Why AI search wants consistent branding

Y’all know by now that I don’t like AI-assisted anything polluting my spaces. 

I mean, I’m the guy who spent hours jumping through hoops to get an actual Google support tech on the line, because it was the only way I could turn off Gemini on my Workspace account.

However, I do begrudgingly admit there are a fair number of people who do use AI-assisted search. Some people do make buying decisions on the advice of ChatGPT. (some might also make relationship decisions based on ChatGPT’s advice, and, well, we’ll see how that goes for them 😉 )

Before you panic about getting “optimized” for AI-assisted search, however, remind yourself: many of the same practices that make your content SEO friendly in organic search are also AI-search-friendly.

There is one notable difference, however: AI-assisted search cares about consistency.

AI search prioritizes consistent messaging

Much like every other area of online marketing, consistency is key to showing up in AI-powered search results. 

“Consistency” looks a bit different here, though: rather than keywords or post times, AI search looks at the greater whole of your online presence, and everything that links to it. That’s because the AI wants to deliver results that it is certain of. 

AI searches seek confirmation that you actually do what you say you do from multiple, authoritative sources. If it gets that confirmation, you stay in the running for a top spot. However, if your website, social media, and third-party mentions all describe you differently, then AI search can easily overlook you, because it can’t find consistent information about you.

Does that mean you have to overhaul your entire strategy to get in the good graces of AI-powered search? Heck no! A lot of the same SEO principles that boost you in organic search will help you in AI searches, too. If you have that dialed in, all you need to do is build in consistency.

How do I get into AI search results?

Having one or even a few pages that are well-optimized for organic SEO doesn’t necessarily help you with the consistency that AI searches prioritize. Luckily, you can make some good headway just by doing a bit of housekeeping. 

Dial in consistent brand language across all of your marketing channels.

This can take more than just a quick check, but you want to make sure that your brand and your unique offerings are consistently represented on ALL of your channels, from website, to social media to email marketing. If you find something that doesn’t align, plan to get it up-to-date as soon as you have the opportunity.

Update business listings and profiles.

When I ran my AI search experiment a few months ago, I noticed that AI searches were citing directory listings with a fair bit of frequency. Taking a few minutes to update your Google Business listing, and your profiles on sites like Alignable, Clutch, or Yelp, will support the consistency that AI search is looking for.

Build up third-party mentions across the web.

Mentions in online forums like Reddit, online reviews, or even on YouTube videos, can signal to AI searches that you’re an authority in your zone of expertise. This doesn’t mean you have to be everywhere! But, participating in relevant online spaces, at a level that fits your capacity, gives you a boost on those search results.

There are other larger and more technical tasks that help you rank in AI-powered search, but these relatively quick-and-easy fixes will help you get up-to-speed. So, consider this your permission to not panic. 😉