The Advent of AI Search Has Changed the Rules of Web Marketing
"The Google search results page looks different lately..."
Many business owners and web managers are likely feeling this way. At the center of this change is the rise of AI Search (also known as Search Generative Experience, or SGE).
Until now, web marketing has typically involved aiming for top rankings for specific keywords with SEO (Search Engine Optimization), or for local businesses, increasing visibility on Google Maps with MEO (Map Engine Optimization). However, AI search integrates information from multiple websites and directly presents a summarized "answer" when a user asks a question. Users may no longer need to click through ten blue links one by one.
This shift has the potential to fundamentally overturn the rules of web marketing. With only traditional SEO and MEO knowledge, your company's information may not be included in the answers generated by AI, causing you to lose opportunities to be seen by potential customers. This is where AIO (AI Optimization), a new concept of optimizing for AI, becomes crucial.
Why Isn't Your Site Being Chosen by AI?
"I'm sure I'm doing my SEO right, but my site is never cited in AI search answers."
"AI featured my business, but the operating hours are wrong..."
These are the realities faced by many companies that have not yet adopted AIO. Why does this happen? The biggest reason is that AI and traditional search engines have different criteria for evaluating websites.
Traditional SEO emphasized factors like how many times a specific keyword appeared on a page and how many other sites linked to it. But AI evaluates those factors and more, looking deeper into the following points:
- Accuracy and Reliability: Is the information truly correct? Who is providing it?
- Contextual Understanding: What does the user really want to know? What is the intent behind their query?
- Comprehensiveness and Originality: Does the content include unique perspectives or data, rather than just generic information?
In other words, a site merely stuffed with keywords using superficial techniques will be judged by AI as an "unreliable source" and ignored. If you continue to neglect AIO, your business could completely disappear from users' options when AI search becomes mainstream. Before that happens, you need to transform your site into one that gets "chosen" by AI.
5 Common Traits of Websites Chosen by AI
So, what kind of sites does AI evaluate highly and cite as a basis for its answers? Here, we will explain five key characteristics common to sites that rank high and are cited in AI search, along with specific methods for implementation.
Trait 1: Thorough Implementation of Structured Data
The most effective measure to help AI accurately understand your business information is the implementation of "structured data."
Why is it important?
Structured data is metadata that describes the content of a web page in a common format (vocabulary) that search engines and AI can easily understand. For example, if a page simply says "1-1-1 Marunouchi, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo," an AI cannot distinguish whether it's a company address or just an example sentence. However, by using structured data to tag it as an "address," the AI can understand with 100% accuracy that "this is the company's location."
This dramatically reduces the risk of AI search answers displaying incorrect business hours, phone numbers, addresses, or service menus for your business.
Specific implementation methods
While there are various types (schemas) of structured data, the following are the minimum that business and corporate sites should implement:
- LocalBusiness: Basic information such as store name, address, phone number, and business hours.
- FAQPage: Frequently asked questions and their answers.
- Product: Price and stock information for products and services offered.
- Review: Customer reviews and ratings.
These are written in a format called JSON-LD and embedded within the <head> or <body> tags of your HTML. Below is a basic code example for "LocalBusiness."
<script type="application/ld+json">
{
"@context": "https://schema.org",
"@type": "LocalBusiness",
"name": "Your Company Name",
"image": "https://example.com/logo.png",
"@id": "",
"url": "https://example.com/",
"telephone": "+81-3-1234-5678",
"address": {
"@type": "PostalAddress",
"streetAddress": "Marunouchi 1-1-1",
"addressLocality": "Chiyoda-ku",
"addressRegion": "Tokyo",
"postalCode": "100-0005",
"addressCountry": "JP"
},
"geo": {
"@type": "GeoCoordinates",
"latitude": 35.681236,
"longitude": 139.767125
},
"openingHoursSpecification": {
"@type": "OpeningHoursSpecification",
"dayOfWeek": [
"Monday",
"Tuesday",
"Wednesday",
"Thursday",
"Friday"
],
"opens": "09:00",
"closes": "18:00"
}
}
</script>
You can easily check if structured data is correctly implemented on your site using Google's Rich Results Test tool. Simply enter your URL and check for any errors or warnings.
