The New Rules for Search: Staying Relevant in an AI-Driven World

Lauryn Chamberlain

Jan 13, 2025

3 min

Traditional search volume is dropping, and search is happening everywhere.

Social as search is on the rise, with Gen Z turning to TikTok as the first step in their customer journey. Customers are prompting ChatGPT, Perplexity, and Meta AI for in-depth answers and brand recommendations. Even Maps is getting an AI-powered makeover.

These platforms work from unique rules, expectations, and algorithms, but customers always expect to find instant, conversational answers on all of them.

If your brand is only optimized to rank on Google, you're sabotaging your ability to connect with customers today and tomorrow. To stay relevant, your brand's data and content need to surface and engage customers everywhere they search.

What’s at stake for marketers and brands?

This shift marks a huge change in how people discover information, interact with brands, and make decisions.

Here's what's at stake:

  • Visibility: If your brand isn't optimizing for how these platforms process data, you may not appear in search results at all.

  • Credibility: AI tools prioritize accurate, consistent information. Mismatched or outdated data will be deprioritized, hurting your ability to signal trust and surface in search.

  • Adaptability: Each platform has different requirements. Brands need flexible strategies to meet the needs of Google, TikTok, AI assistants, and "the next new thing."

The good news?

As the landscape takes on a new shape, there are fresh opportunities for brands to gain ground.

Remember: search is everywhere. This fragmentation means there are more places to outcompete other brands and connect with customers on their terms.

Here are four strategies you can use to help your brand pull ahead in this new era of personalized search on conversational AI platforms:

1. Centralize your data in a knowledge graph.

When your data is accurate and consistent, it's easy for AI to find, trust, and re-interpret in both unbranded and branded search responses. To manage (structured and unstructured) data that signals credibility, use a tool like a knowledge graph to keep all your brand information clean, accurate, and up-to-date.

With a knowledge graph, you have the power to update once, in a central location, and automatically cascade updates across platforms.

2. Create content that mirrors how people talk.

AI prioritizes content that can be understood through natural language processing (NLP). Customers trust brands that communicate with them, not just on the right platforms, but also with the right words, nuance, and meaning.

For example, instead of focusing on broad keywords like "4-star, dog-friendly hotel," write FAQs and blog posts that answer customers' specific questions:

  • "What are the best pet-friendly hotels near Central Park?"

  • "Where can I bring my partner (and my dogs) for a romantic, long weekend in the Catskills or White Mountains this fall?"

  • "Is there a hotel or inn near Hudson, NY that does doggie daycare?"

3. Mine reviews and FAQs for AI-friendly content ideas.

Reviews and FAQs aren't just helpful for customers — they're gold for AI-powered search. Monitor what customers are asking and update your FAQs to address those topics.

This kind of enhanced content gives AI tools access to specific, real-world, context-rich information. In turn, artificial intelligence can understand and pull from that information when generating answers to questions and prompts.

4. Extend your digital presence across platforms.

Every generation searches a little differently. They use and trust different platforms in different stages of the customer journey.

For example, nearly every customer in Gen X is strongly influenced by traditional search engine results. But more than half of Gen Z will completely bypass traditional search engines.

With customers searching for answers, literally everywhere, brands need to make sure their data is accurate and consistent on the most diverse publisher network available.

Want to dive deeper?

Remember, AI-powered platforms process data differently than traditional search engines. Search isn't keyword-focused anymore. It's conversational and context-driven.

AI search references structured and unstructured data from a wide range of sources, including FAQs, reviews, social media, and more. That's why marketers must think beyond SEO strategy and start thinking about data strategy.

Where do ChatGPT and Other AI Models Get Local Business Information? Keep reading >>

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