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The New SEO Playbook: How AI Is Reshaping Search And Content
AI search is here. Traffic is down. Visibility is vanishing. The old SEO playbook? Outdated. And many marketers are bracing for more organic traffic loss over the coming years. With more journeys starting in AI, the dominance of traditional search tactics are in question. So… what should marketers do now? 👈 In this exclusive session, you’ll learn about the new SEO playbook for AI. Join Zoe Hawkins and Jeff Coyle from Siteimprove, together with James McCormick of IDC, as they walk you through: - Why enterprise SEO is more important than ever across an expanding mix of AI channels - How to build trust and credibility over chasing keyword volume - What to expect from high-intent, low-volume traffic patterns - Tips to prep your content for AI search engines while keeping it authentic and human - The tools and frameworks for content intelligence and predictive marketing 📌 Plus: We’ll walk through some early best practices, from re-examining your page structure to understanding how crawlers still shape visibility. Who should attend? CMOs, SEO professionals, and digital marketing leaders looking to stay agile in an AI-driven world and future-proof their marketing plans
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The New SEO Playbook: How AI Is Reshaping Search And Content
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- 2. © Siteimprove The NewSEO Playbook: How AI is reshaping search & content
- 3. © Siteimprove Welcome Post yourquestions in the chat or Q&A section. Questions will be answered at the end of the presentation. This webinar will be recorded and sent to all registrants. Remember to take the post-event survey.
- 4. © Siteimprove Introducing… Zoe Hawkins FeaturedSpeaker Director, Content Marketing & Integrated Campaigns, Sumo Logic James McCormick Guest Speaker Senior Research Director, Digital Experience, IDC Jeff Coyle MarketMuse Co-founder and Head of Strategy, Siteimprove
- 5. ©2025 Proprietary andConfidential. All Rights Reserved. Engagement in the Era of Generative Engine Search
- 6. 6 © IDC | ©2025Proprietary and Confidential. All Rights Reserved. Looking back: Most Effective Marketing Methods in 2024 Top 5 marketing methods that CMOs found most effective - 12 months preceding November 2024 N=534 Reference: IDC CMO Priorities Survey 2024, November 2024 Search engine optimization (SEO) 19.4% Paid media/ paid social 18.3% Email campaigns 18.3% Market/ customer research 17.9% Content creation 16.8%
- 7. 7 © IDC | ©2025Proprietary and Confidential. All Rights Reserved. Generative Search Engines are Disrupting CMO Priorities
- 8. 8 © IDC | ©2025Proprietary and Confidential. All Rights Reserved. Increase in generative engine search since July 2024 1,500% Branded website traffic originating from generative engines as of March 2025 10% - 25%
- 9. 9 © IDC | ©2025Proprietary and Confidential. All Rights Reserved. Generative Search Engines Are Reshaping Digital Engagement • Brands seeing drop in website traffic but increase in quality and intent of visitors. • LLM-powered search tools driving more qualified, intent-driven traffic directly to deep product/service pages. Traffic Patterns & Conversion • Traditional SEO tactics are less effective. LLMs value content consistency, authority, and depth. • Brands must optimize for multiple search engines, ensure AI crawler accessibility, and focus on long-term, credible content strategies. SEO & Content Strategy Evolution • Vendors building LLM optimizer tools to help brands monitor and improve their presence in LLM-generated content. • Brands are advised to avoid blocking AI crawlers to remain discoverable. Brand Visibility & Optimization The rise of generative search engines is fundamentally disrupting the digital landscape, requiring brands to adapt their strategies and focus on delivering high-quality, authoritative content that can be effectively discovered and engaged with by AI-driven search.
- 10. 10 © IDC | ©2025Proprietary and Confidential. All Rights Reserved. Generative Engines have fractured the funnel Website visitors discover and explore in generative engines and, go straight to detail/conversion pages Note: The width of the arrows represents the relative amount of visitor traffic following each path. Home page Typical user journey Product pages Conversion Traditional search Traditional search and typical website funnel flow Home page Typical user journey Product pages Conversion Traditional search GenAI Generative search disrupted website funnel flow
- 11. 11 © IDC | ©2025Proprietary and Confidential. All Rights Reserved. Optimizing for Generative Engine Search and Discovery Make Content AI- Ready • Prioritize must-win content: Focus on the top 5–10% (e.g., PDPs, differentiators, FAQs). • Structure for AI, not just SEO: Use schema.org, semantic HTML, Q&A format, and conversational tone. • Ensure crawlability: Ensure content is accessible to Gen Engine Bots, users, and assistive tech. Avoid JavaScript- rendered text. Align Data and Experience Delivery • Integrate PIM/PXM with CMS/DXP: Blend structured product data with narrative content. • Keep content fresh and valuable: Regular updates with timely, intent-driven insights. • Adopt AI-aware, interoperable platforms: Choose systems with native schema, FAQ, and media optimization. Operationalize LLM Visibility • Track citations and answer performance: Use tools to monitor content use in AI outputs (e.g., Perplexity, ChatGPT). • Make GEO a cross- functional strategy: Treat Generative Engine Optimization as a shared KPI across marketing, IT, and content teams.
- 12. Creating Trustworthy Content toFuel AI and SEO Success
- 13. Future proof your marketing Whyis content still so important? • Unique view Even if you’re defining terms or explaining the industry, your organization’s view is unique and valuable • Share perspective Owned media you can control. Say it exactly as you mean it, and know that you can share your views across your channels as you see fit. • Build trust Let your community in. See where there’s affinity and connection, build that trust in your brand and view.
