8 Generative SEO Strategies to Rank Well in AI Search

Update: As of May 2024, SGE is now AI Overviews. Here's what marketers need to know about AI Overviews.

Over the past 25 years, search engine optimization (SEO) has become progressively more complex. Today, keyword stuffing and meta tags will hardly make a dent in organic search visibility. And now that AI search experiences are changing the search landscape for users, SEO marketers will need to adapt — quickly.

Because SEO for generative AI experiences is still new, early adopters can take advantage of an even playing field. There's time to invest in strategies, tools, and platforms that can help you get a head start.

But the window is a small one. Soon, brands with lots of resources and large budgets will have robust strategies for generative search engine optimization.

1. Your search results will look differently — if you rank at all.

One of the most recent changes in the SEO landscape is the integration of Google Gemini into Google's new search generative experience (SGE).

Although still in the experimental phase, Google's SGE integrates the conversational and generative AI model, Gemini, into Google Search. This integration changes the search engine results page (SERP). Instead of blue sitelinks, AI-powered snapshots hover at the top of the search results.

Large Language Models, like ChatGPT, have limitations in processing real-time data due to their fixed model. However, Google's SGE and Microsoft's Copilot have effectively bridged this gap, providing more up-to-date information, particularly in certain verticals.

These changes impact the way people ask their queries, as well as the structure of the SERP. As a result, SEO practices are forced to adapt. Because AI search and SGE dominate the top of the SERP, there's more pressure than ever — not just to rank, but to rank number one.

2. You can use AI search to help you rank well in… AI search.

\While you're thinking about how to rank well in generative search experiences, you can also consider using these applications to do your SEO research for you. There have been discussions about using generative AI systems like ChatGPT, BingChat, and SGE for SEO. This goes beyond AI content generation, to include tasks such as:

• identifying relevant keywords

• analyzing competitor websites

• optimizing links, code, and HTML tags, and

• assessing performance.

While some of this information can be readily obtained with well-formed prompts, try to go beyond surface-level data. Verify the accuracy and relevance of the insights. Building consumer trust in your brand requires thorough analysis and a commitment to providing accurate and reliable information.

3. Your search queries and keywords might become longer.

Searcher behavior will change in the era of generative AI search. With search results being summarized with generative AI, SEO professionals may want to take into account hyper-longtail keywords. Queries can be categorized into three distinct flavors: simple, complex, and generative.

Simple queries seek concise information, while complex queries involve multiple factors. Generative queries, on the other hand, are open-ended — and these are the queries that conversational robots will dominate. AI search results can summarize content from many sources into one quick response, with sources available in an expanded view.

Users now expect search engines to not only answer their questions but also solve their problems. As a result, businesses must be prepared to address a wide range of questions, including traditional "who," "what," "where," and "when," as well as "why" and "how." The ability to provide comprehensive answers and solutions is crucial in this evolving landscape.

To succeed in this new world of AI search, businesses must work through a collection of steps without taking shortcuts.

Here are 8 steps to success:

1. Build content that comprehensively answers a range of questions and establishes authority.

Focus less on keywords and more on topics — and explore them deeply. (A tip from the SEO team at Yext: rich-text structured FAQ snippets have helped us show up in the traditional "People Also Ask" search features, as well as in the experimental SGE results.)

2. Recognize the importance of content depth.

Superficial content will not be effective, especially for long-tail queries where AI systems can generate answers. Ask yourself: does the complexity of your answer match the complexity of the question?

3. Prioritize EEAT (experience, expertise, authority, trust).

EEAT is crucial for success: demonstrating expertise, establishing authority, and building trust are essential components of an effective SEO strategy. It's true that a lot of SEO best practices will shift, but it's a safe bet that this one will stand the test of time.

4. Adapt to the increasing use of voice search.

Voice search alters the length of queries. What a user types into the search bar of their desktop may not be the same question they'd ask Alexa or Siri. Shift focus from keywords to broader topics, and complete questions. When you do target keywords, be sure to include hyper-longtail queries, and any additional questions users might have about the topic.

5. Emphasize high-quality user experiences across all aspects, including site speed, content depth, topical coverage, and more.

At its core, search engines are designed to answer questions and deliver an easy-to-use user experience. So while everything else may shift, technical SEO remains essential for every webpage — and there are no shortcuts when it comes to UX. Poor UX can put a page at a disadvantage compared to its competitors. Search engines, like Google, prioritize Core Web Vitals and other signals — such as justifications from your reviews — as they build trust in your webpage.

6. Position your brand as an experienced authority.

Analyzing site search queries, reading reviews, reviewing suggestions on your listings, and listening to your customers on social media helps identify content gaps. To make your brand the authority on your chosen topics, dive in deep to every topic, and remind users — and AI search engines — why they can trust you.

7. Recognize the significance of being the next answer or link after the AI-Powered Snapshot in Google's SERP.

As searchers are able to find answers without leaving the search engine, securing the next spot becomes critical — and click density across ranked spots is becoming obsolete. As AI-generated search results take over the search engine, users will inevitably want longer, in-depth content. Your traditional blue sitelink can drive a lot of organic traffic if it's a fast-follow to the AI-generated search result.

8. Manage your listings across as many publishers as possible.

Publishers share information about your business and promote your products and services via online business listings. These listings can be found across the internet, from publishers like Facebook, Google, Waze, Yelp, and more.

Research from Yext, published in April 2024, reveals that brands limiting their information management to only a few major publishers see lower overall web performance from Google. The data, based on 620K+ locations managed within the Yext platform, shows that brands who appear across >75% of publishers in the Yext network measure a +186% increase in clicks to their websites from Google compared to those appearing on fewer publishers.*

As we adapt to this new era of search, we can anticipate changes in consumer behavior, expectations, and search engine ranking algorithms.

But many SEO best practices will stay the same. And users will still interact with your brand — just maybe a little differently than they do now. Make sure your business information is accurate and up-to-date across your digital presence. And over time, as users adapt to AI search engines, so will your generative SEO strategy.

*As the largest listings vendor, Yext helps thousands of multi-location brands manage their digital presence. This offers Yext the unique ability to conduct a study of this caliber using such a large, diverse data set. To ensure we took an unbiased approach, Yext analyzed more than 620k locations – across all geographies and brand types – that have been live on Listings for at least one year. Reference the full study for more details.