AI Search Optimization: How to Get Ranked by AI

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Are you using ChatGPT Search or Perplexity? Over the past few years, AI search engines have gone from an exciting contrivance to a great way to find information. Although they are still second to Google, demand is growing aggressively.

The question is how to turn this factor into an opportunity for creators.

Let's figure it out.

In this issue:

How AI Search Engines Work
Why It's The New Trend
How to Get Ranked by AI Searches

AI Search is The New Trend

AI-powered search is a system that searches for information using natural language queries instead of traditional keyword searches. Unlike Google, Bing, and DuckDuckGo, the models use natural language processing (NLP) and machine learning to understand the context and intent behind the user's query. It allows the AI to understand complex queries and provide answers without multiple pages of links to other resources.

While such solutions have been around for over two years, the most notable project in this area is Perplexity, which became available in August 2022. Later, Microsoft joined the race with Bing AI Copilot, Google with AI Overview, and, more recently, OpenAI with ChatGPT Search (which immediately jumped into the lead). There are other products, but the above has the most comprehensive user base.

Except AI Overview. This search engine hallucinated so much that Google had to disable the feature. We covered that topic in this post:

As for the distribution of the market by audience, according to First Page Sage, the situation looks like this:

And more importantly, all the AI search engines you can see in the image above are snowballing and eating up market share from standard search engines. Every month, their audiences are increasing by an average of 6-15%. This doesn't mean that classic Google is about to die, but it directly indicates that many advanced users are looking for a more valuable alternative. So, if traffic is important for your project, it's sales or informing customers's time to act.

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Time to Gain an Advantage

Here are a few reasons why it's time to start thinking about optimizing for AI search:

Changes in behavior among users: Users now spend less time looking at results. Creators are required to optimize for context and intent beyond traditional keywords.
Adapting to new ranking factors: The main message of AI search is more useful information in succinct answers. This means algorithms generate the most relevant and concise summaries. Competition is intensifying, and there are noticeably more losers (those who don't get ranked at all).
Unique features for business: Companies developing AI search engines seek credibility among both businesses and consumers. Therefore, they often release features that can be profitably utilized.

For example, Perplexity this month launched an AI-powered shopping assistant and Perplexity Merchant program that allows eCommerce brands to share the characteristics of their products and get to the top of the results.

Next, we'll explain how to solve this and reach the top of the search AI rankings.

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How to Get Ranked by ChatGPT & Perplexity

Before we discuss optimizing for AI search, I should clarify that classic SEO hasn't gone anywhere. The models rely on structured web data and prioritize authoritative content with a good reputation and reviews on the web. Simply put, if you rank high for standard queries on Google, your chances of being ranked in ChatGPT and Perplexity are also pretty high. But that's not all.

1. Key Phrases Instead of Keywords

It's time to prioritize depth and detail. While brief keywords used to be at the helm, phrases, and sentences play a fundamental role with the advent of AI search. What is required here is to understand the wording that ChatGPT and Perplexity are getting. Ideally, these should be phrases that will both resonate with your audience and match the AI's focus on natural language processing.

Optimizing for the classic engine:

“Investment strategies for beginners to create wealth for future generations”.

Optimizing for AI:

“How millennials can start investing with minimal start-up capital.”

The second option is more of a natural language query and will clearly come in higher in the ChatGPT or Perplexity rendition. Even sites with low domain authority can outrank established sites by optimizing for specific keyword phrases.

2. Importance of Bing Indexing

Registering sites with Bing Webmaster Tools is becoming important for optimizing content for the AI search engine. This step has been shown to directly impact visibility not only in Bing but also in other AI-powered search engines, such as ChatGPT, which utilizes the Bing index for its search functionality.

By ensuring your site is properly indexed in Bing, you are essentially opening the gateway for AI-based search engines to discover and showcase your content. This enhanced reach can greatly enhance your online presence and drive more targeted traffic to your site.

3. Distribute Your Content

Distributing content across platforms is critical to optimizing visibility in AI-powered search results. The large language models (LLMs) that these search engines support don't limit their learning to traditional blog posts; they also draw from community-driven platforms like Reddit, LinkedIn, Quora, and others.

By publishing your content on these platforms, you increase the likelihood of influencing the responses generated for relevant queries. This multi-channel approach helps make your content an authoritative source in various online communities, potentially increasing its chances of being cited in AI-generated responses.

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4. Video & Image Dominance

The use of video is now of great importance. Unlike conventional search engines, ChatGPT, Perplexity, and other AIs are adept at watching videos and using the resulting information in their responses to the user. For example, content creators can significantly increase their presence in ChatGPT search results by creating compelling video testimonials and uploading them to YouTube.

The same goes for images. Infographics, tables, and visually appealing pictures are easily devoured by search engines. Therefore, simply filling your site with photos won't work.

5. Structure & Relevance

Consider structuring your content with descriptive headings, subheadings, and bulleted lists. This organization helps AI understand the hierarchy and relationships within the content, making it easier to analyze and index. Clear headings and subheadings act as signposts, guiding AI and human readers through a logical flow of information. Bulleted lists further break down complex ideas into digestible chunks, allowing AI to identify key points and their connections to the topic quickly.

Use descriptive and keyword-rich headings and subheadings to inform AI systems of key topics and subtopics. This increases the chances of content being properly categorized and ranked for relevant searches. This approach also increases content consistency and the likelihood that the model recognizes content relevance for specific user queries.

6. Optimize for Speed & Security

Enhancing server response times ensures that search engine crawlers can efficiently access and index your site's content. This can be achieved through server-side optimizations, content delivery networks (CDNs), and caching mechanisms. Image optimization, including compression and proper formatting, reduces page load times and improves user experience. Fixing crawl errors and broken links helps search engines navigate your site more effectively, ensuring that all valuable content is discoverable and indexed.

Protecting your website is also essential to building trust with users and AI searches. Implementing HTTPS encryption protects the data transfer between your server and users' browsers, safeguarding sensitive information. This security measure is a ranking factor for many search engines because it demonstrates a commitment to user privacy and data protection.

7. Analyze Competitors Based on AI Search Results

It seems obvious, but omitting this point is not an option. To gain a competitive advantage, study the answers that are currently ranking high on ChatGPT and Perplexity. By evaluating competitors' strategies, you can identify opportunities to tweak your content for better visibility.

In the process, identify top performers, analyze content structure and formatting, and then use similar strategies. Regularly auditing competitor content will give you insight into what resonates with AI algorithms and help you fine-tune your approach.

Additional Tool

Finally, check your site with a specific tool. For example, you can try HubSpot's AI Search Grader. This platform evaluates how well a site's content is optimized for AI search engines. It analyzes the quality, structure, and relevancy of your site's content to help identify areas for improvement. The landscape is changing quickly, so conducting these checks regularly is ideal.

Final Thoughts

In conclusion, I would like to express my personal opinion. If you have been reading our newsletter for a long time, you know that I am a big fan of Perplexity. I've been using AI search engines regularly for over a year now, and in that time, I've become convinced that such systems are the future. Again, this doesn't mean I believe in the imminent demise of Google. However, Perplexity and others feel like something new and valuable that saves hundreds of thousands of users’ time every day.

So, if you get your product or service ready for search engines right now, you have a good chance of being the first for all those potential customers!

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