We’ve all seen the headlines: AI is either hailed as the solution to all our problems or feared as a threat to our jobs. Some claim it will take over the world, while others believe it will simply make us faster, smarter, and more efficient. The reality is that AI’s impact depends mainly on how it’s used and the intent behind those leveraging it. Regardless of where you stand in this global debate, one thing is sure—AI is here to stay.
Learning how to use AI for SEO effectively is crucial. It can help you streamline time-consuming but essential tasks, freeing up more of your schedule to focus on the bigger picture. By incorporating AI into your workflow, you can speed up processes, allowing you to dedicate more time to crafting a strategic and impactful SEO plan.
Google’s Search Engine and the Integration of AI
Before diving into how AI can enhance your SEO efforts, it’s crucial to understand that AI is also set to transform Google’s search results in a significant way. Google is currently testing a new feature called the “Search Generative Experience” (SGE), which is still in beta and limited to select users overseas. However, it’s expected to roll out globally in the near future.
This new integration will change the look of Google’s search results page by adding a generative AI section at the top for certain queries. Here’s what to expect:
- Generative AI suggestions will appear, providing further reading recommendations, which could benefit websites that offer comprehensive content.
- Product-related questions will be answered with AI-generated insights, streamlining the search experience.
- Local searches may include a comparative element to better address user needs.
- Overall, the AI section will aim to answer more user questions directly on the results page, reducing the need to navigate away from Google.
Despite these changes, ads will still remain prominent, often appearing above or integrated into the AI-generated content.
What Does This Mean for Websites?
Early feedback from beta users indicates that websites will still play a significant role in AI-enhanced search results. The sites that provide the most relevant and efficient answers to user queries will be highlighted in the AI responses.
To increase your chances of being featured in these AI-driven results, focus on producing user-centric content that showcases strong E-E-A-T (Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, and Trustworthiness) signals. As this new feature evolves, optimising your content to align with AI-generated results may become essential. For now, staying ahead of the curve by prioritising high-quality, user-focused content is your best strategy.
Getting AI-Savvy
As we enter this new era of AI, how can we become AI-savvy?
With new tools emerging almost daily, it is essential to focus on the ones that can truly enhance your SEO strategy. The key is identifying areas where AI can streamline your processes, making you more efficient, especially when tackling time-consuming but crucial aspects of SEO.
AI Content Generation: Proceed with Caution
First and foremost, a warning: don’t rely on AI to churn out long-form content. Out-of-the-box AI-generated content is often subpar. For proof, take a look at the critical feedback on Reddit.
Example: Reddit Comments
A study conducted by Neil Patel across 68 websites, where 744 articles were published, found that human-written content outperformed AI-generated content 94.12% of the time. In this study, half of the articles were written entirely by AI, while the other half were crafted by humans, with the latter consistently ranking higher.
Example: Study of AI-Generated Content vs. Human-Written Content
Why is this the case? Generative AIs like ChatGPT are powered by Large Language Models (LLMs), which are trained using existing content from the internet. Essentially, AI is just “regurgitating” what’s already been published, resulting in content that lacks originality. And as we know, unique content is critical for ranking well in search results.
Additionally, the free version of ChatGPT is limited to data from January 2022, meaning much of its information is outdated. It also tends to produce what are known as “hallucinations,” where it fabricates information that, while sounding credible, may be factually incorrect.
Another challenge with using AI to generate long-form content is that, by default, it often writes in a bland and robotic tone, which won’t reflect your brand voice—something crucial for standing out in a crowded market.
Google’s recent core update further emphasised content quality, mainly targeting bulk AI-generated content. Many sites that relied heavily on AI content saw a significant drop in visibility, with some even being deindexed. Studies have shown a strong correlation between bulk AI-generated content and penalties, indicating that Google can now detect and penalise low-quality AI content at scale.
Avoid using AI to produce full-length articles without human oversight. AI-generated content often lacks depth, originality, and relevance. However, AI can still be highly beneficial in supporting other aspects of your SEO strategy, freeing up your time for more impactful tasks. Using AI wisely—such as for keyword research, content ideation, or optimising meta descriptions—can enhance your efficiency without sacrificing quality.
