All about SEO for AI Search

AI Search is here to make our research lives easier. No more wading through endless ads or irrelevant links.

Services like Perplexity, Google AI Overviews (previously Google SGE), Gemini, SearchGPT, and more promise a laser-focused, ad-free experience, delivering concise answers with real-time data and clear citations.

Say, you’ve got a burning question. Maybe it’s the history of the spork or the optimal water temperature for brewing the perfect cup of tea.

AI search engines can handle it. Astonishingly well, in fact.

But if you’re on the “giving” end of the equation and you want your website to be the answer an AI search engine serves up, you need to understand how it works.

Since I believe that AI search engines are going to be the future (and I suggest you start believing it too), I’m going to show you how you can optimize your site and content to get cited and mentioned by Perplexity, Gemini, SearchGPT and the like.

PTG Marketing; an image of a head with an artificial AI brain. — AI can enhance your search efficiency.

So, without further ado, here’s all you need to know about SEO for AI search engines.

Why Even Bother About SEO for AI Search?

PTG Marketing; a diagram showing the pros and cons of optimizing for AI search engines.

It Helps Your “Traditional” Search Engine Rankings

Unlike traditional search engines that might display a handful of linked sources per page, AI search engines like Perplexity take a citation-heavy approach.

More and more AI search engines will – ultimately – have to follow suit in the shadow of Perplexity. Users and publishers alike demand as much.

Now, the Search Engine Journal reveals in one of their articles that Perplexity prioritizes websites that its language models cite more frequently.

This fact unlocks a fascinating opportunity for Perplexity AI SEO. Hence, inevitably, this will happen for all other AI search machines as well.

Imagine crafting content so compelling and informative that AIs deem it a valuable source. The more Perplexity, Gemini, SearchGPT and co. cite your website, the higher it potentially climbs in search rankings.

Being Cited by an AI is a Form of Social Proof

And being cited by AI search engines often positions your brand as the go-to expert within your niche. Why? Because being cited by others is proof that you’re the real deal.

AI Search Engines are Likely the Future

As soon as AI answers to search queries become trustworthy enough, people will stop using traditional search engines for most online searches and research.

This I am certain of.

Why scroll through an endless amount of (maybe) half-trustworthy results when you can just get a guaranteed accurate answer to your question in one or two sentences?

But sadly, as previously stated, we’re still a while away from accurate AI answers.

Nonetheless, the sooner you (as a website owner) act to get on AI search engine’s radars, the better, wouldn’t you agree?

You Have to Start Optimizing For AI Search

PTG Marketing; an image depicting the efforts of optimizing for AI search engines. — Optimizing for AI search engines isn’t that much different.

This all makes it attractive to start a strategic SEO approach focused on content that aligns with any AI search’s information-gathering habits, right?

By understanding the types of sources Gemini, SearchGPT, and Perplexity favor (scientific papers, credible articles, etc.) and tailoring content accordingly, you can increase the chances of your website becoming a go-to resource within their ecosystem.

While the specifics of all AI search citation algorithms remain under wraps, focusing on high-quality, well-researched content with strong source citations is likely a winning strategy for AI SEO.

Here are what I know (so far) about optimizing for Perplexity’s AI search:

Ranking Signals used by Perplexity AI

Perplexity isn’t some walled garden. It actually borrows a page (or two) from the Google and Bing playbooks.

Their ranking signals inform Perplexity’s own system, ensuring a baseline of quality.

But Perplexity isn’t just a copycat. It’s got its own secret sauce, a blend of citation signals, and fancy language model magic to determine which web pages deserve top billing.

Here’s the gist:

PTG Marketing; an visualization of how to optimize content for Perplexity AI

Think Like Perplexity

Imagine Perplexity’s language model is a picky eater. It devours high-quality, credible websites, and the more a page gets cited, the tastier it becomes in Perplexity’s eyes. Sound familiar? It’s a close cousin to Google’s PageRank algorithm.

By the way, if you’re interested in how to do SEO the modern way, I suggest you click the link and read my dedicated article on the topic next.

Real Search Terms Matter

Perplexity’s AI models are like detectives, constantly sniffing out real search terms people use on Google. So, put away your “traditional SEO hat” and start thinking like a layman.

By aligning your content with layman’s terms, you boost your website’s ranking relevance in Perplexity’s search results.

A Hybrid Approach

Perplexity uses a mix of established search engine ranking signals and its own secret recipe. This means you don’t have to overhaul your SEO strategy completely, but there’s room for some AI-specific tweaks.

Content is King

Perplexity values in-depth, well-researched content that caters to niche audiences. Think quality over quantity, and make sure your content is legally sound and keeps users engaged.

Feeding the Perplexity Beast: How it Gathers Information

Perplexity is a data fiend, constantly chomping on information from a variety of sources. Here’s a peek at its information buffet:

AI Powerhouses: Perplexity leans on advanced language models like GPT-4 and Claude to summarize key information, rewrite content for clarity, and double-check facts. Think of them as superpowered research assistants.
Real-Time Knowledge: Perplexity taps into trending Google searches, breaking news, and dynamic website data to keep its answers fresh. Unlike some static search engines, Perplexity serves up the latest and greatest.

PTG Marketing; an image depicting AI search chats that try to understand user query intent. — Information gathering and compilation is a complex task for AI search engines.

