Google’s Martin Splitt and Nikola Todorovic, Director of Software Engineering at Google Search, recently discussed how AI is changing Google and SEO. Todorovic encouraged SEOs and businesses to use AI to analyze data, research competition, and improve their ability to provide value.
AI and the Web Ecosystem
Google’s Martin Splitt asked a question that many SEOs and online businesses have on their minds related to what to do with AI features like AI Mode and AI Overview. Splitt and Todorovic both said there are opportunities, especially with the use of AI within a small environment.
Martin asked:
“But one thing we keep hearing about the ecosystem a lot in all the events we do and it’s everywhere is, how do we make sure that the AI features that are part of Search now, that the ecosystem continues to thrive.
And I think that’s an interesting challenge, but there’s also a lot of opportunity because of AI features these days. And I know that we at Google are trying our best to go on this journey with the ecosystem.
But how do you see it from your perspective? What are we doing to ensure that the ecosystem thrives with these new features?”
The question asked was specifically about what Google can do to ensure that the web ecosystem thrives, but the answer was not about what Google can do, but about what SEOs and businesses can do.
Todorovic acknowledged that this is a problem he is aware of, but he also said that there is no “magic wand,” meaning there is no simple solution or roadmap, and suggested that focusing on delivering value is the key way to adapt to new AI search features.
He replied:
“This is clearly one of the most important questions and you see it a lot on social media as well.” And I don’t think it’s like a magic wand that can provide clear guidance.
Okay, what do I do now? Like what would SEO experts do now in the new system?My kind of guiding principle or I like the way I see it here is that site owners, they need to continue to make sure that their products, that their websites, that their platforms provide value to the user. Because in the end, if you provide some value, users will keep coming to you and they will keep coming to you through Google again. “
At first glance, this sounds like “content is king” or “they’re awesome” type of advice, but I think that would be missing the deeper point. First, a Google engineer has a lot to say directly. But there’s a lot they can say indirectly, and I think that’s what Todorovic is doing here.
For example, if Google’s systems reward the sites that users want, then the “value provided” is the kind of thing that will ring in that kind of algorithm, where external signals generated by users play a role in which sites Google ranks. I think it would be a mistake to lump the advice of “giving value” as a platitude. Knowing what we know about Google’s external signals, the advice to provide value makes a lot of sense.
Todorovic continued his answer:
“So… for example, you’re selling something, you like a product or a platform, you have a subscription, etc. …if you provide value to your customers, they’ll keep coming to you.
In an AI centric or AI system, …that kind of value delivery is still ongoing. …if you don’t offer value, no one will buy your newspaper or book or listen to your radio or podcast.”
More Uses of AI to Provide Value
Todorovic then admits that, as an employee at Google, he also faces questions about whether AI will take away his job, just as online businesses worry whether AI will replace them or make their businesses obsolete.
The answer is to adapt to AI and use it in a way that increases your value as an employee or as an online business.
Todorovic explained:
“So I think everyone, including all of us, has a lot of questions… Like, is AI going to take over our jobs and so on. I think we all need to keep thinking, how do we provide value on top of all of this? And in many cases, this is about being proficient in AI tools and being able to use them in the best possible way.”
So this is one of my recommendations to all SEO experts, site owners, and the entire ecosystem, to continue to provide value, but don’t ignore new technologies and make sure you use them in the best way for you.
Now, obviously I don’t think we can…we recommend the best way is to just duplicate all the content and just produce because you know, it’s cheap and easy …it’s not going to provide a ton of value.
But if you use it to improve your grammar, improve your style a bit, make it more interesting and so on, I don’t think that’s a misuse of technology. But there are many ways, okay. Maybe AI can help you better understand your data. Maybe AI can help you understand the competition for the better too. So obviously this is something we would advise.”
My example of AI Prompt for SEO
One of the ways you can use AI for SEO is to ask the AI to perform a reverse search of your web page content. Reverse information retrieval is when an algorithm reviews content to extract questions that a web page can answer. When you use this command to test your web page, it will tell you what search queries your web page is likely to answer.
For example, I recently wrote an article about how Google uses clicks as part of the ranking process.
I uploaded a copy of the finished article to ChatGPT with the following command:
“Analyze the document and list the questions that are directly and completely answered in full sentences in the text. Only include questions if the document contains a full sentence or related sentences that clearly answer them. Do not include any questions that are answered partially, implicitly, or hypothetically.
For each question, make sure it is a clear and concise statement of the specific information available. This is a reverse query function: use only the content that is already in the document.
For each question, include exact sentences from the document that answers it. Only do questions that have a complete, direct answer in the form of a complete sentence or sentences from the text. “
The first question that ChatGPT said my article answers is: “What is considered clicks in the context of ranking signals?”
The following is a screenshot of ChatGPT’s response that shows the question my article answers and a snippet of text from the article that answers that question.
Screenshot of ChatGPT Response
Query Ranks #1 on Google
Then I took that question into Google and it ranked #1 for that question in the organic part of the search results.
Screenshot of My Title Category #1 on Google
Query Ranks #1 On Bing
I then asked the same question to Bing and my web page content rates (1) in featured snippets, (2) Bing News, and (3) at the top of Bing’s organic listings.
Screenshot of Bing Rank #1
I did not use AI to create the article or improve it. I just wrote based on all the different things I know about clicks and Google algorithms, using a list of topics I want to cover. I’ve been doing SEO for 26+ years, so I don’t really need AI to tell me how to optimize a web page, it’s second nature to me.
But I used AI to check the grammar.
A Reverse Knowledge Prompt is something anyone can use to check that their content is on-topic, to check that content is off-topic, or to understand what a web page is really about in order to clean it up if it’s not about what you hoped it would be.
It is not a way to reverse engineer search engines. It’s a way to reverse engineer your content with AI to see what it’s really about.
Valuable Hidden Advice
I went to Google’s Search Central Live last year, and I was talking to a lawyer who attended the show, and he asked me what is the most important thing to do to rank better, and I said to you it would be to brand your site’s offer in the mind of site visitors who may have the services you offer. Part of doing that is getting the word out so that clients can think of the law firm’s name when they need their specific service.
After the break, we went back to the auditorium, and Danny Sullivan started talking about how sites should try to be brands, and I looked at the guy I was just talking to, and he gave me an eyebrow.
Advice to provide value is a hidden form of advice, in my professional opinion.
Listen to the Search Off The Record Podcast here:
How AI is Changing Google Search and SEO
Featured image by Shutterstock/dee karen