The Top 3 AI SEO Tools
The three most prominent AI tools currently making waves in SEO are ChatGPT, Gemini, and Copilot. These generative AI platforms are available for free, with additional features offered through paid plans.
ChatGPT (by OpenAI)
ChatGPT, developed by OpenAI, is a powerful generative AI tool designed to create human-like text responses. OpenAI, originally founded as a nonprofit by tech leaders like Elon Musk and Sam Altman, transitioned to a for-profit model in 2019, with significant investment from Microsoft.
- Free Version: Available with some limitations.
- Paid Tier: ChatGPT Plus costs $20 per month and provides access to more advanced AI models, delivering faster responses and improved performance.
Gemini (by Google)
Gemini is Google’s own AI model, trained on vast amounts of publicly available data to generate human-like responses across a wide range of topics.
- Free Version: Basic access is available, allowing users to explore its capabilities.
- Paid Version: For $19.99 per month, users gain access to more powerful models along with integration into Google Workspace apps like Gmail, Docs, Sheets, and Slides, making it a valuable tool for content creation and collaboration.
Copilot (by Microsoft)
Copilot is Microsoft’s answer to the generative AI space. It is accessible through various platforms, including the Copilot website, Windows sidebar, and Bing Search. Plans are to integrate it into Microsoft 365 applications like Word, Excel, Outlook, and PowerPoint.
- Free Version: Offers powerful features, including image generation, something that sets it apart from competitors.
- Paid Version: Copilot Pro costs £19 per month, providing enhanced speed, creativity, and additional features.
These tools are shaping the future of SEO by automating content generation, keyword research, and optimisation tasks, enabling marketers to work more efficiently while maintaining quality.
Mastering AI Prompts: The Key to Better Outputs
If you’re using AI tools for SEO support, it all hinges on how well you craft your prompts. Becoming proficient at creating prompts can dramatically improve the quality of the AI-generated output.
Think of the prompt as a brief. Imagine briefing a designer with just a few lines—would you expect top-quality results? Probably not. However, if you provide a detailed and thorough brief, the outcome is likely to be far better. The same principle applies when prompting generative AI tools.
To help you get started, consider developing a set of prompt principles. Below are some guidelines to help you create detailed prompts that maximise the effectiveness of these tools:
Key AI Prompt Principles
| Principle | Description |
|---|---|
| Provide Clarity | Clearly state the purpose, e.g., “The goal of this content is to…” (instruct, persuade, entertain, etc.). |
| Background Info | Include relevant data or context to help generate precise and tailored outputs. |
| Tone | Specify the tone: informal, formal, informative, humorous, etc. |
| Format | Indicate the required format: dialogue, bullet points, outlines, or specific content structures. |
| Target Audience | Define the demographics or interests of your intended audience. |
| Adopt a Persona | Ask the AI to assume a role or perspective, e.g., “You are a medical student…” |
| Scope | Set boundaries to keep the response focused and on-topic. |
| Constraints | Include limitations, such as word count or content exclusions. |
| Iterate | If the response isn’t satisfactory, refine it by providing feedback and asking for adjustments. |
Best Practices for Crafting Effective Prompts
- Be Clear and Specific: Provide as much background information as possible and define the target audience. This helps the AI generate content that’s both relevant and accurate.
- Experiment with Tone and Format: Specifying the tone (e.g., conversational, formal) and the format (e.g., bullet points, outlines) can greatly enhance the quality of the output.
- Use Personas for Tailored Responses: Asking the AI to adopt a specific persona can produce more nuanced and engaging content.
- Iterate for Better Results: If the initial output doesn’t meet your expectations, continue the conversation by refining your prompt, offering feedback, and suggesting tweaks. The AI will remember previous prompts in the thread, allowing you to build upon earlier responses.
Example of Iterative Prompting
Often, using iterative prompting can yield more in-depth and accurate answers. For instance, if you’re researching biodiversity loss, instead of just asking:
“What is your verdict on biodiversity loss?”
Try breaking it down into a sequence:
- “Can you briefly explain biodiversity loss?”
- “How does biodiversity loss relate to resource depletion?”
- “What are the key factors to consider when assessing the impact of biodiversity loss?”
