I’ve spent 5 years building our content strategy around traditional SEO. Keyword research, long-form content, backlink campaigns - the whole playbook.
Now I’m being told we need to completely rethink everything for AI search.
What I’m struggling with:
My questions:
Feeling like I’m about to throw away 5 years of work. Someone please tell me I’m overreacting.
You’re not overreacting, but you also don’t need to throw everything away. Let me explain what’s actually different.
Alternative content for AI search is real, but it’s evolution, not revolution.
The fundamental difference:
Traditional SEO: Optimize pages to RANK so users click through AI Search: Optimize content to BE EXTRACTED and CITED in AI answers
What stays the same:
What changes:
The good news:
You probably don’t need to rewrite everything. You need to RESTRUCTURE your best content to be more AI-extractable.
Think of it as adding a layer of optimization, not replacing what works.
Sure. Here’s a before/after example:
Before (Traditional SEO style):
“When considering marketing automation platforms, businesses often find themselves weighing various factors including cost, features, integration capabilities, and scalability. The landscape has evolved significantly over the past decade, with numerous players entering the market…”
After (AI-extractable style):
“What is marketing automation? Marketing automation is software that automates repetitive marketing tasks like email campaigns, social media posting, and lead nurturing.
Top factors when choosing a platform:
Same information, but now AI can extract the definition, the list, and the specific data points.
The restructured version still works for SEO (actually often performs better), but it’s also citation-ready for AI.
I lead GEO (Generative Engine Optimization) for a publishing company. Here’s the framework we use:
The “Extractability Audit”:
For each piece of content, ask:
Our restructuring priority:
We didn’t rewrite everything. We prioritized:
Results after restructuring:
The key insight: AI-friendly structure often improves traditional SEO too. Clearer content = better user experience = better rankings.
15 years in SEO here. This is the biggest shift since mobile-first indexing.
The uncomfortable truth:
Some of what we optimized for in traditional SEO actively hurts AI visibility:
What I’ve changed in my approach:
The mental shift:
Old goal: Get my page to rank so users click New goal: Get my content cited so users discover my brand
Both can coexist, but you need to consciously optimize for citation now.
Technical documentation perspective here - we were accidentally ahead of the curve.
Why docs are great for AI:
What marketing content can learn from docs:
Our documentation gets cited constantly by AI because it’s inherently extractable. Marketing content tends to be written for engagement, not extraction.
The fix isn’t writing boring content - it’s front-loading the value and using clear structure. You can still be engaging after you’ve delivered the core information.
We did a full content restructuring 8 months ago. Here’s what actually happened:
The process:
What restructuring looked like:
The results:
| Metric | Before | After (6 months) |
|---|---|---|
| AI citation rate | 12% | 38% |
| Average position in AI | 4.2 | 2.4 |
| Traditional SEO traffic | Baseline | +15% |
| Conversions from AI referrals | ~0 | 8% of total |
The key learning:
This wasn’t a replacement strategy - it was an enhancement. Our SEO actually improved because the restructured content provided better user experience.
Small team perspective - we can’t afford to restructure hundreds of pages.
Our 80/20 approach:
Instead of touching everything, we focused on:
The template we use for new content:
## [Question as H2]
[Direct answer in 40-60 words]
**Key points:**
- Point 1 with specific detail
- Point 2 with specific detail
- Point 3 with specific detail
[Extended explanation for depth]
**Related questions:** [Links to related content]
Results after 4 months:
New content gets cited 3x more than old content. We’ll update legacy content as resources allow, but new content strategy is working.
Tool recommendation:
Am I Cited helps us see which content gets cited and which doesn’t. Makes prioritization much easier.
Enterprise perspective with 2,000+ pages of content.
Reality check: You can’t restructure everything.
Our approach:
The prioritization framework:
Timeline:
The business case:
We framed this as “search visibility insurance.” Traditional SEO still works, but AI is growing. Investing now means we’re not scrambling later.
We’ve restructured content for 30+ clients. Here’s the pattern:
The “Alternative Content” checklist:
Every piece of content should have:
Common mistakes:
My recommendation:
Use a tool like Am I Cited to see which content currently gets cited. Focus restructuring efforts on content that SHOULD be cited but isn’t. That’s your highest-impact work.
This thread has been incredibly valuable. Here’s my updated thinking:
Key realizations:
My action plan:
Week 1-2: Audit top 50 pages for AI-extractability Week 3-4: Create restructuring templates for our content types Month 2: Restructure top 20 pages Month 3: Roll out templates for all new content Ongoing: Track citations and iterate
The shift in mindset:
Old: “How do I rank for this keyword?” New: “How do I become THE source AI cites for this topic?”
Thanks everyone. 5 years of work not wasted - just enhanced.
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