Adapt and Thrive in the New Search Landscape

Search is no longer just about “ten blue links” on a Google results page. Today, more people are turning to AI answer engines – think of tools like ChatGPT, Bing Chat, or Google’s AI-powered results – to get quick, conversational answers. This shift is transforming how Kiwis search for information and, by extension, how businesses need to approach SEO. For New Zealand marketers, it’s essential to understand this new landscape and adjust strategies accordingly.

If you’ve noticed Google experimenting with AI-generated answers at the top of search results or have played with an AI chatbot that gives you a full answer instead of just links, you’ve seen this change in action. In fact, Google’s AI “Search Generative Experience” (SGE) now reaches over 1.5 billion monthly users worldwide. Instead of simply listing websites, these AI systems synthesize information and often display a rich answer with sources. This trend is only growing – AI-generated overviews show up on roughly 10–16% of Google searches now, and that percentage is rising fast.

Why does this matter? Because these AI answers can dramatically impact your traffic. Studies show that when an AI overview appears, click-through rates on regular results drop by about 34%. In other words, if your site isn’t featured in the AI’s answer, you might miss out on a lot of potential visitors. On the flip side, if you are featured as a source, you stand to gain highly engaged traffic. Google reports that users who click through from AI overviews tend to spend more time on the site, likely because the AI gave them context and primed them with interest.

The bottom line: the rules of the game are evolving. To stay visible, New Zealand marketers must adapt their SEO strategies so their content gets picked up by these new AI-driven search experiences. The good news is that the core principle remains the same – provide great, user-focused content. But there are also new tactics to learn. In this guide, we’ll break down exactly how the search landscape is changing and how you can rank in AI answer engines by tweaking your content, technical SEO, and overall digital strategy. Let’s dive in (no AI required!).

Why Do AI Answer Engines Matter?

AI answer engines are search tools and assistants that use artificial intelligence, especially large language models (LLMs), to answer users’ queries in a conversational way. Instead of just linking to web pages, they generate answers by pulling information from multiple sources. Examples include chat-based assistants like ChatGPT or Bing Chat, dedicated AI search engines like Perplexity and new AI-infused search results like Google’s AI Overview and AI Mode in Search. Essentially, these engines aim to act more like an expert who gives you a concise answer (often with follow-up options) rather than a librarian handing you a list of books.

Google’s Liz Reid (VP of Search) calls AI in search “probably the biggest shift in search ever,” describing it as moving from “basic information retrieval to intelligence”. Instead of the old process where a user had to click multiple links and piece together info, the AI can do some of that heavy lifting – summarising facts, comparing options, and even performing tasks like refining your query. Google’s new AI Mode allows deeper exploration by breaking a question into sub-queries and searching the web in parallel, then giving a detailed, cited response. Microsoft’s Bing and OpenAI’s ChatGPT similarly use web data to craft answers, and many New Zealanders are beginning to use these tools to get recommendations, research products, and find local businesses.

For marketers, AI answer engines matter because they change how people find information and click on results. Here are a few key reasons they’re a big deal:

• They’re popular and growing fast. As mentioned, Google’s AI-driven results already reach billions of users. AI answers are becoming common for many queries, especially broad informational questions. Globally, Google saw a 10% jump in search usage for queries with AI overviews after introducing these features – meaning people liked the experience and searched more. This trend will likely hit New Zealand as well, as users here get access to these features and grow to expect quick, rich answers.

• They change user behaviour. When an AI gives an on-the-spot answer, users may not scroll as much or click as many links. In fact, 7 in 10 searchers never read past the first third of an AI answer on the page. Younger users especially tend to trust the AI response and look at the provided sources or suggestions, whereas older users might still scroll for the traditional links and check “authority” sites. This means being one of the sources the AI cites or recommends is becoming more important than being result #5 or #6. Discovery is now about presence in the AI narrative, not just ranking on page one.

• They can both decrease and increase clicks. Some queries that used to send loads of traffic (like simple Q&As) might now get answered directly by AI, resulting in fewer clicks. A study by Ahrefs found that overall, AI overviews have led to a 34.5% drop in clicks on the top organic results on those pages. On the other hand, when users do click, it’s often because the AI summary piqued their interest in a specific source. Notably, 90% of shoppers will click through to a source featured in an AI overview if they’re in buying mode. And as Google points out, traffic from AI search results can be more qualified – these visitors already got some context and are more engaged. In short, you might see fewer but more meaningful clicks.

• They elevate certain sources (and omit others). AI answers often draw from trusted sources, structured data, and local profiles rather than just any website. For example, in Google’s AI-driven local results, the system might directly list “the best café for remote work in Wellington” based on Google Maps reviews and business info, without ever showing a link to a third-party site like Yelp or TripAdvisor. If your business’s data isn’t part of that trusted info (e.g. you have outdated Google Business Profile details or no schema markup on your site), you could be invisible in these results. The AI might even be answering the question using your info but not explicitly sending the user to your site. That’s a huge shift from the old SEO playbook.

To sum up, AI answer engines matter because they’re where users’ eyes and clicks are going. For New Zealand marketers, especially, this is a chance to get ahead – the local market might be smaller, but Kiwi consumers will expect the same fast answers and personalized help as anywhere else. If you can optimize for these AI-driven experiences now, you stand to capture that attention before competitors do. In the next sections, we’ll dive into exactly how to do that.

How AI Selects Answers (What Makes Content “AI-Friendly”)

To rank in AI-driven results, it helps to understand how these systems choose what to say and which sources to cite. Unlike traditional search, it’s not just about keywords and backlinks. AI answer engines use a mix of natural language understanding, relevance scoring, and quality signals to decide which pieces of content to include in their answers. Here are the major factors that influence whether your content gets picked up:

• Relevance and semantic matching: AI models try to truly understand a query and find content that directly addresses it (even if the wording is different). They’re looking for answers to the intent behind the question. For example, if someone asks, “How can I improve my website’s visibility on AI search results?” the AI isn’t literally searching for that exact long phrase on a page. It’s breaking the question into subtopics and concepts like “AI search visibility,” “improve website ranking on AI,” etc., and seeking out content that covers those ideas. This means your content should be written in natural language and cover topics comprehensively. Including common questions and thorough explanations in your copy can make it easier for an AI to grab a relevant snippet. Think about the questions your audience might ask and address them clearly (we’ll cover this more in content strategy below).

