AI Overviews - Part 4: Creating Content that Thrives in the AI Age
I de tidigare delarna av denna serie har vi utforskat vad Googles AI Overviews (AIO) innebär, hur de påverkar webbplatstrafik och användarbeteende, samt hur du behöver omvärdera din grundläggande SEO-strategi för att möta dessa förändringar. Vi har konstaterat att fokus skiftar från att enbart jaga klick till att bygga auktoritet och synlighet som en betrodd källa för både människor och AI-system.
Now is the time to dive into the core of adaptation: content creation itself. In a world where AI can generate and summarize information, the demands on your content are higher than ever. It's no longer enough to just produce text; the content must be strategically designed to appeal to both your target audience and be optimal for AI systems to interpret and use. At Multiproduktion, we know that engaging and clear content is crucial, and in the AI era, this becomes even more true – regardless of whether it's about text, image, or moving image.
Prioritizing High-Quality, In-Depth, and Original Content
In an environment where AI can effectively summarize existing information, content that stands out and is chosen by AI Overviews must be exceptionally high-quality. To achieve this, it needs to be well-researched, factually correct, in-depth, and offer a real and tangible value to the user (p. 9). AI Overviews are programmed to prioritize just such content.
Originality is key: Content that offers unique perspectives, new data, first-hand experiences, or in-depth analyses that cannot be easily replicated by AI or found on numerous other websites will be valued higher (p. 9). Publishing original research or unique case studies can be a powerful way to position yourselves as an authority and a unique source.
Avoid "fluff": If your content doesn't offer enough depth or substance, the AI summary risks making the original webpage redundant for the user (pg. 9). Ask yourself: if an AI can generate similar or better text, why would anyone rely on your website? The added value must be clear.
E-E-A-T in practice: As we discussed in part 3, E-E-A-T (Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, Trustworthiness) is crucial. Your content must demonstrate real expertise, build on experience, and be presented in a trustworthy way for the AI systems to rely on it.
For us at Multiproduction, this means that we help you create visual content that is not only attractive but also substantial. An animated film that pedagogically explains a complex process, a customer case video that shows real results, or an infographic based on your unique industry data - these are examples of content that offers depth and originality that AI has difficulty replicating.
Structure for Success: Format Content for AI Citations and User Readability
How your content is structured and formatted is crucial for how well it is interpreted and used by AI systems, as well as for the user experience. A clear and logical structure is not just a matter of user-friendliness; it is a direct optimization factor for AI.
Here are some best practices:
Tydliga Rubriker: Använd en tydlig rubrikhierarki (H1, H2, H3 osv.) för att dela upp innehållet i logiska sektioner. Rubrikerna bör vara beskrivande och spegla de frågor användare ställer.
Direkta Svar och Sammanfattningar: Svara på centrala frågor direkt och koncist, gärna i början av texten eller i inledningen av en relevant sektion. Överväg TL;DR-sektioner ("Too Long; Didn't Read") eller tydligt markerade sammanfattningsrutor för att hjälpa AI att snabbt identifiera kärnbudskapet.
Scannable Format: Use bullet points, numbered lists, and short, focused paragraphs. This makes the content easy to scan and digest for both humans and AI algorithms.
Multimedia:
Natural Language:
A well-structured page is perceived as more reliable by AI when it comes to quickly finding correct and relevant information (page 10). This is something we at Multiproduction always emphasize in our scripts and concepts - that the message should be clear, concise, and easy to grasp, regardless of whether it's a 30-second commercial or a longer instructional video.
Bortom Sammanfattning: Skapa Unikt Värde med Upplevelsebaserat och Interaktivt Innehåll
Since one of AI's strengths is summarizing information, content that offers more than just pure information – content that creates experiences – becomes harder for AI to fully replicate and thus potentially more valuable for driving direct engagement and traffic.
Examples of such "non-summarizable" content include:
Interactive tools: Calculators, configurators, quizzes or diagnostic tools that provide personalized results.
Unique datasets and visualizations: Presentation of own collected data or complex information in an interactive and visually appealing way.
Strong, well-grounded opinions and analyses: Content that builds on deep expertise and offers unique perspectives.
Original research and case studies: Detailed reports on own investigations or in-depth analyses.
Online communities and forums: Platforms where users can interact.
Such content creates a deeper engagement and can motivate users to visit the website even if an AI summary is available. The reason is that the summary can describe the experience, but it cannot replace the actual interaction or the personal value that the user receives.
The content strategy of the future should include elements that AI cannot easily "flatten" into a text-based summary (page 11). This is a key strategy for differentiating oneself and retaining direct traffic. At Multiproduktion, we see this as a great opportunity to use moving images to create these experiences - interactive videos, advanced data visualizations in animated form, or films that build on your unique expertise and case studies.
Generative Engine Optimization (GEO): A Practical Application
As generative AI models become increasingly central, a new concept has begun to take shape: Generative Engine Optimization (GEO) (page 12). GEO describes the process of optimizing content specifically for these generative AI engines.
GEO innefattar många av de taktiker vi diskuterat:
Creating high-quality content characterized by E-E-A-T.
A clear and logical content structure.
Use of relevant multimedia.
Implementation of structured data.
Fokus på att förstå och tillfredsställa användarintention, särskilt komplexa frågor.
The core of GEO is to make the content as AI-friendly as possible, so that it can be easily interpreted, understood, and used by AI systems to generate meaningful and correct answers (page 12). GEO is not a replacement for traditional SEO, but a further development adapted for the new AI interaction. It's about seeing AI as an additional "user" of your content, with specific needs around presentation and structure.
Conclusion
Creating content that thrives in the age of AI Overviews requires a conscious shift. It's about going beyond quantity and focusing on quality, depth, originality, and being E-E-A-T. It's about structuring your content in a way that's easy for AI to interpret and exploring the possibilities of creating unique, experiential content that AI can't easily summarize. By embracing the principles of GEO, you ensure that your content is an optimal "raw material" for AI's process of producing answers.
At Multiproduction, we are your partner in this work. We help you identify the stories, expertise, and unique insights you possess, and transform them into powerful visual content - films, animations, live streams - that not only engage your target audience but are also designed to be highly valued in the new AI-driven search landscape.
How Do We Measure Success in This New Reality? (Teaser for Article 5)
As the number of direct clicks potentially decreases, how do we then measure success? In the final part of this article series, we will take a closer look at new KPIs for the AI search era, how we analyze 'assisted conversions' and the broader customer journey, and provide an action-oriented checklist to prepare your website for the future. Don't miss part 5!
FAQ - Frequently Asked Questions
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AI models are trained on existing data and can often produce generic content. Original content with unique perspectives, data, or first-hand experiences stands out and is valued higher by AI systems that seek reliable and unique sources.
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Use clear headings (H1-H3), answer questions directly (preferably at the beginning), use bullet points and short paragraphs, include multimedia with alt-texts, and write in a natural language. This makes the content easier for AI to interpret and extract information from.
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It's content that offers more than just pure information and that AI struggles to fully summarize into a text-based summary. Examples include interactive tools, unique data visualizations, or experience-based content that requires active user participation.
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Yes, relevant multimedia with descriptive alt-texts and context in the text can enrich the content and help AI understand its relevance. Even though AI primarily summarizes text, it can refer to visual material, and well-optimized multimedia can be indexed separately.
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GEO is the process of optimizing content specifically for generative AI engines like those behind AI Overviews. It builds on traditional SEO but focuses on making the content as AI-friendly as possible by ensuring high quality, clear structure, E-E-A-T, and understanding of user intent.