The way people search for information is changing. Instead of typing keywords into Google and scrolling through blue links, more and more users are asking AI tools like ChatGPT, Perplexity, and Google's AI Overviews for direct answers.
What Is AI SEO?
AI SEO is the practice of optimising your online presence so that AI-powered search engines recommend and reference your business. Unlike traditional SEO, which focuses on ranking in Google's organic results, AI SEO ensures your brand appears when someone asks an AI assistant a question related to your industry.
Why Does It Matter?
Consider this: when someone asks ChatGPT "What's the best SEO agency in Melbourne?", the AI pulls from various sources to form its answer. If your business isn't structured and visible in the right way, you simply won't be mentioned.
How Is AI SEO Different from Traditional SEO?
Traditional SEO focuses on keywords, backlinks, and page rankings. AI SEO goes further by ensuring your content is structured for AI comprehension — using clear entities, authoritative sources, schema markup, and consistent brand mentions across the web.
Getting Started
The first step is auditing your current visibility across AI search tools. Check whether your business appears when relevant questions are asked in ChatGPT, Perplexity, or Google AI Overviews. From there, you can build a strategy that covers content structure, authority building, and technical optimisation.