominently in AI generated search results.
Side note – Strategic text sequences can be used to manipulate AI responses similarly to how keyword stuffing was used to manipulate search engine algorithms in the early days of SEO. To keep your TSO in the realm of white hat strategy, be sure to only use text sequences and keywords that are highly relevant to your offering.
Final thoughts
With AI search steadily influencing how users find content, it’s important to develop an adaptable and resilient digital strategy. For expert support in optimising your digital presence, contact TDMP today.