• High-quality, unique content: Google has repeatedly stressed that its AI search will favour content that is helpful, original, and people-first. In fact, Google’s own advice for succeeding in AI results is basically an echo of its advice for classic SEO: “Focus on your visitors and provide them with unique, satisfying content”. If your site is just rehashing definitions or aggregating info that’s on dozens of other sites, it may be seen as “commodity” content and less likely to be featured. AI engines love content that adds unique value or expertise – something new, more in-depth, or from a unique perspective. For instance, a local NZ marketing blog that shares original case studies or data about Kiwi consumer behaviour is more likely to be deemed valuable than a generic article pulling stats from elsewhere. As a rule of thumb: If it’s helpful and not easily found everywhere, it’s gold. Create content that you’d want to see featured as an answer.

• Authoritativeness and trust signals: AI doesn’t want to spout misinformation (and users won’t trust it if it does). So, these systems often lean towards trusted sources. This can mean well-known websites (big industry sites, government pages, Wikipedia, etc.) or pages that demonstrate clear expertise. Google’s AI, for example, is built atop its search index, which has ranking signals for authority (think E-E-A-T: Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, Trustworthiness). If your site has strong authority in your niche, you have a better shot of being referenced. One interesting insight: an Ahrefs study found that brand mentions on the web correlate strongly with being featured in Google’s AI overviews – even more than classic SEO metrics like backlinks. In other words, brands that are talked about a lot (in news, forums, social media, other websites) tend to get more love from the AI results. If you’re virtually unknown online, the AI might skip over you in favour of a brand it “recognizes” as popular or credible. This is a big hint that building your brand’s presence across the web helps with AI visibility. (More on that in the brand strategy section later.)

• Structured data and machine-readability: Unlike a human, an AI can’t inherently know that your recipe site has 5-star-rated gluten-free brownie recipes unless you or others have indicated that in a structured way. AI answer engines heavily use structured data (schema markup, knowledge graphs, etc.) to identify facts and pull info. For example, Google’s AI might use schema.org markup on a product page to understand specs, or use your FAQPage markup to directly answer a question. Yext’s analysis notes that “machine-readable content” like structured data is key to visibility in AI results. If you mark up things like reviews, business hours, how-to steps, or Q&As on your site, you make it much easier for an AI to excerpt or highlight your content accurately. Additionally, ensure information about your business or site is up-to-date in knowledge bases – e.g. your Google Business Profile, Wikipedia (if relevant), and industry directories. Consistent and structured info across the web acts like a beacon for AI systems.

• Freshness and user interest: AI models are trained on vast data (some current, some a bit older). While something like ChatGPT might rely on its trained knowledge (which could be months out of date), search-integrated AIs like Google’s are fetching real-time info. They will consider if content is up-to-date and relevant now. For example, if the query is about the “latest AI SEO strategies in 2025,” a blog post from June 2025 (hello, that’s you!) might outrank a highly authoritative but outdated 2022 article on the topic when the AI decides what to include. Ensuring your content is updated and talking about current trends (when appropriate) can help. Also, engagement signals – if the AI has ways to know that users found a source useful (perhaps through click data or ratings), that could reinforce the choice. Google’s systems, for instance, might notice if people frequently click a certain result after an AI overview and spend time on it. That’s speculative, but it aligns with how they treat search results in general.

• Content format and readability: AI answer engines often pull specific elements like bullet lists, steps, definitions, tables, etc., because they make for concise answers. Structuring some of your content in a clear way can improve your chances of being quoted. For instance, if someone asks “What are the steps to create a content plan for AI search?”, an article that literally has a section “Steps to create your AI-aware content plan” with a numbered list might get picked for a step-by-step answer. Similarly, using headings that are questions (like an FAQ style) can sometimes match a user’s question closely, making it easy for the AI to match. We’re not talking about gaming the system with awkward Q&A formatting – rather, organize your content logically with clear sections, which benefits both AI and human readers. Good use of headings, lists, and straightforward language helps the AI parse your content accurately. As always, write for humans first – but if you make it easy for humans to skim, you’ve likely made it easy for machines as well.

In summary, AI looks for content that is relevant, high-quality, authoritative, structured, and user-friendly. It’s like SEO+, with an even greater emphasis on natural language and on-page clarity. Now, let’s get practical: what should you do to align with these factors? The following sections break down concrete steps to help your content and site rank in AI answer engines.

Create Unique, People-First Content (Your Foundation)

It all starts with content. In the era of AI-driven search, the cliché “content is king” rings true, perhaps even louder than before. AI answer engines thrive on original, in-depth content – because their job is to synthesize info, they need solid “food” to chew on. As a marketer, you should double down on creating content that truly addresses your audience’s needs in a way competitors aren’t. Here’s how:

1. Write for your audience (and in their language).

This sounds obvious, but it’s crucial. Make sure you understand what your target audience (e.g. NZ marketers, small business owners, etc.) is asking and how they’re asking it. If New Zealand marketers are wondering, say, “How do I optimise for Google’s AI search results?”, use those phrases and answer that question directly in your content. Google’s AI is geared to answer more specific, conversational queries. In practice, that means you might want to include longer-tail questions and answers in your copy. Consider adding a brief FAQ section to key pages or writing blog posts that tackle single questions in depth (“Explained: How to get my NZ business showing up in AI search results”). This people-first approach ensures you’re directly meeting user intent – which is exactly what the AI wants to do when it selects answers.

2. Offer depth and originality.

Avoid shallow or purely regurgitative content. If ten other sites have written the same “5 tips for AI SEO” list, think about what unique insight you can add. Maybe you have a local perspective (“...for New Zealand brands”) or you include real examples/data. Google explicitly advises content creators to make “unique, non-commodity content that visitors will find helpful and satisfying”. So instead of just saying “Use structured data” (as every article does), you might include a mini-case study of how adding FAQ schema improved your site’s traffic, or provide a fresh tip like how to optimise for Perplexity AI specifically. Unique doesn’t have to mean inventing something entirely new – it can be your experience, your voice, or combining information in a way that adds value. The goal is that when an AI combs your page, it finds nuggets of information or a clarity of explanation that stands out from the generic noise.