Trait 2: It's Clear 'Who' Wrote the Information (E-E-A-T)
To judge the "correctness" of information, AI places great importance on "who" published it. This is the concept of E-E-A-T (Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, Trustworthiness) advocated by Google, and its importance is even greater in AIO.
Why is it important?
It's obvious which is more trustworthy: a blog post by an anonymous person or an article supervised by a named expert in the field who shows their face. To avoid generating incorrect information ("hallucinations"), AI preferentially references highly reliable sources. Therefore, it is essential to clearly present the experience and expertise of the site operator and article authors.
Specific implementation methods
To enhance E-E-A-T, you should create and maintain the following pages and information on your site:
- Detailed company information page: Comprehensively list the company's official name, address, date of establishment, business activities, history, and a message from the representative.
- Author/Supervisor profiles: For each article or for the site as a whole, clearly state who wrote or supervised the information. The profile should include a photo, career history, qualifications, awards, and links to social media accounts to concretely demonstrate the person's expertise and authority.
- Enriched "About Us" page: Introduce the company's philosophy, vision, and social contribution activities to enhance the organization's credibility.
For example, a law firm's website published detailed profiles for each lawyer (practice areas, career history, academic affiliations, published papers, etc.). As a result, the frequency with which the firm's articles were cited in AI answers to complex legal questions more than doubled.
Trait 3: Content That Answers the User's 'Hidden Questions'
AI search is adept at not only answering the user's direct question but also predicting what they truly want to know and what they might wonder about next.
Why is it important?
For instance, when a user searches for "personal gym fees," they want to know more than just a simple price list. They harbor various hidden questions, such as "Is there an admission fee?" "Are payment plans available?" "Is it worth the cost?" and "How does it compare to other gyms?" Sites chosen by AI anticipate these deeper user questions and provide comprehensive content that answers them.
Specific implementation methods
The following methods are effective for identifying and addressing users' hidden questions in your content:
- Create an FAQ page: A dedicated "Frequently Asked Questions" page that compiles common customer questions and their answers is a fundamental part of AIO.
- Add Q&A sections to service pages: Include a Q&A section at the bottom of each service or product page that is specific to that offering.
- Research related keywords: The "People also ask" section that appears when you search for "[your service] what is" on Google, and the suggested keywords in the search bar (e.g., "[your service] disadvantages," "[your service] comparison") are treasure troves of users' hidden questions. Incorporate answers to these questions into your content.
A home renovation company added over 10 detailed Q&A items to each of its service pages, such as "How long does the construction take?" "Do I need to notify the neighbors?" and "In what cases do additional charges apply?" As a result, AI began to frequently cite the content of their Q&A when answering questions about "precautions for home renovation."
Trait 4: Rich in Primary-Source Information and Specific Data
AI values unique, primary-source information that can only be found on your site more highly than generic information found elsewhere.
Why is it important?
The internet is a mix of good and bad information, and many sites are filled with similar content that is merely a rewrite of information from other companies. AI learns preferentially from reliable and unique sources like original research, customer interviews, and specific case studies, rather than from this secondary or tertiary information.
Specific implementation methods
There are various ways to incorporate primary-source information into your content:
- Case studies and customer testimonials: With customer permission, interview them about their specific challenges, the changes after using your service, and their satisfaction. Post this with their photo and name (or initials). Including specific figures, such as "sales increased by 20%" or "inquiry response time was halved," dramatically increases credibility.
- Original research and survey results: Conduct your own survey on an industry-related topic and publish the results as a report article with graphs and infographics. This can become powerful content that is easily cited by other media and AI.
