Did you notice a dip in your organic search traffic starting, oh, around early January 2024?
The dip probably became a freefall, resembling a black diamond ski slope.
What you’re seeing is AI diverting organic search traffic. For bloggers and site owners who relied heavily on search engine optimization (SEO) tools, seeing the dreaded ‘my traffic fell off a cliff’ graph can make them want to throw away their keyboard and give up on SEO.
Fear not. There are ways to combat the voracious beast known as AI-driven search.
Organic Search Isn’t Dead – It’s Just Changing
First, know that organic search isn’t dead. It’s just changing. Evolving. Remember 2011? And other updates? The 2011 Panda Google update upended the applecart for many site hosts, shrinking site traffic and ad revenues.
Hey, Google makes no promises about SEO. It provides guidelines, not laws, about creating content and structuring websites for good organic traffic.
I view the new AI search snippets as just another evolution in Google’s quest to dominate search. And, just as I did for the Panda, Hummingbird, and other Google updates that shook up my predictable flow of organic search visitors, I am taking steps to update my blogs and websites so that they thrive in the new age of AI.
Let’s take a look at optimizing content for AI in this new world of AI search.
Write for People First
Look, do I have to say it again? I guess I do, because far too often, I read blog posts and website copy that’s a jumble of jargon. Write for people first, and not just any people – write for your target persona.
What’s a persona? It’s an imaginary person who represents your ideal customer, the decision maker, and audience whom you’d like to get in front of to sell your ideas, products, or services.
If you write for this “person,” you are writing for a person, and your content will sound natural and fun.
Have you noticed how stilted AI content can be? Sometimes it’s good, but most of the time it peppers its output with words like unleash, unlock, and elevate. It likes long sentence structures oh-so-perfectly. It doesn’t have anything new to say – no stories, case studies, or personal reflections. And it can’t make a good analogy for beans! (That phrase alone will probably pop a diode somewhere in the AI platform scanning this page.)
Takeaways:
- Write for people first, AI and search second
- Write in your natural, conversational voice
- Use plenty of firsthand stories, anecdotes, and case studies – things an AI can’t add to the conversation.
Personal Branding and Authoritative Content
Developing your online personal brand is an ongoing strategy. Part of that strategy is developing your online presence as an authority in a topic or topics.
What do you want to be known and remembered for? It should be something of keen importance to your persona and your target market. It should dovetail perfectly with your services and strengths. And, it should focus on a niche; something you can do better and differently than anyone else.
If you identify this niche, and create content across multiple channels, you can develop your online reputation as an authority in the topic. This technique does take considerable time and effort but it can serve as a buffer against the vicissitudes of Google’s ever-shifting algorithm.
Takeaways:
- Focus on your persona and niche
- Create original content for your persona
- Rinse and repeat, focusing on a consistent theme or message
Add Branded Content to Your Site
Branded content is content that mentions your company, product, or service by name. AI models need such content to understand who your company is and what it does. When the AI search bot encounters your site, serve it plenty of branded content to build your own footprint within its little robotic brain.
Takeaways:
- Add branded content to your website – beef up your about page, bios, FAQs, and more.
Final Thoughts
AI search is but an evolution of Google, Bing, and other search engines’ never-ending quest to improve search results. If it’s eating your website traffic, fight back by feeding it what YOU want it to eat: branded content, original stories, and ideas only a person can create. By being yourself and working with AI models instead of against them, you have a chance to build your traffic back.
Jeanne Grunert is the founder and president of Seven Oaks Consulting, and an award-winning writer and content marketing expert with over 30 years of writing, marketing, and business experience. She writes, teaches, and speaks frequently on all things writing, content marketing, and personal branding. Jeanne currently serves as the National Association of Independent Writers and Editors (NAIWE) Branding and Marketing Expert. She holds an M.A. in Writing and an M.S. in Direct and Digital Marketing (awarded with distinction) from New York University. Jeanne is the author of eight books, including the acclaimed Majek Family Mysteries and Pricing Your Services: 21 Tips for More Profit.