How to Rank on LLMs Like ChatGPT & Gemini in 2025
Today’s blog post is a deep dive into the next evolution of SEO—and it’s not what we’ve traditionally known as search engine optimisation. This is AI Optimisation, and it’s all about how to position your brand, content, and authority to show up when large language models like ChatGPT, Gemini, Claude, and Gemini are giving answers to your customers.If you’re wondering how to “rank” in a world without ten blue links, you’re in the right place.
Search Is Changing – And Fast
Where we once focused solely on ranking in Google's ten blue links, we're now faced with a new, conversational search reality. Large Language Models (LLMs) like ChatGPT, Gemini, Gemini, and Claude are becoming the default entry point for customer research and decision-making. They're the ones answering your customers' questions in real-time. So the big question becomes: how do you show up in those answers?
Welcome to the world of AI Optimisation, or Answer Engine Optimisation (AEO). Unlike traditional SEO, where keyword strategy dominates, AI Optimisation is all about credibility, clarity, authority, and structured content. In short, it’s about making your content useful, trusted, and easy for AI to understand and surface.
Why AI Optimisation Requires a New Strategy
To rank in this new frontier, you have to go beyond simply creating content for human readers. You now also have to consider how machine learning systems interpret and prioritise that content. In many ways, this means optimising not just for people, but for the logic and architecture of artificial intelligence systems themselves. It's a subtle but critical shift.
It starts with recognising how LLMs gather and present information. Some pull from real-time web data via integrations like Bing or Google Search. Others summarise vast training sets that include trusted public websites, forums, business directories, and licensed content. This means that if your site, content, or brand is absent from these pools or poorly structured, you're invisible to the machines driving discovery.
From Keyword Density to Topical Authority
To rank in ChatGPT and Gemini, you need to shift focus from keyword density to topical authority. AI tools want to serve up content from experts. So rather than having a single blog post on, say, "solar panel installation in Perth," you should be creating an ecosystem of content: local legislation guides, ROI calculators, seasonal maintenance tips, how-to videos, and customer testimonials. The deeper and more interconnected your content, the more the AI sees you as an authoritative source.
This is where topic clusters come in. Topic clusters involve creating a central piece of pillar content and linking it to related subtopics. This internal structure signals to AI—and traditional search engines—that you have breadth and depth on a given subject. It’s about building digital gravity around core themes, ensuring your content ecosystem pulls visibility towards itself.
Formatting and Clarity for AI Readability
Another big shift is formatting. Long gone are the days where clever, keyword-laden intros could carry a page. AI thrives on clear, structured information. That means short paragraphs, subheadings that ask and answer common questions, and plain-English explanations. Think less fluff, more function. If an LLM can't extract your answer cleanly, it simply won’t use it.
Headings, too, play a huge role. Framing your content with question-based H2s and H3s such as “What is the cost of XYZ in 2025?” or “How does ABC work?” helps LLMs map your page to specific user queries. This makes your content more likely to be surfaced in direct answer boxes and spoken replies from AI voice assistants.
The Power of Structured Data and Schema Markup
Then there’s structured data. Schema markup isn't optional in the AI age. It tells search engines and AI tools what your page actually contains: services, reviews, FAQs, locations, products, and even author bios. If you want to be featured in summarised answers or used in voice assistants, structured data is your best friend.
Authoritativeness and Real-World Validation
And speaking of authors, authority is back in a big way. LLMs favour content that demonstrates real-world expertise. That means having named authors with bios, qualifications, and external citations. AI needs to trust that your information is accurate and up to date. Add third-party validation like media mentions, backlinks from respected sites, and updated Google Business Profiles to further build that trust.
Authoritativeness can also be signalled through consistent content creation. Brands that publish regularly build a digital footprint that grows in reliability over time. This is particularly true if your content includes unique insights, proprietary data, or thought leadership—elements that can’t be easily replicated by competitors or scraped from generic content.
Building Your Presence Beyond Your Website
Another overlooked aspect of AI Optimisation is public presence. These models are trained on more than just blogs and websites. They index public platforms like Reddit, Wikipedia, LinkedIn, and directories like Yelp or industry associations. Your brand needs to be consistently represented across all of them. Keep your business information accurate, claim and complete your listings, and engage where your audience is talking.
Presence on Wikipedia or notable news sites often acts as a signal boost. These are high-trust sources, and LLMs use them to validate whether your brand is established. Even well-maintained profiles on review platforms or niche directories can help, provided they’re consistent and complete.
Formatting for Summarisation and Avoiding Over-Optimisation
Don’t forget formatting for summarisation. AI tools favour digestible layouts: concise answers, cleanly labelled pros and cons, comparison tables, and definitional content. If your blog post is a wall of text, it’s likely to be skipped. Think of your content like a reference manual, not a novel.
At the same time, avoid over-optimising. Resist the urge to pack every page with AI-friendly phrases. Your content should remain human-first in tone and flow, while structurally catering to machines. Balance is key.
Monitor, Reverse-Engineer, and Stay Ahead
For business owners and marketers looking to get ahead, it’s also important to monitor how AI tools reference businesses in your niche. Use platforms like Gemini.ai and ChatGPT’s browsing capabilities to see how they respond to industry questions. Which competitors are being mentioned? What language do the AI models use? How are they framing advice?
This competitive insight helps reverse-engineer what kind of content is currently being favoured and where the gaps lie. From there, you can tailor your own strategy to plug those gaps and become the trusted source.
AI Plugins, Voice Integration and Future Search
Soon, AI plugins and API integrations will also become part of the discovery ecosystem. Just like you optimise for Google Maps or Amazon listings today, you’ll be doing the same for OpenAI plugins, Google’s Search Generative Experience, or Gemini integrations. Being early to these spaces gives you massive discoverability advantages.
We’re already seeing glimpses of this future. Imagine asking Gemini for “the best custom home builder near me,” and instead of a list of links, it directly books an appointment or recommends a short list based on user reviews, schema data, and plugin integrations. If your business isn’t optimised for that moment, you’re invisible.
AI Optimisation is the Future of Search
In conclusion, AI Optimisation is not replacing SEO—it’s expanding it. The next era of search isn’t keyword-stuffed blog posts; it’s high-authority, structured, trustworthy content that AI can extract and deliver instantly.
To future-proof your visibility, you must build around clarity, trust, structure, and value. Create rich content ecosystems, not isolated blogs. Embed schema everywhere. Establish authorship and credibility. Participate in structured public data ecosystems.
If you're not already thinking like an AI model, it’s time to start.
And if you need help doing that? You know where to find me and please reach out for assistance with one of Perth's best digital marketing consultants—I’ve been working on AI-first marketing strategies across Perth, Australia, New Zealand, South East Asia and beyond.