Are you looking for a bar, tavern, lounge, or late-night hangout? Gone are the days when SEO specialists spent hours researching keywords to pack into content. Now, artificial intelligence can create keyword lists, analyze the optimal structure for content, and provide recommendations. AI can make SEO easier in some ways, but it also alters many aspects of what we thought we knew about search engine optimization. 

AI and SEO: A Supportive Relationship

Countless AI tools can help shape content creation, from outlining and editing to generating content. AI can learn from user queries and respond with content more specifically suited to not just the question but the users themselves, based on the language they use. 

This means “one size fits all” for search results may also be a concept of the past. A blend of AI insights, human expertise, and emotion can enhance your content to better meet users’ needs.

AI can be especially helpful for auditing and research. It can also analyze competitors’ sites more quickly than a person can. SEO specialists must consider which tasks are best suited for automation with AI and which should be left to professionals.

Considering Voice Search

Besides ChatGPT, the AI devices we are likely most familiar with are our smart speakers. Our in-home assistants can make our grocery lists, play music, and answer questions without having to stop and pick up a phone or computer to look something up. 

With that in mind, people tend to phrase questions differently when speaking rather than typing into a search bar. SEO strategists looking to have their content recognized also need to consider adapting to better answer voice search questions.

Competing with AI Search Results

AI can increase an edge with additional tools and lightning-fast answers to enhance content. It can also serve as a form of competition in its own right. 

Have you noticed your results page on the most prominent search engines looking different lately? Most major search engines, particularly Google, are displaying AI-generated answers first and foremost for many queries, meaning the “first place” search result is actually nestled below the AI response. 

On Google, these results are called AI Overviews and are typically around 150 words and contain five to six sources. These sources are “cited” in the link buttons following the information. 

AI utilizes natural language processing (NLP) and machine learning (ML) to summarize sources and generate responses. If you’re searching for a quick answer, the ease of access to AI-generated responses on search engines may make you less likely to scroll through and click on the actual search results. 

It’s also important to know that you can’t turn this feature off.

How Can Your SEO Strategy Respond to the New Normal?

So, how can an SEO strategy respond to this new demand? 

It’s important to optimize for AI-generated summaries–if that’s your goal. Keep in mind if the customer you want is more local or looking for a specific product rather than answering a question, your content will have different goals and, therefore, a different strategy. You may not want to waste your efforts on content that may never drive audiences to your actual websites.

As a business, if you want visibility in the AI Overviews–those high informational intent-type keywords or longtail questions–you’ll need to follow similar steps.

For your webpage or blog to rank (or rather appear as a source) in one of these summaries, important content elements to keep in mind include: 

• Clear, concise, and comprehensive answers to questions
• Authority (sufficient authorship information, diverse backlink profile, and overall website trustworthiness)
• Structured data (another computer language that allows bots to understand your content quickly)

Adapting to AI and the Changing SEO Landscape

AI’s best SEO function is in enhancement, not replacement.

AI has already remade the digital landscape and revolutionized how people engage with information. SEO practices constantly evolve, but AI has introduced a new twist to the standard rules. 

While we strive to adapt content to meet these new challenges, it’s essential to continue fueling content and strategies with human creativity and emotion.