How to rank for AI Search

AI search is the latest technology to sweep the online world, making search more tailored and relevant to users’ queries. It represents a fundamental shift in the way search engines present information, delivering succinct answers without users having to click on a link. But what does the arrival of AI Search mean for your SEO, and how can you rank for it?

AI Search vs traditional search

In the past, search engines like Google have relied on keyword-based indexing to provide users with relevant results to their queries. The web pages deemed most pertinent would appear higher in the search results, guiding users to the information they needed.

With AI Search, advanced algorithms are used to analyse the context, intent and semantics of the query. This enables them to deliver much more personalised and relevant results, answer more nuanced queries and deal with follow-up questions.

Traditional search engines are now incorporating AI overviews, providing a summary of key results with links to the web pages from which the information has been sourced. If users want a top-level answer to a query, they needn’t click through to the websites listed – they can simply find the information they need and go. If they want more detail, they can follow the links.

What does AI Search mean for my SEO?

The advent of AI Search brings the focus of SEO onto content. For years, search engines like Google have been promoting good content; now keyword density and backlink strategies are less important than the consideration of how AI models interpret context, relevance and user intent.

While previous ranking factors do still hold weight, getting a link directly from the AI overview is the thing that will put your business in front of your target audience, although being the first website on the list of results remains beneficial.

How to rank for AI Search

The key to ranking for AI overviews, according to Google Search Central, is to focus on “making unique, non-commodity content that visitors from Search and your own readers will find helpful and satisfying.” Pages with in-depth content that answer specific questions and follow-ups are more likely to be featured.

In addition, a great page experience (again, something that has been emphasised previously) is critical. Clean, uncluttered pages with clearly written content, high-quality images and video, and intuitive navigation will always be favoured. Your pages should also load quickly and display well across different devices. Of course, the technical requirements are important too. Search engines must still be able to crawl and index pages, and structured data should match visible content.

Optimise your website for AI Search

If you’re looking for an SEO specialist to optimise your website for AI Search, the team at Digital Carrera can help. We offer comprehensive social media marketing and SEO services that are tailored to your business goals, helping you to grow your customer base and take your organisation to the next level. Contact us today to find out more.