3. Emphasize E-E-A-T (Experience, Expertise, Authority, Trust).

These quality pillars from Google’s guidelines still matter. In fact, when AI models choose content, they often lean on the signals that a page is authoritative and trustworthy (since they don’t want to present bad info). Showcase your expertise: if you have qualifications or experience, mention them. If you’re writing about, say, “adapting to AI search,” you might briefly note your background in SEO or include quotes from known experts. Demonstrating first-hand experience (“We tested this on our site and saw X result”) can set your content apart. Also, cite reliable sources for facts (just like we’re doing here with references). An AI might detect that you reference authoritative data, which could boost its confidence in your content. Plus, if you cite respected sources, sometimes the AI might even mention your source (and your site as well) in the answer, giving you indirect visibility.

4. Keep content up-to-date.

AI answers will favour current information for topics that evolve. Make a habit of updating key posts (like those “Ultimate Guide” pieces) with the latest insights. For instance, as new stats or tools come out, refresh your content to include them. Not only does this help traditional SEO (Google loves fresh content for fresh queries), but it ensures that an AI isn’t skipping over you because your info is from 2019. If a user asks in 2025, “What’s the current state of AI usage in marketing?”, a blog citing 2025 data (like the Adobe stat of a 3,500% increase in AI-driven retail site traffic) is going to be far more attractive to the answer engine than something citing 2018 stats. Regularly review and expand your content to maintain relevance.

5. Mind the tone and readability.

Tone-wise, aim for conversational and clear writing – exactly what works for human readers also works for AI parsing. Avoid unnecessary jargon (or if you use it, explain it) so that your content is accessible. Shorter sentences and active voice can help clarity. Remember, an AI model is essentially reading your page to decide what part of it to serve up. If your sentences are convoluted or the main point is buried in fluff, the AI might either misunderstand or skip it. By writing in a straightforward, human-like tone (friendly but informative) – as if you’re explaining to a colleague – you increase the chances the AI will correctly interpret and select your content. Plus, users prefer that tone too. Think of it as meeting the AI and the user halfway with clarity.

6. Answer questions directly.

When appropriate, make the answer to a question stand out. For example, if a section of your article is titled “What is an AI answer engine?”, start the paragraph with a direct definition like: “An AI answer engine is a search tool that uses artificial intelligence to generate answers...”. This way, if someone asks the AI that question, it might lift that exact sentence (with a citation to you). You can then elaborate further in subsequent sentences. The key is to front-load the answer and then provide detail. This technique often lands featured snippets in traditional Google, and similarly can land you in AI responses. Just ensure the information you provide is accurate and complete enough to stand alone if extracted.

To recap, content optimized for AI search is basically high-quality SEO-friendly content with extra emphasis on clarity and originality. Many of these practices may sound like good old content marketing hygiene – and they are! The big difference is that now the best content (in the AI’s eyes) gets an even bigger reward: it might be synthesized into the answer that everyone sees first. So invest the time in your content; it’s the foundation of all other steps.

(Pro tip: Don’t be afraid to use AI tools to help create content too – but do so carefully. In a later section, we’ll discuss how AI can assist your content creation workflow without sacrificing quality or authenticity.)

Provide a Great Page Experience (Don’t Neglect UX)

Imagine a user sees your site mentioned in an AI-generated answer and clicks through. What do they find? If they land on a slow, messy, hard-to-read page, they’re likely to bounce – and all your content effort goes down the drain. Moreover, Google’s algorithms (AI or not) can tell if a page is user-friendly or not. Page experience matters for both classic and AI search results. Here’s what to focus on:

1. Speed and performance:

Ensure your website loads quickly and runs smoothly. Users have little patience, especially when they’ve been spoon-fed by an AI snippet and just want to dive deeper. If your page takes more than a few seconds to load on a mobile connection, that user might hit the back button, and the AI may learn that your page wasn’t satisfying. Use tools like Google PageSpeed Insights or Lighthouse to check your load times. Compress images, enable browser caching, and remove unnecessary scripts. Speed isn’t just a nice-to-have; it’s a ranking factor and a user satisfaction factor. In New Zealand, where mobile usage is high and internet speeds can vary, a snappy site can give you an edge. Make sure your content is accessible fast whether the user is in Auckland on fibre or in a rural area on 4G.

2. Mobile-friendly design:

A huge portion of AI-driven searches will be on mobile devices (think voice searches to Siri/Google Assistant, or people using chatbots on their phones). Your site must be responsive and easy to navigate on small screens. Text should be readable without zooming, buttons and links should be tappable, and overall layout should adapt. Google’s index has been mobile-first for years, and any new AI features will similarly value mobile usability. Test your pages on your own phone – is it a pleasant experience or a pain? Google’s Mobile-Friendly Test tool can also flag issues. If you haven’t updated your site’s design in a decade, now is the time; a modern, clean theme pays dividends.

3. Clear layout and focus:

When a visitor comes from an AI answer, they often have a specific bit of info they’re interested in (the thing the AI teased). Make it easy for them to find that on your page. This means having a clean layout where the main content isn’t buried under pop-ups, giant headers, or excessive ads. It also means using headings, subheadings, and other formatting to highlight key points. For instance, if your page was cited for “5 tips to improve AI search ranking,” have those tips clearly enumerated and easy to scan. Avoid walls of text – break it up into short paragraphs (like we’re doing here), use bullet points for lists, and use visuals if they help convey information. A clutter-free, reader-friendly page keeps users engaged and signals to Google that your site delivers value.

4. Avoid intrusive interstitials or nags:

Be mindful of things that frustrate users: full-screen pop-ups asking for newsletter signups right when someone arrives, ads that cover content, autoplay videos, etc. Google has guidelines about intrusive interstitials (especially on mobile) and will ding sites that abuse them. If an AI answer sends a user to your site and they have to dismiss two pop-ups before reading the content, that’s a bad experience. Consider using more subtle CTAs or at least delaying them until the user has scrolled. The first impression should be the content they came for.