- Detailed before-and-after photos: For industries like renovation, beauty, or cleaning, publishing a wealth of before-and-after photos of your own projects is the most effective form of primary-source information.
Highlighting your company's uniqueness has always been important in traditional SEO, but with the advent of AI that evaluates the originality of information, its value has become even greater.
Trait 5: Google Business Profile (GBP) is Up-to-Date and Detailed
For local businesses in particular, Google Business Profile (GBP) is one of the most important sources of information that AI references. This should be viewed as an extension of traditional MEO, evolved into an AIO strategy.
Why is it important?
When AI answers location-based questions like "What are the recommended cafes nearby?" the first thing it refers to is GBP information. The business name, address, phone number, hours, services, and reviews registered here become the foundational data for generating AI's response. If your GBP information is outdated or incomplete, it can lead to AI not recognizing your existence or conveying incorrect information.
Specific implementation methods
Optimizing your GBP is one of the most effective AIO measures you can take right now.
- Thoroughly complete all basic information: In addition to the address, phone number, and website URL, register all your services in the "Services" section with prices and detailed descriptions. Be sure to fill out the "Attributes" section as well (e.g., Wi-Fi available, terrace seating, wheelchair accessible).
- Regularly post "Updates": Post campaign information, new menu items, or temporary closure notices at least once a week. This sends a signal to AI that "this business is actively operating."
- Diligently reply to reviews: Express gratitude for positive reviews and offer sincere apologies and improvement plans for negative ones. This demonstrates your customer service attitude to both AI and users. Keywords included in reviews (e.g., "the staff was friendly," "the [menu item] was delicious") also serve as important information for AI to understand the characteristics of your business.
Get Started Tomorrow! Your First Steps in AIO
We've introduced five common traits, but trying to implement them all at once can be overwhelming. Here are three steps you can start with tomorrow to begin your AIO journey.
Step 1: A Full Review of Your Google Business Profile (Time: 60 minutes)
First, start with the easiest and most effective task: reviewing your GBP. Use the checklist below to go through your profile in detail and add any missing information.
- □ Is the business name, address, phone number, and website correct?
- □ Are the business hours up-to-date? (Don't forget to set holiday hours.)
- □ Is the most appropriate category for your business selected?
- □ Are all your services and plans listed in the 'Services' section?
- □ Are there at least 10 high-quality, appealing photos uploaded (exterior, interior, products/services, staff)?
- □ Are there any unanswered reviews?
Step 2: Check for Structured Data Errors (Time: 30 minutes)
Next, check if AI can correctly understand your site. Go to Google's Rich Results Test and enter your website's homepage URL. If the results page shows "Valid items detected," you're in good shape. If there are errors or critical warnings, there's likely a problem with your structured data. Take a screenshot and ask the company that built your site to fix it.
Step 3: Create/Review Your Company and Author Pages (Time: 90 minutes)
Finally, work on enhancing your site's credibility. Open pages like "Company Profile" or "About Us" and check if the items mentioned in "Trait 2" (official company name, address, date of establishment, business activities, representative's profile, etc.) are fully listed. If you don't have such a page, now is the time to create one. If you publish specialized information, adding an expert's profile as the article's supervisor is also highly effective.
Thriving in the AI Era
The emergence of AI search is a major turning point in web marketing. However, there is no need to be unduly afraid. As you can see from the five common traits we've discussed, the essence of AIO is not about superficial tricks, but about returning to the fundamentals of business: "how to convey your company's information to users (and AI) accurately, reliably, and clearly."
The knowledge and assets you've built up through SEO and MEO will not go to waste. They form the foundation upon which you can incorporate the new perspective of AI to optimize your content and site structure. This is the web strategy for thriving in the coming AI era.
We encourage you to start with the first steps outlined in this article. The accumulation of steady improvements will be a sure step toward being chosen by AI and connecting with future customers.
For a more systematic approach to AIO, please see our TrendPackage AIO package for a detailed explanation.
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