Make content people actually want

Google’s guidance is consistent: create helpful, reliable, people-first content. In AI Mode and AI Overviews, queries tend to be longer, more specific, and often include follow-ups — which means your page should show real experience, clear steps, and unique insight instead of commodity summaries.

How to stand out

• Anchor to intent. Open with the answer, then expand with steps, examples, and pitfalls.
• Show experience. Add real screenshots, data tables, and “we tried this” notes. Attribute sources and date your stats.
• Be original. Synthesize multiple primary sources, add your method, and include what competitors missed.
• Meet E-E-A-T expectations. Clear bylines, credentials where relevant, and a plain-English editorial policy.

Start with Google’s own self-assessment for people-first content; it’s a great quality bar for both classic results and AI experiences.

Helpful references: Creating helpful, reliable, people-first content and Guidance on using generative AI content.

Deliver a great page experience

Great content can still disappoint if the page is slow, cluttered, or confusing on mobile. Google’s ranking systems reward pages that give users a smooth experience across Core Web Vitals, mobile-friendliness, and clarity.

Quick wins

• Hit CWV targets: aim for “Good” on LCP, INP, and CLS across your key templates.
• Reduce friction: simple navigation, readable typography, and no intrusive interstitials.
• Mobile first: test on real devices, not just a desktop resize.
• Clarity: visually separate main content from sidebars, ads, or promos.

Useful docs: Understanding page experience in Search and Core Web Vitals in Search.

Be discoverable: crawl & index basics

AI experiences still rely on the same fundamentals: Google must be able to find, crawl, and index your pages. Meet the minimum technical requirements and you’re eligible — then earn visibility with quality.

Minimum requirements (pass these first)

• Googlebot isn’t blocked (robots.txt, server rules).
• Page returns HTTP 200 and renders reliably.
• There is indexable content on the page (not entirely blocked or hidden).

See: Google Search technical requirements.

Control what appears in snippets & AI

You can manage how your content is previewed in Search — including AI formats — with robots meta and HTML attributes. More restrictive settings reduce how your content can be shown.

Common controls (copy-paste)

• <meta name="robots" content="nosnippet"> — block all snippets (also blocks featured snippets).
• data-nosnippet — hide specific text from snippets.
• <meta name="robots" content="max-snippet:120"> — limit snippet length.
• <meta name="robots" content="noindex"> — remove a page from Search entirely.

Docs: Robots meta tag specs and Featured snippets & controls.

Match structured data to visible content

Structured data helps machines understand your page and can enable rich results. Keep it accurate and aligned with the on-page content. Don’t mark up things users can’t see.

Best practices

• Use the correct type (Article, HowTo, FAQPage, Product, etc.).
• Ensure values match what’s visible on the page.
• Validate with a tester before publishing.

Docs: General structured data guidelines.

Prep for multimodal search

People can now ask a question with an image or video and get a rich response with links. Support your text with high-quality visuals and keep your Merchant Center or Business Profile details up to date if you sell products or serve local customers.

Action items

• Add original images and short explainer clips with descriptive filenames and alt text.
• Mark up images and videos where relevant.
• Keep product feeds and local info current for eligibility and accuracy.

Overview: AI features & your website.

Measure value, not just clicks

Clicks that arrive via AI Overviews or AI Mode can be more qualified because users see more context before they visit. Don’t judge performance on click counts alone — track what those visitors do next.

What to measure

• Engagement depth: time on page, scroll, multiple page views.
• Outcomes: demo requests, signups, sales, contact events.
• Assists: content touched before a conversion or sales conversation.

Context: John Mueller notes these visits can be higher quality due to the added context AI results provide before the click. Use that to your advantage by aligning pages to next-step CTAs.

Keep evolving with your users

Search keeps changing because people keep changing — from ten blue links to mobile, voice, and now multimodal and conversational. Treat this as an opportunity to answer new, complex questions with clarity and speed.

Learn more: Google’s AI search success tips and the overview of AI Overviews.

One-page implementation checklist