5. Accessibility and clarity:

Accessibility isn’t just ethical, it’s practical. Use proper HTML structure (headings in order, alt tags on images) – not only for users with assistive tech, but also because structurally sound HTML is easier for AI to parse. Clarity in design extends to using decent font sizes, high-contrast text, and a logical information flow. Remember, “accessible and fast” content performs better. Even an AI engine effectively “reads” your site like a user with a very limited “browser”; well-structured content ensures nothing gets lost in translation.

In short, optimize your site’s user experience from end to end. Google’s own guidance for AI results emphasizes that even the best content can disappoint if the page is poor – “Even the best content can be disappointing to people if they arrive at a page that’s cluttered, difficult to navigate or makes it hard to find the main information.” Ensure visitors can immediately find the value you promised. By delivering a smooth experience, you not only satisfy users but also make it more likely that AI systems will continue to recommend your pages. After all, Google doesn’t want to send people to frustrating sites; it reflects badly on their shiny new AI feature if users aren’t happy with the click-through.

Think of it this way: AI answers might get you the first part of the attention, but your site’s experience earns the lasting trust. Don’t drop the ball when the user arrives.

Ensure Your Content Can Be Crawled and Indexed (Technical SEO Basics)

No matter how great your content is, it won’t rank anywhere – AI or otherwise – if search engines can’t access it. Technical SEO is like the plumbing of your website: usually unseen, but absolutely essential. Google’s AI-powered search still relies on Google’s index as its backbone, which means you need to get into that index properly and with all the right signals. Here’s how to cover your bases:

1. Make sure Google (and Bing) can crawl your site.

This is fundamental. Check your robots.txt file to ensure you’re not accidentally blocking important pages. In most cases, you want your content pages (blogs, product pages, etc.) to be crawlable. If you’ve recently updated your site or added new sections, use Google Search Console’s URL Inspection tool to see if those pages are indexed or if there are any crawl issues. Fix any broken links or dead-ends (404s) that might disrupt crawlers. Google’s technical requirements haven’t changed with AI search – your page should return a 200 OK status, not be behind weird scripts, and not require login or something to see content. If Googlebot can’t retrieve your page content easily, there’s zero chance that content will ever appear in an AI answer.

2. Use proper HTML and avoid hiding content.

Sometimes designers hide text behind tabs or accordions for aesthetic reasons. Be careful: if important content (like an FAQ answer or a description) is only loaded via script or is hidden unless clicked, Google might not index it fully, and an AI might miss it. It’s okay to use tabs/accordions for UX, but ensure the content is present in the HTML (not injected after). Also, avoid putting crucial info in images without alt text. Basically, anything you want the search engine to “know,” put it in plain HTML text on the page. Structured data (which we’ll talk about next) is also HTML-based usually, so implement it correctly in the code.

3. Meet Core Web Vitals and technical best practices.

Core Web Vitals (like loading performance, interactivity, and visual stability) are part of Google’s algorithm. While not directly about crawling/indexing, they fall under technical health. Use Search Console’s Core Web Vitals report to see if your pages pass. Address issues like slow server response, layout shifts, or delayed interactive elements. Additionally, ensure your site uses HTTPS (a no-brainer now; if your site still isn’t on HTTPS, it’s overdue – browsers even flag non-HTTPS as “not secure”). Fix any security issues or manual actions noted in Search Console. A clean bill of technical health means search engines can trust your site more, which can indirectly influence whether you get featured in results.

4. Handle duplicate content and use canonicals.

If you have multiple URLs with similar content (for example, print versions, or tracking parameters, or HTTP vs HTTPS), use canonical tags to point to the main URL. This consolidates signals and ensures the AI doesn’t accidentally pull from a duplicate or less ideal version of your content. Also, for content syndication: if your article is republished elsewhere (or if you heavily quote another site), be aware that the AI might attribute info to the other source if it deems that one more authoritative. Having original content on your own site and using techniques like canonical or even just a byline date can help establish you as the source.

5. Leverage XML sitemaps and structured data feeds.

Submit an XML sitemap through Google Search Console and Bing Webmaster Tools. It’s a simple way to ensure engines know about all your important pages, especially new ones. Update it when you publish new content (many CMS do this automatically). For large sites or specific content types, Google also supports things like RSS/Atom feeds for discovery. Make use of these – they’re like giving search engines a map to all your treasure. Remember, if it’s not indexed, it won’t be used in an answer.

Google’s own advice here is straightforward: “Make sure your pages meet our technical requirements… so that we can find them, crawl them, index them, and consider them for showing in our results.”. So before chasing fancy AI strategies, get your technical SEO solid.

One more thing: don’t block AI crawlers specifically unless you really mean to. Some site owners worry about AI scrapers and consider using robots rules to disallow known AI user-agents. Be cautious – if you block something like the Bing bot or OpenAI’s GPTBot (if it’s gathering data), you may be cutting yourself off from being included as a source in those AI engines. Google’s AI uses Googlebot’s index, so no change needed there (just don’t opt-out via things like nosnippet unless necessary). We’ll touch on content controls next, but the general principle is: stay accessible if you want to be featured.

By ensuring a solid technical foundation, you set the stage for all your great content to actually count. It’s like having good lighting and sound for a stage performance – it doesn’t make the play good by itself, but a great play in the dark gets you no applause. So flip those lights on (for search engines)!

Use Structured Data and Multimedia (Speak the AI’s Language)

In the world of AI answer engines, structured data is your friend. It’s a way of explicitly telling search engines what your content is about in a language they understand. Meanwhile, multimedia elements like images and videos can enhance your content’s appeal and even get pulled into AI results (Google’s AI can show images in its answers). Let’s break down how to leverage these:

1. Implement schema markup (structured data).

Schema markup is code (in JSON-LD, Microdata, etc.) that you add to your pages to label different types of information – like articles, recipes, products, FAQs, events, and so on. By adding schema, you help search engines understand the context and details of your content. For example, if you have an FAQ section on your page about “AI search tips,” using the FAQPage schema tells Google exactly what the question and answers are. This can make your page eligible for rich results and also gives the AI a clear extraction point. Google explicitly encourages using structured data, noting it “makes pages eligible for certain search features and rich results”. But importantly, they add: make sure it matches your visible content. Don’t try to stuff schema with info that’s not actually on the page – that can backfire. Some useful schema types for ranking in AI answers:

• FAQPage: For Q&A content, likely to feed into voice assistants and AI answers for direct question queries.

