Semrush research shows that AI systems cite content more often when it is clearly read, proves trustworthy, and is easy to extract.
That’s because LLMs (large language models) don’t rank pages like traditional search engines.
They extract passages with clear answers and summarize paragraphs from sources they trust.
That means developing content for AI visibility comes down to planning how models can be interpreted quickly and reused with confidence.
The AI Search Optimizer in Semrush helps you rewrite your content to make it more searchable for platforms like ChatGPT and Google’s AI Overviews.
Step 1: Select the Most Important Pages to Optimize for AI Search
When choosing pages to optimize, choose those that already rank in search or drive traffic. AI platforms are likely to dictate content that search engines already trust.
Choose a page that meets these criteria:
- It’s already ranking in Google for relevant queries, even if the ranking is down.
- It supports conversions or influences purchase decisions, such as product pages, comparisons, or explanations of how it works (but will not affect revenue if it loses quality).
- It includes high-target topics that your brand wants to have for the long term.
- It feels a little outdated and needs updating or it has started to perform below expectations.
Once you’ve selected a page, open the AI Search Optimizer and upload your article to the workflow.
You can enter a URL, paste text into your clipboard, or select a topic already saved to your Clipboard.
After validating a page for rewriting, Semrush starts analyzing it to optimize areas.
Step 2: Run AI Search Optimization Analysis
In this phase, Semrush evaluates how easy your page is for AI systems to read and index. It evaluates structure, formatting, clarity, and EEAT (experience, expertise, authority, and credibility) characteristics.
This assessment is based on Semrush’s analysis of over 300,000 URLs cited by AI platforms.
When the report completes, you get an important set of recommended improvements that tell you what to fix next.
From here, you can prioritize the improvements that will have the biggest impact first.
Step 3: Review and prioritize AI SEO improvements
Start with the recommendations with the highest impact first; A few targeted adjustments can make your content much easier for AI systems to cite. Treat this list as a line of three.
The top recommendations mark the most common problems that prevent AI quotes:
- Answers that appear very late in the section.
- Important concepts stated out of context.
- Sections that cover many ideas without clear headings.
- Dense sections that can be difficult to search or cite.
Click “improve everything” to use all the suggestions at once, or to use the recommendations one by one. Semrush will then rewrite those sections for you.
If your content doesn’t trigger a certain test, it’s already been optimized for AI and you won’t see that recommendation listed.
Step 4: Clarify Key Concepts and References
Content-quoting AI systems can analyze and extract it cleanly. If your page refers to a concept, product, person, or method without explaining it, the AI cannot confidently use your content as a source.
Another way to help search engines and AI systems understand your content is to add schema (structured data) tags to help define key entities.
In the AI Search Optimizer, Semrush flags important concepts or terms where you haven’t added a structured data tag to help explain them.
The simpler approach often works best: introduce the idea in one sentence, then explain why it’s important in another.
Also use appropriate tags for businesses such as products, organizations, and articles.
Step 5: Rearrange Sections So Answers Make Themselves Easy
AI systems cite content that is easy to scan and summarize.
Long leads, generic titles, and crowded sections make it difficult for models to isolate a clean takeaway.
In fact, Semrush’s research found that the cited AI pages were 22.91% chance of having a strong class structure there are similar pages that have not been cited.
In AI Search Optimizer, the recommendations related to the property often point to the same problems:
- Articles that describe the topic, but not take the journey.
- Sections that include many ideas in no clear order.
- Paragraphs that take too long to scan or quote.
A good edit starts with a clear title, then a one- to two-sentence summary at the top of the paragraph. Semrush’s research found that the pages of the cited AI programs were fake 32.83% more likely to include clear summaries and takeaways that are easy to scan there are similar pages that have not been cited.
From there, break down the supporting information into short categories or lists so the AI can extract and reuse it cleanly.
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Pro tip: Is your article structured in such a way that someone can easily scan it for key concepts? If not, keep improving, because the AI will probably struggle with it. |
Step 6: Add Specific Answers When Questions Are Stated
With every search, there is a stated question. AI systems like to cite content that answers those questions directly and early.
Semrush’s research found a 25.45% correlation between AI quotes and question and answer formatting.
In AI Search Optimizer, recommendations in this area appear when a section discusses a topic without directly answering the underlying question.
If a paragraph title sounds like a topic rather than a question, you can often reinforce it by reframing it as something people are asking.
How to Prepare Existing Content for AI Quotes?
Add a question-style subheading, then answer it directly in one or two sentences quickly underneath. After a specific answer, you can add supporting information, examples, or steps.
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Step 7: Reinforce Credentials with Clear Expertise
AI systems cite content more often if it shows clear expertise and reliable findings.
In Semrush’s research, pages that received AI citations showed a 30.64% correlation with strong EEAT signals.
In AI Search Optimizer, trust-related recommendations focus on practical optimization:
- Add an author biography that describes relevant information.
- Support key claims with credible source links, especially if you cite numbers or powerful statements.
Step 8: Save, Compare, and Track AI Performance Over Time
Developing AI is not done all at once.
Once you’ve applied your upgrade, save the updated version to your board so you can compare it to the original.
This makes it easy to see what has changed and what edits have made the page clearer, more organized, or more reliable.
The workflow saves versions so you can review progress without losing previous drafts.
Over time, track how well your content is being cited by monitoring a set of targeted commands. If command visibility drops, reconfigure the page using the same workflow.
Start AI Visibility With Clarity, Not Guesswork
AI Search Optimizer turns vague AI optimization tips into actionable programming in minutes.
If you’re feeling stuck, start small and pick one useful page that needs updating, and work through the workflow.
The best way to build momentum is to start, see if the tool is flagging, and use a higher adjustment.
