What is going on with AI search? I am being asked this question more and more by all stakeholders, not just clients. The technical and creative team here at Brilliant Digital is also hunting down as much information as possible while analysing trends and shifts that seem to pop up daily.

The subject has dominated Deb’s desk for the past 12 months, and I will undoubtedly continue to present commentary and thought on how AI shapes digital marketing for the foreseeable future. While AI’s influence will continue to grow and develop, this is an opportune time to put aside all the technical terms and acronyms used to make it sound so high-brow and provide insights into what is changing and how we adapt to keep our clients ahead.

From the best solution to a problem to the best solution in the market

The focus on how we set up a digital marketing “system” is always on providing solutions. For the B2B market, this is a top-tier priority for search and winning business. Past strategies centred on establishing clients as the best solution to a problem, for example, 3D printing, fire safety installations and compliance, business accounting and investments, or civil and mechanical engineering.

The shift is now on establishing the same business as the best solution to the problem in the market. It is a significant change, and our role is to educate AI search engines on why our client is the best in the market at what they do, not just ensure they’re part of a list of businesses that can solve a user’s problem.

We’ve had a structured set of rules - now we are making the rules

Google has been and still is one of the best innovations of our time. It offers the gold standard in sorting and presenting information digitally and has revolutionised how humans live. This still holds today, and Google is the blueprint for how AI search works. For the past few decades, marketing agencies such as Brilliant Digital have chased keywords and Google ranking for their clients. There is a set of rules that made the process fair and equitable, and Google set the playing field. Google was the teacher, marketing agencies were the students, and clients were the subject matter.

The big challenge now is that AI is becoming increasingly popular with users. However, compared to Google, it is still in its infancy and relies heavily on being trained. Our role is to teach the AI who the client is, what they offer, and why they’re the best option in the market, not just the best solution to the problem.

So, how do we do this? Many clients know we’ve been doing more than tweaking their websites and content. We have systematically reestablished their digital presence to “train” AI search engines. The AI learns everything about a business from what it finds online: the website, content, reviews, social media, case studies, news articles, and blogs. Like a curious child, it takes on board everything it can digest and will form answers to user questions using three primary tools.

• The AI will check live search results and recent content. Is your business actively publishing helpful information, and are people talking about you?
• They check what is factual. Does your business have a well-defined business profile? Is your business name, products or services, location and industry consistent across all verifiable platforms? Having redundant or out-of-date information on your website or digital collateral will work against you.
• AI language models. Is your content conversational? This is a big one. Your content must be conversational in tone and answer questions. Including FAQs the AI can draw on is not a luxury; it is essential to training the AI.

Our role as digital marketers is to provide clarity. Content must be clear, concise and conversational and meet each above without compromise. A lot of “Cs”

Educating AI: the three pillars

In previous articles, I’ve discussed the need to keep human hands on the content steering wheel. As the AI evolves and actively learns from what we teach it, human influence becomes more critical. The AI learns from three key pillars.

What it can understand. AI machines must understand who you are and what you do. When ambiguity infiltrates your brand, the AI cannot determine your purpose. As mentioned above, your foundation details, name, products and services, locations, and target audiences must be accurate, well-defined and consistent everywhere, including social media, downloaded product or service lists, online capability statements, blogs, news articles, website content and the schema markup. You must make it easy for the AI to understand who you are and what you offer.

Credibility is mandatory. You need to prove to AI and, by osmosis, your potential customers that you are the best market solution. Quality content and consistent thought leadership are the keys here. Case studies, client reviews, opinion pieces, conversational blogs, and testimonials build trustworthiness and authority, filling the knowledge graph.

Delivering your content the AI way. Have your content in the right place in a format that AI can use. FAQs are ideal for voice assistance AI, while search engines crave well-structured articles. You need to hit both. Ensure your website is fast-loading, mobile-friendly, and properly structured. It is about being present when a customer asks questions or types a query, whether in Google or an AI bot. By meeting these three pillars, you’re effectively,

• Educating the AI system
• Building algorithmic trust
• Positioning your brand as the go-to answer

Each blog article, social media post, content upgrade, press article, etc., about your business influences how AI perceives you. SMEs require an integrated content strategy covering the technical aspects and content marketing supporting these pillars while educating AI and customers. It is an ongoing discovery, and with our help, we can ensure your business remains the solution leader in your market.

In my next article, I’ll discuss the “Conversational Acquistion Funnel,” essentially the modern AI version of a sales funnel and critical knowledge for any SME owner.

Until then, thanks for reading.