• HowTo: If your content is a how-to guide, marking up the steps can sometimes get them featured (like a step-by-step answer).

• Article/BlogPosting: Use this on blog articles with proper headline, author, date fields. It helps establish things like the author (expertise) and can be used to display your article in carousels or such.

• Organization: Include schema about your company/website in general (like organization, logo, sameAs links to social profiles). This can strengthen your knowledge panel presence and overall authority signals.

• Product: If you sell products, product schema with reviews, ratings, and price can make your listing more compelling, and AI might call out, say, “rated 4.5 stars” if relevant to a query.

Implementing schema might require a bit of dev help if you’re not familiar, but many CMS plugins (like Yoast for WordPress, for instance) handle a lot of basics automatically. There’s also Google’s Rich Results Test tool to validate your markup. Remember, structured data doesn’t directly boost ranking, but it boosts visibility and understanding – which in the age of AI is just as good. It’s like giving the AI a cheat sheet about your content.

2. Optimize your images (and add alt text).

High-quality images can now appear in AI search results. Google’s AI can perform “multimodal” search – e.g., a user might snap a photo of something and ask a question about it. Also, within some AI answers, you’ll see images pulled in to enrich the answer. To take advantage:

• Use relevant, quality images on your pages that add value (e.g., infographics, charts, product photos, etc.).

• Add descriptive alt text to each image. This not only aids accessibility for visually impaired users (very important) but also tells the search engine what the image is. For example, an alt text like "Screenshot of Google AI search result highlighting a local café recommendation" could make your image more likely to show up if someone asks “What does an AI search result look like for cafes?”.

• Host images on your own domain if possible and use common formats (JPEG, PNG, or WebP). Ensure the images are compressed for web so they load fast.

Google suggested that supporting your textual content with high-quality images and videos can help you succeed in AI searches. They want to provide users with rich results. If your page has the perfect diagram or photo that illustrates an answer, the AI might include it with attribution (imagine your image and site name showing up directly in the answer – nice branding win!). We’ve already seen examples of AI answers citing a YouTube video or a graph from a site.

3. Include video content (with transcripts/captions).

Videos, especially informative ones, can boost your visibility. If you have explainer videos or webinars, embed them on your pages (YouTube embeds are fine, and also help your YouTube SEO). More importantly for AI: provide transcripts or detailed descriptions of the video content. AI can’t “watch” a video (yet), so the transcript is how it knows what’s inside. There have been instances of Google’s featured snippets pulling content from video transcripts for certain answers. With AI search, Google might directly surface a segment of a video as an answer (they do this in some cases already with “Suggested clip”). If you optimize your videos with chapters and clear narration (and upload those to YouTube with proper titles/descriptions), you increase the chance an AI might say “According to a video by X, [answer]…”. Plus, having video on your page increases time-on-site and engagement, which are positive signals.

4. Update your Google Business Profile and Merchant data (for local and shopping).

While not exactly on-page structured data, these are structured data feeds you give to Google. For local businesses in NZ: your Google Business Profile info (hours, address, reviews, posts, Q&As) can directly influence AI-driven local answers. As Yext’s research highlighted, for local “near me” queries, Google’s AI was heavily pulling from Google Business Profiles and verified data. Make sure your profile is claimed, accurate, and filled with photos and up-to-date details. Encourage good reviews – Google’s AI might summarize reviews (e.g., “Customers say this café is quiet and good for working”). If you’re in retail/e-commerce, ensure your products are listed in Google’s Merchant Center with correct data. Google’s AI shopping experiences can use that data to recommend products, and you want yours in the mix. It even suggests keeping Merchant Center and Business Profile info current to succeed in AI multi-search.

5. Validate and adhere to guidelines.

Whenever you use structured data, use Google’s Rich Result Test or the Schema Markup Validator to check for errors. Also, read Google’s guidelines for that schema type – for instance, FAQ schema shouldn’t be used for content that isn’t a Q&A, etc. Violating schema guidelines can lead to a manual penalty or just being ignored. As the Google team said, follow their guidelines such as making sure all structured content is also visible to users on the page – don’t hide a bunch of keyword stuff in schema or you’ll get into trouble.

In essence, structured data and multimedia help translate your content into the AI’s native tongue. It’s all about making things explicit. Think of it like putting up signs and labels all over your store so an inspector can quickly assess what’s what. The AI is that inspector: give it clear labels (schema), show it attractive displays (images/videos), and you’ll create an impression. Many competitors still neglect these details, so this is a chance to leapfrog them with relatively straightforward enhancements.

By speaking clearly to the machines, you make it easier for them to highlight you. And when the machines (AI answer engines) highlight you, that means more humans see you. So don’t shy away from a bit of nerdy SEO work here – it can yield very human results in terms of traffic and visibility.

Build Your Brand Presence and Authority (On and Off the Web)

One interesting quirk of AI answer engines is how they place a premium on authority and brand recognition. As we touched on earlier, being well-known (or well-cited) in your topic can significantly increase your chances of getting featured in AI answers. This isn’t just about vanity – it’s about ensuring the AI “trusts” your content enough to present it. Here’s how you can bolster your brand and authority signals:

1. Get mentioned and linked on authoritative sites.

Off-site SEO still matters. If credible websites (news outlets, industry blogs, academic sites, etc.) mention your brand or link to your content, it’s a strong signal of authority. Ahrefs’ analysis found that brand web mentions had the highest correlation with appearing in Google’s AI overviews. This means things like PR coverage, guest posting on respected publications, speaking at events (that get reported online), or getting listed in trusted directories can help. For instance, if you run an NZ marketing agency, a mention in stuff.co.nz or the NZ Herald about a report you released could do wonders. Even forum mentions (in context) can help – Google’s AI seems to value user-generated content too (e.g., Reddit threads often get pulled into AI results). The more the web is talking about you (in a positive, relevant way), the more likely an AI will view you as a known entity worth including.

