Good search engine optimisation (or SEO for short) helps the people who need you find you online. Thankfully, the days of stuffing blog posts with keywords are long gone, but how can you increase your chances of turning up in a Google search in the age of AI? SEO isn’t dead. It just needs to be more human.
What are search engines trying to do?
The way that search engines decide which pages to put on page 1 has changed, but the fundamental principle remains the same. They want to help people find helpful information that’s relevant to their question. The more helpful your website and blog posts are, the greater the chance you’ll rank highly.
In the old days, people would stuff their posts full of the keywords they wanted to target. The main problem with that was that you ended up with something that was virtually unreadable to the humans who found the posts. Now, Google bases its search rankings on experience, expertise, authority and trust. Does this person know what they’re talking about? Have you answered a relevant question? Keyword stuffing only worked for the algorithm before it changed to consider what people might actually want to read.
How has AI changed things?
The dawn of AI hasn’t fundamentally changed how SEO works. It’s just accelerated the process and changed the delivery format. People can engage in something that feels like a conversation with AI in a way that they can’t with a search bar. I recently found myself searching for something and realising that the short question I typed into Google didn’t fully explain what I needed. I’d generally avoided using AI mode, but when I typed in a few sentences to give more context, the results were much more useful and showed me businesses that hadn’t shown up before.
While some people might use Google as a first step, others have changed their habits. They might head for their favourite AI platform first and skip the traditional search engine altogether. Of course, it’ll probably vary depending on the question. You might Google something simple but choose AI for a more complex conversation when you don’t have a human expert to ask.
In practice, writing content that’s useful but also quotable pays dividends because it feels like you’ve already started a conversation.
Trust still matters
All of this boils down to creating readable content that answers readers’ questions and shows them that you’re an expert they can trust to help them. You don’t need to come up with topics that an AI would like. You need to focus on what the people you can help need and the questions they ask that help them find you.
I was recently at a talk by an author and strategist named Shawn Kanugo, and he said something that’s really stuck with me. He said that in the age of AI, the businesses that succeed will be the ones that are either highly automated or highly personal. Writing in a way that helps people feel seen and understood is a great first step. It lets them know that you understand their lives and know what they need. AI can help you if you choose to use it, but it takes a human to spot what feels right.
Ready for a chat?
If you want to create human, trustworthy content that helps your customers find you online, I can help with that. My content writing packages give you monthly content that’s built around you and your business. We set up regular chats, and I take the rest off your plate.
When you work with me, I’ll get to know you and your business, and write content that showcases your best self, helping you connect with your ideal customers and talk about what matters most to them.
You can email me to arrange a chat or book a Zoom call to find out more.
Alternatively, sign up for my mailing list, and I’ll send you a free copy of my eBook with fifty (yes, 50) topic ideas for your marketing as a thank you. It also includes hints and tips to help you structure your posts if you’re currently writing your content yourself.