A Vast Knowledge Base: Perplexity has been studying for years, amassing a massive dataset of text and code across various domains. This broad knowledge allows it to answer a mind-boggling range of questions with precision.
Understanding Your Intent: Perplexity uses natural language processing to truly grasp what you’re asking. It doesn’t just focus on keywords; it dives deeper to deliver relevant and tailored information.
Diverse Sources: Perplexity isn’t afraid to get its information from everywhere – scientific papers, news articles, government websites, you name it. It then synthesizes these insights into a cohesive answer, just like a master storyteller weaving a tale.

How AI Search Algorithms Work

AI search engines like for example, Perplexity’s algorithm, are like well-oiled machines: They run like a racehorse but are difficult to understand.

Now, no one truly knows how AI search algorithms work, but let me take a stab at it and give you my rough “guesstimate”.

PTG Marketing; a visualization of the AI Search Algorithm process

Understanding Your Question

First, AI search engines use natural language processing to truly understand what you’re searching for. It’s not just about the words you type, but the intent behind them.

They then scour the web (and/or their proprietary database) for answers to satisfy your intent as perfectly as possible.

To do this, they find multiple answers from authoritative sites that “sound” like they understand your search intent, bundle their information together, and spit out a tailored answer to your query.

Knowledge Base & Web Search

Perplexity, for example, taps into its massive knowledge base and simultaneously scours the web in real-time to find the most relevant and up-to-date information.

So, very obviously, presenting data to Perplexity that is as up-to-date as possible is key. It likely values content freshness more than other search engines.

Inevitably, I believe, all AI search algorithms will go the way of Perplexity.

AI Analysis

AI search models analyze the retrieved data, extracting key points and ensuring factual accuracy.

This is likely done by cross-referencing with other data sources – possibly even from academic research papers.

As soon as the algorithm has filtered out which sources are trustworthy, accurate, and satisfy searcher intent, it will put together an AI-generated aggregate.

Concise & Clear Answer

Perplexity, like most AI search engines so far, synthesizes the information into a clear, concise, and user-friendly answer tailored to your specific needs.

And here’s the key: It’s completely tailored to your query. In other words, if your content is the only piece that satisfies even the most outlandish queries, you WILL be cited as a source.

And remember, being cited OFTEN by Perplexity (and likely any other AI search engine) is a ranking factor.

Citations for Credibility

Finally, as previously stated, a growing amount of AI search engines back up their answer with citations to the most relevant source materials, so you can verify the information yourself.

This is a link opportunity you don’t want to miss out on.

I fear that in the not-so-distant future, this will be one of the few ways websites can get traffic “organically”. You will want to belong to those websites.

The Future of AI Search

I’ll be completely frank here; you deserve as much.

I believe AI search is the future. It will take a while to fully get to a time when every single online search is AI-answered, but we WILL get there inevitably.

PTG Marketing; a visualization of the potential future of AI search engines.

Think about it: it’s the most user-friendly option.

Obviously, provided we get AI search results that are nearly 100% factually accurate and trustworthy.

In fact, eventually, every online search will be spoken, not written. Most likely even, every word we “write” will not be written but spoken as well. It’s just easier and faster for us humans.

Sure, there’s the exception of people with hearing and speaking disabilities, but I’m certain there will be comparative alternatives for them.

So, as a business and website owner, why would you not want to be at the forefront of this technological advancement and position your site and content as an AI-cited expert in your field?

I know I want to.

So, here’s my offer to you:

If you’re looking for help optimizing your website for the coming “AI search revolution”, I’ll gladly help you out with a short 30-minute consultation call. Free of charge.

Simply write me an email at patrick@ptg-marketing.com telling me you read this article and that you’d like some free advice on AI SEO.

I’m sure a short half-hour talk can give you some insight you won’t want to miss out on. And if you don’t like what I have to say? No harm done, right?

In any case, thanks for reading.

FAQs about AI Search

1. Perplexity AI vs. Google Search: Which is better?

There’s no one-size-fits-all answer here. Both Perplexity and Google have their strengths:

– Choose Perplexity for: Laser-focused, ad-free results, real-time data, in-depth answer synthesis, and a focus on niche content.
– Choose Google for: An established search engine with a massive index, powerful filtering and search options, and familiarity.

Ultimately, it depends on your specific needs. If you crave a deep dive into a specific topic with credible sources, Perplexity might be ideal. But for a quick answer or a broad search, Google remains a powerhouse.
Oh, and Google itself is going to switch to AI answers for a lot of queries – you just wait and see…

2. How can I optimize my website for Perplexity AI Search?

While Perplexity borrows from Google’s ranking signals, there are some tweaks you can make that won’t hurt your non-AI search rankings:

– Target real search terms: Use the keywords people actually use on Google searches, not just generic phrases.
– Focus on in-depth content: Craft high-quality, well-researched content that caters to niche audiences and provides value beyond basic information.
– Emphasize credibility: Ensure your content is factually accurate and cite your sources. Legal compliance is also important for Perplexity.
– Stay up-to-date: Keep your content fresh and relevant by incorporating the latest information and trends.

3. Is AI Search going to replace Google?

It’s too early to say. Perplexity and other AI search engines are promising new players, but Google has a massive user base and established infrastructure.
For now, the likes of Perplexity might carve out a niche for users seeking in-depth, ad-free research. However, Google will likely continue to be the go-to option for general web searches.
The most likely future outcome will be that Google adjusts and eventually will also turn into a predominately AI-based search engine. I believe it won’t take long for that to happen, in fact. But we’ll see.

Resources Used to Write This Article:

Chen, Y., Chen, E., Zhang, K., Liu, Q., & Sun, R. (2024). A relation-aware representation approach for the question matching system. World Wide Web.
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