2. Cultivate positive reviews and social proof.

This is especially relevant for local businesses or products. AI answers will sometimes summarize sentiments. For example, “This Auckland restaurant is popular for its vegan options and ambiance” might be drawn from Google Maps reviews or an aggregated sentiment analysis. Encourage your happy customers to leave reviews on Google, TripAdvisor, Facebook – wherever it makes sense. Also, engage on social media and communities. If people on Twitter or LinkedIn are buzzing about an insight you shared, that could indirectly lead to more web mentions or even be picked up via social search. While social signals per se aren’t direct ranking factors, they create buzz which leads to links and mentions – the real gold. And who knows, future AI models might incorporate trending social content more directly.

3. Ensure your brand’s facts are well-defined online.

Create or update your presence on knowledge bases like Wikipedia (if notable enough) and Wikidata. If your brand or a key figure in your company can have a Wikipedia page, that’s a strong authority signal (just follow Wikipedia’s guidelines and don’t be overly promotional – it should be factual). Google’s knowledge graph draws heavily from such sources. Also, have a thorough “About” page on your site that clearly states who you are, your history, your expertise, and includes schema markup for Organization and perhaps Person (for authors). That way, if an AI is cross-referencing, it finds consistent info. Pro tip: Also list awards, certifications, or any trust badges you have – it might tip the scales in establishing you as a trusted source.

4. Align content with user intent, not just keywords.

Authority is also built by consistently answering the questions users have. Look at the “People also ask” questions around your topic and answer them, either in your content or via a dedicated FAQ section or article series. The more you become a go-to source for a cluster of topics, the more the AI will pick up on that. For example, if your blog regularly covers various angles of “AI marketing in New Zealand” (tips, case studies, news commentary) and users engage with it, the AI might recognize your site as one that “owns” that niche content-wise. This is content authority, which complements brand authority.

5. Monitor your presence in AI results.

You can’t improve what you don’t measure. Start paying attention to where you show up. Try various queries in Bing Chat, Google’s SGE (if available in your region or via opting in), and other tools like Perplexity or even voice assistants. Do you ever see your site referenced or linked? If not, who is showing up? Analyze those sources – what do they have that you might lack? This could reveal, for instance, that competitor A is cited often because they have a strong research report that everyone references. That might inspire you to create a better, localized report. You may also use specialized tools to track AI visibility. For example, Adobe just launched LLM Optimizer, an enterprise tool to “monitor AI-driven traffic and benchmark brand visibility” across chat services. It can identify when your content is being used by AI answers and how you stack up against competitors on key queries. While such tools are new (and possibly pricey), the concept is to keep an eye on this new channel. Even without them, you can look at your analytics – some AI chat tools might start showing up as referrers (e.g., “bing chat” or specific user agents). If you see an unusual bump in direct traffic after a major AI feature launch, that could be from AI referrals.

6. Engage with the community and create sharable content.

Authority also comes from thought leadership. Create high-value content that others naturally talk about. This could be original research, infographics, interactive tools, etc. For a New Zealand audience, maybe something like “Annual NZ Digital Marketing Trends Report” – if it’s well done, many local sites might cite it, and the AI could latch onto your key findings as authoritative info. Similarly, answer questions on forums or Q&A sites (Reddit, Quora, Stack Exchange) where appropriate under your name/brand – not so much for direct traffic, but to increase those “mentions” out in the wild. Google’s AI overview actually seems to incorporate content from forums like Reddit more than traditional Google did. Being part of the conversation in those spaces can indirectly help.

7. Use content controls wisely (if at all).

On the flip side of building presence is the idea of controlling it. Google allows site owners to opt-out of being included in AI snippets using mechanisms like <!-- Google-allow-ai: generativeAI --> or by using nosnippet tags on certain content. Think carefully before using these. Most marketers will want their content to be included in answers, as long as attribution and maybe a link is given. But if you have certain content you don’t want scraped (maybe premium content), you could restrict it. Generally, though, to rank in AI results, you obviously need to permit your content to be used. So ensure you’re not inadvertently blocking it (don’t put nosnippet or noindex on pages that you want to rank!). Google’s guidance: “More restrictive permissions will limit how your content is featured in our AI experiences.” – translation: if you opt-out, you’re out. Use that power sparingly.

Ultimately, brand building and SEO are converging. The stronger your brand reputation and authority, the better all your marketing performs – including AI search. This is nothing new, but AI search is making the effect more pronounced. In the past, maybe you could get by as an unknown site if you just SEO’d well for certain keywords. Going forward, if the AI doesn’t recognize or trust your brand, it might favor summarizing from a site it does trust. So invest in that recognition.

For New Zealand businesses, this is also about local authority. If you’re a big fish in the NZ pond (even if not globally famous), that still counts. For example, a well-cited study by a NZ university or a popular NZ tech blog might be the preferred source for an AI when the query is region-specific. So don’t worry if you’re not “Wikipedia famous” – focus on being authoritative in your context and circle.

Measure, Adapt, and Stay Informed (The Ongoing Process)

Adapting to AI in search isn’t a one-and-done task. It’s an ongoing process of measuring impact and staying on top of changes. The search landscape will keep evolving – in fact, that’s one of the only guarantees. As Google itself says, “the only thing predictable in Search is that it always evolves because people’s needs are always evolving.”. Here’s how you can keep pace and continuously refine your strategy:

1. Monitor traffic and engagement from AI sources.

Start looking at your analytics for indicators of AI-driven traffic. Google Analytics might not explicitly label “AI overview” as a source (at least not yet), but you can watch for unusual patterns. For instance, you might see a spike in direct traffic to a page that coincides with it being referenced by an AI answer. Also, some referral strings might include clues (e.g., Bing Chat might show a certain user agent or ref parameter). If you use Google Search Console, you may notice queries that have a high impression count but lower clicks – possibly because people got their answer from AI without clicking. Any page with a drop in CTR (click-through rate) after mid-2023 could be affected by SGE. Conversely, pages that maintain or boost CTR might be those lucky ones getting cited as sources. Some third-party SEO tools are developing “AI visibility” reports. Keep an eye on industry news for those, as they can automate detecting if your content was used in AI answers.

