ChatGPT already has more users than Bing. Perplexity is growing 40% month-on-month. And Google’s scrambling to shove Gemini into everything because they know what’s coming.
Traditional search is dying. AI search is here. And if you’re still optimising for Google’s blue links, you’re about to become invisible.
The game has completely changed
Here’s what nobody’s telling you about AI search: it works nothing like Google.
The average Google search is 4.2 words. “Best pizza Melbourne.” “iPhone repair near me.” Quick, transactional, specific.
The average ChatGPT query? 23 words. Full sentences. Complex questions. People are having conversations, not typing keywords. They’re asking “What’s the best Italian restaurant in Melbourne for a date night that won’t break the bank but still feels special?”
And 70% of these queries have completely different intent than anything you’d type into Google.
This isn’t just a shift. It’s a completely different game with completely different rules. And most businesses have no idea how to play it.
How AI search actually works (and why your SEO strategy is useless)
AI search engines don’t crawl and rank pages like Google. They do something far more complex.
First, they build an index by scraping the entire internet, storing information from websites, forums, social media, anywhere they can access. But unlike Google, they’re not storing pages. They’re storing knowledge.
When someone searches, the AI doesn’t just match keywords. It processes the entire query, understands context, figures out what the person really wants to know, then generates a custom answer by pulling from multiple sources in its index.
Here’s the bit that should worry you: 52% of sources cited in AI search results aren’t even on page one of Google. Your perfect SEO strategy? Worthless. Your number one ranking? Irrelevant.
AI search engines are choosing sources based on completely different criteria. And if you don’t understand what those criteria are, you’re already losing.
The cheat code nobody knows about
Want to know exactly how to rank for any term in AI search? Here’s the shortcut.
Go to Google Gemini. Click on “Deep Research.” Type in the exact term you want to rank for. Watch what happens.
Gemini will literally tell you its research plan. Step by step. Everything it’s going to look for to determine the best result.
Type “best running shoes” and it shows you:
- Find reliable sources like Runner’s World
- Look for reviews from actual runners
- Check for specific features like cushioning and stability
- Research different types for different running styles
It’s basically giving you the blueprint for ranking. Right there. For free.
But here’s what most people miss: it’s not looking for keywords. It’s looking for signals of expertise and trust that have nothing to do with traditional SEO.
The new ranking factors that actually matter
After analysing hundreds of AI search results and diving deep into how these systems work, here’s what actually influences rankings:
1. Listicle dominance
The single most important factor? Being featured in “best of” lists in your industry. Not because of backlinks or domain authority. Because AI search engines use these lists to train their understanding of what’s good.
If you sell project management software and you’re not in the top three of every “best project management tools” article, you don’t exist to AI. Even if it costs money to get placed. Even if it feels like cheating. This is the new reality.
2. Reviews everywhere
AI search engines have no personal experience. They can’t taste your restaurant’s food or use your software. So they obsess over reviews.
Not just Google reviews. Trustpilot, G2, Capterra, industry-specific platforms, reviews on your website, reviews mentioned in articles about you. The more reviews from more sources, the more real you become to AI.
Your analytics should be tracking review mentions across the web, not just star ratings on Google.
3. Brand mentions without links
Traditional SEO obsesses over backlinks. AI search doesn’t care. It cares about mentions. How often does your brand appear in discussions? Are you mentioned on Reddit? In news articles? In industry reports?
Remember, AI is training on text, not hyperlinks. A mention without a link is just as valuable as one with a link. Sometimes more valuable, because it looks more natural.
4. Schema markup that tells a story
Google uses schema to understand basic facts. AI uses schema to understand everything. Your schema markup needs to be comprehensive, detailed, and tell the complete story of what you do.
Add FAQ schema that actually answers questions. Local business schema with every detail filled out. Review schema that aggregates all your reviews. Product schema that explains features in detail.
This isn’t about rich snippets anymore. It’s about feeding the AI’s knowledge base.
5. Unique data and statistics
AI search engines are obsessed with original information. They already have access to everything generic. What they want is what only you know.
Your customer success rates. Your proprietary research. Your unique methodology. The specific results you’ve achieved. Original data makes you a primary source, not just another website.
The local search takeover
For local businesses, the AI search revolution is even more dramatic. Local AI search results pull from:
- Google My Business reviews (quantity matters more than rating)
- “Best [business] in [city]” listicles
- Local news mentions
- Community forum discussions
- Local directory listings
That Pearl Lemon SEO agency that keeps showing up for “best SEO agency London”? They’re not there by accident. They have 162 five-star Google reviews, appear in every relevant listicle, and have built a presence everywhere that matters.
They’re not doing traditional SEO. They’re playing the AI game.
Your 8-step AI optimisation checklist
1. Audit what AI knows about you
Ask ChatGPT, Gemini, Perplexity, and Claude about your brand. If they don’t know you exist, you’ve got work to do. If they know wrong information, you’ve got even more work to do.
2. Dominate the listicles
Find every “best of” list in your industry. Get featured in the top three. Pay if you have to. This isn’t about ethics, it’s about survival.
3. Build reviews religiously
Create systems to generate reviews on every platform that matters in your industry. Not just Google. Everywhere. Make it part of your process, not an afterthought.
4. Create brand mentions everywhere
Reddit, forums, news sites, industry blogs. Get mentioned. Join conversations. Build presence. Links don’t matter, mentions do.
5. Schema markup everything
Every page should have comprehensive schema markup. FAQ schema, organisation schema, product schema, review schema. Feed the AI as much structured data as possible.
6. Publish unique data
Stop regurgitating what everyone else says. Publish original research, case studies, proprietary data. Become a source, not an echo.
7. Fix your technical foundation
AI crawlers struggle with JavaScript-heavy sites. Only Gemini and Apple’s bot can properly render JavaScript. If your content requires JavaScript to load, most AI search engines can’t see it.
8. Track your AI visibility
You can’t improve what you don’t measure. Set up tracking for how often you appear in AI search results. Monitor your brand mentions. Track which queries surface your content.
The uncomfortable reality
Here’s what nobody wants to admit: traditional Google Ads and SEO strategies are about to become much less valuable. Not worthless, but worth less.
When people can get instant, conversational answers from AI, they’re not clicking through to websites. They’re not viewing ads. They’re getting what they need and moving on.
The only brands that will survive are the ones that become primary sources in AI’s knowledge base. The ones AI trusts enough to recommend. The ones that show up not as links, but as answers.
The bottom line
AI search isn’t coming. It’s here. ChatGPT usage already exceeds Bing. Perplexity is exploding. Google’s desperately trying to catch up with Gemini.
In twelve months, most searches won’t happen on Google.com. They’ll happen in AI interfaces. And if you’re not in those results, you don’t exist.
The good news? Most of your competitors are still optimising for keywords and backlinks. They’re playing yesterday’s game.
You can win tomorrow’s game. But only if you start playing it today.
Ready to dominate AI search before your competitors figure out what’s happening? Get in touch to build a strategy that works for the future, not the past.
