AI is changing marketing and websites must adapt. Your website’s success is greatly impacted by how people use AI technologies to research and find brands. AI is also leading to shortened expectations as people expect quick results from websites.
In this blog you will get key insights needed to make your website successful in the age of AI. You will learn why understanding user intent is critical, how to structure your content so it connects with how people search today, how to position your team as trusted thought leaders, and why a strong technical foundation matters more than ever.
Websites must shift from static, brochure-style content, to interactive experiences that better serve your customers. As AI delivers more answers directly in search results, you will see fewer overall website visits, but people who do land on your website are often more serious, qualified buyers or decision-makers, which means the experiences of visit matters more than ever.
Why Your Website’s Role Is Changing Because of AI Search
People are no longer simply typing keywords into Google and scrolling through a list of website links. They’re asking questions and expecting instant, accurate answers from AI tools like Google’s AI Mode.
This shift has big implications for how websites function. A great website today isn’t just well-designed and optimized for keywords. It needs to be clear, conversational, structured and backed by real expertise. It also needs a solid technical foundation that allows AI tools to understand and present your content effectively.
This blog brings together the most important insights shared in my recent webinar with our CEO Ray Cameron, “Make Your Website Great in the Age of AI.” The session focused on practical steps companies can take right now to get their websites ready for AI-driven search and user behavior.
You can watch our full webinar here:
https://youtu.be/OMBPShIau_g?si=jtHi6DFyszz4iDXt
Ray and I broke down the process for website improvements into six steps
Introducing the Six Key Steps to Optimize Your Website for AI-Driven Search
Step 1: Optimize Your Website Content for User Intent
Most websites are still written for the company, not the visitor. Pages filled with vague claims like “innovative solutions” don’t help real people and don’t perform well in AI search.
Modern search tools understand user intent, which means your content should reflect what people are actually trying to solve or learn.
For example:
- Service pages should speak directly to specific customer needs and decisions. If you offer SEO, don’t just say “We help you rank better.” Break down what you do, who it’s for, and the outcomes.
- Resource pages should provide clear, straightforward answers to common questions. FAQs, blog posts, and downloadable guides are all opportunities to match real user queries. Your website resources should help people perform their jobs better or add to the quality of their lives.
- About pages should highlight the unique people and processes behind your company. AI tools are pulling these pages into summaries more often, so make sure they tell your story clearly.
AI is going to force your brand to be focused on users, not your company. The brands that do this well are going to show up more in AI summaries.
-Thomas Young, President and Founder, Intuitive Websites
Step 2: Make Your Content Clear, Conversational, and Easy to Scan
Both people and AI tools prefer clear, easy-to-scan content. Long, dense paragraphs make it harder to find answers. Instead:
- Use headlines that reflect what people might actually ask in search.
- Break content into short, digestible sections that get to the point quickly.
- Add bullet points to highlight key information.
- Create FAQ pages using the same language your customers use when they talk about their problems.
For example, if you run a manufacturing business, instead of a vague “Our Services” section, use clear questions like:
- “What industries do you serve?”
- “How do your turnaround times compare?”
- “What makes your engineering process unique?”
So much of AI search is conversational. The more content we have in that tone, the more likely it is to appear in AI results.
-Ray Cameron, CEO, Intuitive Websites
Step 3: Showcase Your People and Their Expertise
One of the biggest shifts we’re seeing is that AI tools are paying closer attention to who is behind the content. Anonymous blogs and generic “team” pages don’t give AI (or potential customers) much to work with. Your website must clearly show the real people driving the success of your company and highlight their thought-leadership in your industry.
This is something we’ve been working at Intuitive Websites. Over the past year, we’ve put a stronger focus on highlighting our team members as thought leaders. Instead of a single paragraph bio, we’ve built advanced bio pages that tell a fuller story — including professional experience, leadership perspectives, personal interests, and the types of content each person contributes.
Take a look at a couple of recent examples from our website:
Tom Young’s Advanced Bio Page
Ray Cameron’s Advanced Bio Page
We have also started attributing blog posts to the author and linking it back to their bio page. This not only helps AI connect the dots between content and expertise, but it also builds trust with readers who want to know the people behind the insights.
Another strategy we’re using is interview-based content. We’ll record Q&A sessions or casual conversations with team members and turn those into blog posts or short videos. This is a simple and powerful way to capture authentic expertise and make it easy for both AI and human visitors to recognize who the experts.
AI is scanning to see who the thought leaders are. We want your content showing up in AI and your people too.
-Tom Young, President and Founder, Intuitive Websites
Step 4: Build a Strong Technical Foundation for AI Visibility
Even the best content won’t perform if your website is technically weak. A strong foundation helps AI tools understand and reference your website effectively from common AI queries.
This includes the following on your website:
- Clear, organized navigation
- Accurate title tags, meta descriptions, and headers
- Proper use of schema markup and structured data
- Fast load times and mobile optimization
- Clean, crawlable site architecture
Many of these fundamentals aren’t new, but AI has raised the bar on how well you need to execute them.
-Ray Cameron, CEO, Intuitive Websites
Step 5: Add Interactive Tools to Keep Visitors Interested
Websites are evolving from static brochures to interactive resources and tools. A great example of this are AI-powered chatbots who can converse intelligently with visitors and help them solve problems and get real answers. These agents can be configured to be clones of key thought-leaders at your company.
For example, a website visitor could:
- Ask a chatbot for pricing or turnaround times instead of digging through multiple pages.
- Use an interactive calculator or tool to get personalized results comparing products and services and their features and benefits.
- Navigate through tailored content recommendations based on their industry or role.
Your website is going to converse with visitors. It’s moving from static content to an intelligent resource.
-Tom Young, President and Founder, Intuitive Websites
Step 6: Focus on Quality Website Visitors, Not Just Traffic
Because AI can answer many questions before someone ever clicks through to your website, each visitor is more qualified than ever. The people who do make it to your website are further along in their buying process and more likely to convert and reach out to your sales team.
Make the most of their attention on your website with the following:
- Strong, benefit-focused headlines
- Clear calls to action with options for people to contact your company
- Well-placed lead forms or booking tools
Website visitors are more valuable than ever. Let’s have great conversion points for those folks to make contact with your company.
-Tom Young, President and Founder, Intuitive Websites
AI Is Raising the Bar for Websites
AI isn’t replacing websites, but it’s changing what they need to do, and fast. A website that was “good enough” a couple of years ago may no longer meet the expectations of search engines, AI tools, or the people using them.
For many small and mid-sized organizations, this doesn’t mean starting over. It’s about revisiting the fundamentals, making expertise more visible, and adding the technical and interactive elements that help AI understand and elevate your content. AI is moving quickly, but the core principles of clarity, trust and real human expertise are what make the difference.
Do the things in this blog post and you are well on your way to a great website in the age of AI.
Watch the full webinar with Ray and I here: https://youtu.be/OMBPShIau_g?si=jtHi6DFyszz4iDXt
Get a Free AI Assessment
If it’s been a while since you’ve taken a hard look at your website, try out our free AI website visibility assessment to help you see how well your site is positioned for AI search.
You’ll get:
- A 10–15 minute personalized video review from me, Tom Young
- Tips to boost traffic through AI searches
- An overview of your current AI search visibility
- Ideas to improve conversions and make your content stand out
Get your free AI website assessment and find out how ready your site really is for the age of AI.
Watch the full webinar “Make Your Website Great in the Age of AI” https://youtu.be/OMBPShIau_g?si=jtHi6DFyszz4iDXt