2. Focus on conversion and engagement metrics, not just clicks.

In the AI era, fewer clicks doesn’t necessarily mean less impact. As Google noted, when AI provides a lot of context upfront, the clicks you do get could be more qualified. So double down on measuring what those visitors do: Are they spending time reading? Do they sign up, inquire, or convert in some way? Perhaps someone didn’t click at all but still learned about your brand from the AI’s answer – maybe later they navigated directly to your site or searched your brand name. These indirect effects are harder to quantify but real. Use tools like brand search volume (Google Trends or Search Console queries for your brand name) as a proxy for awareness. If being featured in AI answers boosts your brand exposure, you might see more people searching your name or coming to your homepage directly. It’s a bit like how being featured in a snippet or news article can raise awareness even among those who don’t click.

3. Iterate your content strategy based on findings.

If you notice certain topics or types of content on your site seem to get pulled into AI answers more, consider expanding on those. For example, if your “How-to” guides about marketing tools are frequently cited, maybe create more of those or update them regularly to maintain leadership. Or if your statistics are being used, continue publishing fresh data points that journalists and AIs alike will quote (with attribution). On the flip side, if some content just isn’t gaining traction in the AI space, evaluate why. Is it too generic? Do you need to make it more in-depth or targeted? Use competitive analysis: see what content from others is being chosen and think about how to make something better or more specific (especially catering to NZ context if that’s a differentiator).

4. Stay updated on AI search developments.

The major search engines regularly announce updates. Google’s Search Central Blog (which we cited) is a great source for official news – e.g., they might announce changes in how AI snippets work, new schema support, etc. Also follow industry news on sites like Search Engine Land, Moz, Ahrefs blog, etc., which often experiment and share findings (like “8 ways to succeed in AI search experiences”). Being in New Zealand, keep an eye on when features roll out here; sometimes new search features hit the US first and NZ a bit later. Use that lag to your advantage by preparing. If Google launches “AI snapshots” in ANZ region, you should already have your content tuned based on what happened in the US rollout. Maybe join communities or forums (there are SEO groups on Reddit, for example, and local digital marketing meetups) to exchange observations. The SEO community is quick to dissect new changes.

5. Test using AI tools from a user perspective.

Don’t forget to experience these AI answers like a user would. Ask ChatGPT (with web browsing enabled) a question that your business should be the answer to – see if and how you appear. Try Bing’s chat for queries in your domain. Use Google’s Bard or others if relevant. This can reveal interesting quirks. For instance, you might find the AI gives an outdated answer that doesn’t mention the latest info – that could be a content opportunity for you to create something the AI will latch onto after it updates. Or maybe the AI is giving a good answer but not citing sources – which might indicate your site’s info is in there but not explicitly credited, meaning you might want to encourage more linking or clearer credit (for example, by publishing content in a way that encourages others to link to you). It’s a bit of a detective game.

6. Consider new tools and platforms.

As the landscape evolves, also think beyond Google and Bing. There are AI-specific assistants (like Perplexity.ai, which acts as a QA search engine with citations). There are voice assistants (Siri, Alexa) which might tap into different sources. Optimizing for those might involve submitting data to Apple Business Connect for Siri, for example, or ensuring your site is schema-rich for Alexa’s preferences. It might sound like overkill, but remember, users will use whatever is easiest. If tomorrow a large chunk of NZ users start asking their car’s voice assistant for local business info, you want to be present there too. So keep an eye on emerging answer engines (like the ChatGPT plugins ecosystem, or specialized AI advisors in finance, health, etc., depending on your sector).

7. Be adaptable and patient.

Finally, adapt but also be patient. SEO has always been a long game, and AI SEO (for lack of a better term) is too. You might implement changes and not see results overnight because maybe the AI hasn’t re-crawled or re-trained on your content yet. Or Google’s SGE might be in flux with tests, so your traffic might wobble. Avoid knee-jerk reactions. Instead, iterate thoughtfully: make a change, monitor, refine. And remember, some fundamentals won’t change: quality content, good user experience, and solving users’ problems are always going to be at the heart of visibility, no matter how fancy the presentation layer gets.

In a sense, surviving this “answer engine” revolution is about staying true to solid digital marketing principles while embracing new techniques. Marketers who are flexible and data-driven will thrive. As Google’s John Mueller and others often suggest – focus on making your site awesome for users, and you’ll generally ride out algorithmic changes. With AI, making it awesome includes making it understandable to AI and present where AI is. You’re now armed with the knowledge to do just that.

Before we conclude, let’s address some specific questions you might still have about AI answer engines and SEO in a quick FAQ style.

FAQ: AI Answer Engines and SEO

Q: Are AI answer engines going to replace traditional search results entirely?
A: Not entirely – at least not in the near future. AI answers are augmenting search results, not completely replacing them. Google still shows a mix of AI-generated overviews along with the familiar list of links beneath. Think of AI “answer engines” as an additional layer on top of search. They handle broad or complex queries by giving an overview, but for many navigational or very specific queries, classic results (or things like local packs) still appear. Google execs have emphasized that they see AI and the web working together, where AI helps contextualize and organize the web’s info and then users can click through for more depth. In New Zealand, as elsewhere, we expect a hybrid search results page: some AI, some traditional results. So you need to optimize for both. Traditional SEO isn’t dead – it’s evolving.

Q: How can I optimize my content for ChatGPT or other AI chatbots specifically?
A: ChatGPT (as of 2025) mainly relies on its training data (plus plugins or browsing if enabled) to answer questions. You can’t directly influence its training data except by having content on the web that becomes popular and gets scraped. However, if ChatGPT or Bing Chat have a browsing mode, then it’s similar to optimizing for a normal search – the chatbot will fetch top search results for a query. So good SEO still applies. Make sure your content is ranking well for the question a chatbot might internally search to answer the user. Also, having clear, well-structured answers on your page can help the chatbot quickly grab the info. For Bing Chat specifically, it often cites sources – ensure your content is among the top Bing results for relevant queries by doing all the SEO things we discussed (quality content, technical health, etc.). One tip: use FAQs and Q&A format in some content – chatbots love that straightforward question-answer text structure. Also, monitor forums like the OpenAI community for any guidelines on content preferences (they haven’t given SEOs much to go on, but staying tuned doesn’t hurt). In short, optimizing for AI chatbots is about being the best answer and ranking high so that the bot chooses you as a source.