- “Based on what you know, what is your assessment of biodiversity loss?”
- “Now, what is your final verdict on biodiversity loss?”
By using this approach, you can generate more comprehensive and thoughtful responses, reduce generalisations, and ensure that the AI’s answers are more factually accurate.
SEO tasks that AI can help with
While we’ve advised against using generative AI to create full-length content, there are still numerous ways it can assist with other SEO tasks. Here are some practical use cases where AI can significantly enhance your SEO strategy:
Content Ideation
If you’re struggling to develop topics, AI can help brainstorm ideas. You can get a list of angles or topics to explore further in your content plan by providing a detailed prompt. Try using multiple AI tools with the same prompt to generate diverse suggestions for even better results. Asking the AI to cite sources can also reduce the risk of inaccurate information.
Use Case: AI for Ideation
Prompt AI to generate blog post ideas or content angles related to your niche.
Topic Clustering
AI excels at classifying large data sets. You can use AI to cluster your blog content into semantic topics by simply inputting the article titles. This helps you get a top-level view of your content focus, identify gaps, and uncover areas where you can expand to make your blog more comprehensive.
Use Case: AI for Clustering
Prompt AI to categorise existing blog posts into thematic clusters to highlight content gaps.
Semantic Analysis
Generative AI is particularly powerful in understanding semantics and the relationships between words. For example, you can use it to break down a topic into related sub-topics. A tool like a topical mind map generator can visualise these connections, which is helpful when designing your site structure or ensuring you cover all relevant topics.
Use AI to generate a mind map of sub-topics to optimise your content coverage.
Keyword Categorisation
Dealing with a large list of keywords can be overwhelming. AI can quickly categorise thousands of keywords based on search intent, providing insights in a structured format. This can save hours of manual effort and help you prioritise your content strategy.
Prompt AI to classify keywords by intent (informational, transactional, navigational) and output in a tabular format.
Schema Markup
Generating schema markup for FAQs or other structured data can be time-consuming. AI tools can write code efficiently, saving you hours of manual work. Simply provide a list of questions and answers and let the AI generate the appropriate schema markup.
Ask AI to create an FAQ schema for frequently asked questions to enhance rich snippets.
Persona Development
Understanding your target audience is crucial for creating effective content. AI can help develop personas by analysing topics, identifying pain points, and answering frequently asked questions. For example, the Persona Plotter tool can generate detailed personas to guide your content strategy.
Use Case: AI for Persona Development
Use AI to create personas, with pain points and FAQs, to refine your content approach.
Content Outlines
If you plan to write about a specific topic, you can prompt AI to generate an outline, including headings, subtopics, and FAQs. This can be a great starting point for structuring your content, although it’s important to do your research and not rely solely on AI suggestions.
Use Case: Content Outline Creation
Request an outline from AI, complete with key sections and related keywords, to streamline content planning.
Competitive Insights
Wondering why a competitor’s page ranks higher than yours? AI can help analyse the content differences between your page and your competitor’s. By identifying gaps or topical differences, you can refine your content to better align with search intent. Ask AI to compare your content against a competitor’s to identify areas for improvement.
By leveraging AI for these specific tasks, you can enhance your efficiency and focus more on strategic elements, rather than using it as a shortcut for creating entire content pieces. These tools can help optimise your workflow, but remember always to add a human touch for the best results.
Using AI in SEO: The Bottom Line
While human expertise is still essential in SEO, AI can be a powerful tool when used correctly. Instead of relying entirely on AI-driven SEO, the focus should be AI-assisted human SEO.
Understanding how to leverage AI is crucial, but knowing its limitations is equally important. Overusing AI to churn out low-quality content can be detrimental, as seen in recent Google algorithm updates.
As Martyn, SEO Consultant at TSCA, explains:
“As an agency, we believe that AI tools provide the greatest benefit when used selectively to enhance our human-led SEO strategies. By optimally leveraging AI, we can uncover niche trends and identify emerging search patterns before they become mainstream.”
By identifying where AI can genuinely assist, you can streamline time-consuming tasks, freeing up more bandwidth for strategic planning and high-quality content creation. This allows you to focus on delivering valuable content that truly resonates with your audience.
