A Marketing Minute – Google AI

Google’s AI Overviews are changing how customers discover businesses online.  Google now uses artificial intelligence to provide instant answers at the top of many search results. While this can reduce clicks for some websites, it also creates new opportunities for businesses that publish clear, authoritative, and helpful content with these general principles:

• Answer customer questions with clear, helpful content that AI can easily understand and reference.
• Keep your website current by regularly updating pages, blogs, and business information to maintain credibility.
• Build authority with original content, customer reviews, and strong SEO practices to improve your visibility in AI-powered search results.

Website Health Check – 5 Minutes

Take five minutes to review your website using this quick checklist.

• Search your company on Google.  Is your Google Business Profile accurate? 
• Can visitors tell what you do within 5 seconds?
• Is your phone number and contact information easy to find?
• Does your website look great on a smartphone?
• Are your calls to action clear? Every page should encourage visitors to “Donate”, “Contact Us,” “Request a Quote,” or “Schedule a Consultation.”
• Is your content current? Check that your services, team, pricing (if applicable), and copyright year are up to date.

You may have heard the claim that AI has made SEO obsolete—but that’s simply not true. AI-powered search engines like Google AI Overviews still rely heavily on high-quality, authoritative websites to generate accurate answers and recommend trusted sources. The real change is that businesses must expand from traditional SEO to include AI-friendly content, clear website structure, and demonstrated expertise to remain visible in both search results and AI-generated responses.

Hey Tom!

This is a good one:
Can I use AI-generated content for my website?

First, look to the left at my picture.  This is an AI generated image of me.  I used an image of me to create a steampunk version.  It is an example of me having fun with AI and changing my picture without doing a full photoshoot.

The answer is  yes, but “use AI to augment your work, not as the authority”.  Understand first that AI is built on original authoritative content. Also, when AI searches through websites it can recognize when content is created with AI. The Large Learning Models of AI search engines thrive on credible information.

Then how can I use it?  One example is to use AI tools to research topics and create content outlines.  Then you must add your personal and experienced information combined with SEO strategy to create an outstanding blog post.  The more original, the more AI likes it.