Q: Should I block AI bots from using my website’s content?
A: In most cases, no – not if you want visibility. Some publishers have expressed concern about AI scrapers using their content without clicks. While you can disallow certain bots (like OpenAI’s GPTBot) via robots.txt or use Google’s mechanisms to opt-out of generative AI, doing so means forfeiting the chance to be included as an answer. If your business model relies on proprietary content that you don’t want freely shared, that’s a different scenario – you might consider blocking to protect intellectual property. But for marketers aiming to reach an audience, you generally want to be included in AI answers (with proper attribution). It’s similar to featured snippets: yes, the user might get the answer without clicking, but they also see your brand and can click if they need more. One compromise approach is to allow AI but ensure your content encourages click-throughs – e.g., an AI might give the first part of your answer, and the user has to click to “learn more” or see a full list. Overall, unless you have a clear reason to opt out, it’s better to allow your content to be used by AI engines so you can gain that exposure. Just keep an eye on how it’s used and make sure you get credit (Google and Bing do cite sources; if some tools don’t, that might influence your choice on allowing them).

Q: Does being cited in an AI answer actually bring traffic, since the answer is already given?
A: It can, yes. While the AI might answer the core question, users often click sources for a few reasons: curiosity for more detail, the need to verify or get a second opinion, or because the AI’s answer prompted a follow-up question that the source might cover. As mentioned, 90% of buyers click through sources featured in AI overviews when researching a purchase, showing that people treat those sources as additional reading. Also, consider that AI answers often only summarize – complex topics or anything requiring nuance will drive users to learn more from the source. If your site is cited, you gain credibility and a likelihood of the click. Additionally, even if the immediate click rate isn’t as high as a #1 organic result used to get, the branding effect is significant. Users see your name; that can lead to direct visits later or them choosing you when they see you elsewhere. So being part of the conversation has value beyond the raw click numbers. However, it’s true that for very simple queries (like factual one-liners), users might just take the answer and leave. In those cases, there wasn’t much traffic to be had anyway (think “What’s 2+2?” or “capital of Australia” type queries). The more valuable queries – where a user might become a customer – usually aren’t one-and-done answers; they involve research, comparison, nuance. That’s where being cited can bring you qualified visitors.

Q: What’s the best way to track how I’m doing in AI search results?
A: This is a developing area. Currently, you might need to rely on a combination of tools and tactics. First, keep using Google Search Console and Bing Webmaster Tools – they won’t explicitly tell you about AI citations yet, but you can infer some data (like impressions vs clicks). Second, try rank tracking tools; some are adding features to simulate SGE or track “AI ranking.” Third, manually test queries on the AI platforms (as discussed earlier) and note your presence. Fourth, watch your analytics for referral hints (Bing may show referrals from Bing’s domain when clicked via chat, for instance).

If your budget allows, consider solutions like the Adobe LLM Optimizer (or similar offerings likely to emerge) which claim to identify your content’s usage in AI answers. These tools can benchmark you against competitors and might integrate with analytics to show downstream impact (e.g., “AI answer X led to Y conversions”). It’s early days, so there’s no single “AI rank metric” that everyone uses. The best approach is to combine qualitative observation with quantitative data. For example, make a list of target queries and regularly check if you’re in the AI result; if not, maybe that’s a gap to work on. Over time, expect the search engines to give more insight – Google has already added some reporting for SGE in Search Console for select users, and Bing might do similar. Stay tuned to official announcements.

Q: Will doing all this also help my traditional SEO?
A: Absolutely, yes. The beauty is that optimizing for AI answer engines isn’t in opposition to traditional SEO – it’s largely complementary. When you create better content, improve site experience, add structured data, and build authority, you are simultaneously improving your traditional search rankings. In fact, if your site ranks #1 in classic Google results, you already have a much higher chance (though not a guarantee) of being used as a source in AI overviews. The overlap is strong. There may be a few tweaks that are extra (like focusing on conversational queries or certain schema) but none of it will hurt your regular SEO. If anything, it makes you more resilient. Should AI answers take more eyeballs away from plain links, you’ll capture those eyeballs via the AI inclusion. If AI answers falter and people go back to clicking mostly links, you’ll have great content ranking well to capture them. It’s a win-win to optimize in this holistic way. Think of it as future-proofing your SEO – covering all bases of how searchers might interact with content.

Hopefully, these FAQs clear up some of the top questions and concerns. We’re in a dynamic time for search marketing, but with the right strategy, it’s an opportunity, not a threat.

Conclusion: Adaptation Is Key for NZ Marketers

The search landscape is undeniably changing – but change in digital marketing is nothing new. For marketers in New Zealand, this shift toward AI-driven answers is a chance to leap ahead by embracing new best practices while staying true to the fundamentals. By focusing on high-quality, people-first content and ensuring your site is technically sound and AI-friendly, you’ll be well positioned to maintain and even grow your visibility as search evolves.

Remember, at the heart of all these algorithms and AI models are users looking for answers. If you keep their needs front and center – providing accurate information, unique insights, and a great experience – you have little to fear. In fact, Google itself assures that their core goal remains the same: “to help people find outstanding, original content that adds unique value”. AI is just another way to deliver that content.

As Kiwi marketers, you might have to tweak your playbook, but you don’t need to throw it out. Apply the tips from this guide: leverage structured data, polish your local profiles, build your brand’s authority, and keep an eye on performance. The companies that adapt will be the ones that continue to reach their audience, whether through an AI answer, a traditional search result, or whatever comes next.

So, take a deep breath and lean into this change. The tools and insights are at your disposal (and no doubt more will come). By staying informed and agile, you can turn AI answer engines into new avenues for traffic and growth.

 

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