The search engine optimization landscape is evolving at a rapid pace in the age of AI, and keeping up with the pace of change can be a challenge for marketers struggling to build a steady flow of clicks.
SEO has long been about vying for attention among Google’s SERPs, but how can you attract higher flows of traffic through your content strategy? The answer centers around creating copy that’s both engaging and adaptable.
According to McKinsey data, already around 50% of consumers are using AI-powered search today, and unprepared brands may find that between 20% and 50% of their traffic is at risk of this major change to traditional SEO.
In an age where SEO means embracing zero-click searches and generative engine optimization (GEO), it’s understandable that some marketers will find that their content strategy is drawing no click-throughs. Because of this, you must adapt your approach accordingly.
This calls for a content strategy that moves beyond traditional keywording and lead generation and into a more AI-focused approach that’s technically robust and brand-oriented.
With this in mind, let’s take a deeper look at seven SEO content strategies for those elusive users who never click on your links:
1. Aim for Position Zero
Remember when marketers used to be vying for Google’s first page? Thanks to the rise of GEO and featured snippets, it’s no longer enough to position your content at the top of the SERP; it has to be the first answer users see.
Featured snippets are regarded as ‘position zero’ on Google and seek to directly answer user queries.
In recent years, GEO has raised the stakes for position zero, and generative engines like ChatGPT and Google’s AI Overviews now reference authoritative content from around the web to create AI-generated answers and overviews.
GEO answers reference the source material used, meaning that to increase your clicks, you should create content that can be used as an AI answer for search engines.
This doesn’t mean that you should abandon the structure of the content you create to appease crawlers for AI engines, but make room for concise answers ranging between 40 and 60 words within your copy to make referencing easier.
Attempting to answer frequently asked questions immediately following a question-based heading improves your GEO credentials earlier, and it’s why many websites now feature comprehensive FAQ sections on their pages.
The use of tables, lists, and bullet points can also help, with Google frequently extracting the formats for position zero.
You can also use platforms like Ahrefs to better understand the type of queries being asked by leads to search engines like Google and to weigh up which terms could be easier to rank for.
2. Don’t Neglect Schema Markup
If your content isn’t getting the traffic you’re expecting, the first place you should look to is your schema markup. Without structured data, otherwise high-quality content could be lost in cyberspace.
Schema markup helps search engines to understand what your content is and who it’s for, improving its eligibility for rich results.
With the right schema markup in place, your content has a far greater chance of being featured in rich snippets, AI summaries, and FAQs for search engines.
One of the best ways to improve your schema markup is to build structured pages such as FAQ sections, how-tos, product descriptions, and organization schema. This ensures that the content you create is more machine readable, enabling search engines like Google to display the relevant information directly in your SERP.
3. Prioritize GEO
If you haven’t adapted to the age of GEO as a new subset of SEO, then you’re likely to receive fewer clicks.
Google’s AI Overviews, formerly known as SGE, work differently from traditional SERPs. Instead of categorizing your content based on relevance to queries, the search engine summarizes information from multiple different sources to combine into a comprehensive and relevant answer for users.
This means that marketers now have to become accustomed to seeing Google primarily reference snippets of their content in a way that can alter the game when it comes to lead generation.
To accommodate GEO practices in your content strategy, look to build topical authority through ‘pillar’ content that covers subjects in greater depth, rather than focusing on shorter articles. By implementing this strategy, you have a better opportunity to establish yourself as a thought leader and a key reference point for Google’s AI Overviews.
Supporting this approach by using clear, semantic headings (H1, H2, H3) can help AI crawlers to interpret the flow of information in the copy to improve your GEO capabilities.
4. Focus on ‘People Also Ask’ Boxes
It’s important to know how your content can rank, and ‘People Also Ask’ boxes are an often-overlooked way of earning clicks.
PAA boxes are an excellent source of zero-click traffic that can be ranked for by answering follow-up questions.
This calls for adapting your content strategy by anticipating related topics surrounding the topic that you’re covering.
Again, including a brief FAQ section at the end of your articles is a tried-and-tested approach for improving your PAA prospects. You can also include PAA considerations in your content by covering possible further reading opportunities within the body of the text.
To discover the keywords that can shape your People Also Ask focus, it’s worth discovering keywords from tools like AnswerThePublic.
For ease of reference, phrase your questions naturally by using terms like ‘how to’ and ‘what is’ before providing direct answers.
5. Don’t Forget to Go Local
Although 60% of local searches don’t result in clicks, they do carry a positive effect on offline actions. For businesses with a local presence, they’re an essential part of a successful content strategy.
Much of your local SEO considerations will focus on ensuring that your Google Business Profile is up-to-date with high-quality photos, contact info, and active posts. Additionally, updating the Knowledge Panel and Local Pack helps more non-click leads to know your opening times, location, and services.
One of the great ways of improving your local SEO considerations is to focus on promoting social proof content by showcasing positive customer reviews and sharing user-generated content (UGC).
6. The Future of SEO is Multi-Channel
Content optimization for users who never click means that marketers must focus on building a brand presence that drives instant recognition.
Here, you can use content syndication to ensure that your copy is shared throughout third-party sites, industry publications, and social media platforms like LinkedIn.
To better support your brand’s personality, it’s essential that your business hires SEO specialists who possess the right skill sets to understand who your audience is and what inspires them to make a conversion on your site.
Modern SEO specialists must be as adept at GEO as they are at SEO to make a multi-channel strategy work for a business.
To measure the success of multi-channel content strategies, you should focus on Brand Search Volume as a leading KPI, which measures how well your efforts in driving awareness are working in encouraging users to search for your company name specifically, rather than generic industry terms.
7. Embrace Multimedia Content
The internet’s becoming increasingly multimedia-focused, and Google’s image and video searches are major sources for zero-click visibility.
This calls for using high-quality, relevant images to accompany your content with descriptive file names and alt text.
Because Google has become more adept at offering multimedia results for queries, your content strategy should incorporate video question and answering sessions hosted on YouTube. By providing transcripts of topics discussed, it can be a great way to rank higher while making it easy for search engines to index your content.
Uniting Traditional SEO, GEO and AI
The age of artificial intelligence means that SEO and the pursuit of clicks have changed forever. Today, zero-click searching has changed the way marketers resonate with leads and has opened the door to a new age of optimization when it comes to creating winning content.
Instead of emphasizing keywords and easy wins, the age of zero-click benefits strategies that cater to GEO and establish thought leadership. It’s also more valuable to anticipate the questions that leads are asking Google while supporting local SEO.
The SEO landscape is changing at a rapid pace, but with the right level of adaptability, your business can thrive in a zero-click environment.