- 14. Plus it feedsGoogle and AI!
- 16. Search and AIexperiences NEED your content If search or AI agents start using stale, outdated information, users lose trust. Search engines and AI chatbots need your content. Too many marketers are trying to make SEO/AI like them, without realizing that SEO/AI already needs them. It’s a mutually beneficial relationship. Stop letting it become toxic.
- 17. How to optimizefor search and AI The more things change, the more they stay the same • Authority and topical relevance Focus on what you know best, where you can be believable, trustworthy, unique, and truly know your stuff. • Useful and human Build based on experience or what you know someone will actually value. • Say it well, and have others say it, too Craft great words that don’t sound like everyone else. Get third parties to reference you.
- 18. Okay cool. Butreally, how?
- 19. Uncover Content GapsHolding Back Your SEO Rankings Find what matters – Content rising/falling in rankings, quick wins
- 20. Target High-Impact Areasto Drive Better Results Focus on value – you can't fix all the things, so where can you be most impactful?
- 21. Refresh and RevitalizeOlder Content in Minutes Find opportunities to beat your competition
- 22. Fine-Tune Your Contentfor Maximum Performance Optimize with confidence
- 23. Our success, bythe numbers 4x - 10x Improvement in rankings for pieces optimized with Siteimprove 20% increase within the quarter 1 hour Average time for a content professional to update an article Research, finding links, and reworking with confidence all in a single place $36K Savings in team time going to newly automated tasks. Time-consuming industry and competitive research that became more comprehensive with AI.
- 24. © Siteimprove Closing gaps:How to master generative engine discoverability
- 25. © Siteimprove CONFIDENTIAL ©Siteimprove CONFIDENTIAL AI Search: Readiness, Traffic, Brand and Citation Visibility Answer the questions: • Is my site ready to appear in AI search? • Is my brand visible in AI search? • Am I being cited, or are we losing traffic to competitors? • Is my narrative being cited? • Are we receiving clicks from these citations?
- 26. © Siteimprove CONFIDENTIAL Assessand Plan with Confidence 01 Enhance Human–AI Collaboration Modernize processes while ensuring every output is refined with human insight. 02 Maintain and Showcase Brand Authority Audit critically and evolve to deliver content that reflects genuine expertise. 03 Ensure Content Authenticity Content fails to capture or retain user interest. 04 Be an AI Editor-in-Chief Inefficient strategies lead to wasted marketing budgets.
- 27. © Siteimprove CONFIDENTIAL EnhanceHuman–AI Collaboration Checklist for AI-Assisted Content Creation Point of View Expertise Personal Experience Style Tone Voice Proof Statements Fact Statements Target Market and ICP Intent Details Structural Differentiation Personalization Detail
- 28. © Siteimprove CONFIDENTIAL ContentQuality Matters Content has evolved and now its effectiveness hinges on five key pillars: Accessibility, Authority, Differentiation, Clarity, and Editorial Integrity. Achieve these pillars with solutions that: Ensure Accessibility for all users. Build Authority through in-depth content analysis and competitive research. Drive Differentiation with AI-powered content planning and optimization tools. Enhance Clarity with grammar and style checks, and readability assessments. Maintain Editorial Integrity through brand voice enforcement and content governance features.
- 29. © Siteimprove CONFIDENTIAL ThreeKey Takeaways 01 AI-Driven Insights Turn Gaps into Traffic Wins. Spot missing topics and seek explicit guidance to optimize and refresh content so you can convert hidden demand into revenue. 02 Build Topical Authority Predictively. Use personalized metrics to confidently plan when to do a quick update, add a page or when a new cluster is required to beat the competition. 03 Quality Content is AI + SEO Fuel. Authoritative, human-first pages feed AI and search engines. If you don’t own the narrative, they’ll use someone else’s.
- 30. © Siteimprove The MostComprehensive Marketing Performance Platform 5,500+ Customers 20+ Years of Experience Unlock The Digital Advantage You Need Your Content. Your Strategy. Drive more impact with less effort, optimizing every step of your digital presence from one powerful platform. A Single Place to Power Your Entire Digital Strategy Digital Accessibility & Governance Digital Experience Analytics Search & Performance Marketing Content Strategy & Marketing
- 31. © Siteimprove CONFIDENTIAL LiveQ&A Get in Touch
- 32. © Siteimprove CONFIDENTIAL32 Get in Touch Zoe Hawkins linkedin.com/in/moonstormer James McCormick linkedin.com/in/jamccormick Jeff Coyle linkedin.com/in/jeffcoyle
- 33. © Siteimprove CONFIDENTIAL Maintainand Showcase Brand Authority Audit critically and evolve to deliver content that reflects genuine expertise. To-dos Conduct Regular Content Audits: Implement periodic reviews to ensure all content reinforces your expertise. Highlight Thought Leadership: Develop and publish blue ocean content and demonstrate deep industry insights. Integrate Data and Analytics: Use SERP data and user signals to refine content to maintain relevance & intent match. Outperform competitors: Identify gaps and execute while emphasizing E-E-A-T (Experience, Expertise, Authority, Trust). Watch-outs Undifferentiated Content: Avoid producing generic content that lacks expert insight. Outdated Messaging: Avoid relying on legacy content without critical reviews, which can erode trust. SERP Misalignment: Avoid keeping content as-is when ranking if misaligned with query intent and user value. Ignoring Competitive Benchmarking: Avoid failing to align your strategy with current market trends and competitor standards.