The introduction of Google AI Overviews has significantly altered the SEO landscape. Unlike traditional methods, this new algorithm has prompted businesses, including constructors, to reevaluate their content strategies. Users no longer need to sift through numerous search results to find answers to their queries. Instead, they can simply refer to the top Google AI Overview.
Research by SE Ranking reveals that in 2024, approximately 18.45% of 100,013 keywords triggered AI snippets. While this figure may seem modest for the construction industry, it’s worth noting that in 92.36% of cases, AI Overviews link to at least one domain that ranks in the top 10. That underscores the potential to secure a spot in AI snippets by aligning your SEO strategy with the latest search engine algorithm.
What is SEO for Construction Companies?
SEO for construction includes strategies to optimize a construction website so that the search engine enhances its visibility in its search results. With the launch of AI, there are several changes that you have to adapt to rank on top. Some of the key things that you need to do are:
- Follow Google’s E.E.A.T. guidelines. These say that your content should contain aspects of experience, expertise, authoritativeness, and trustworthiness.
- Create content that directly answers the user queries (zero-click searches). This aspect will be covered in detail further.
- Be the subject matter expert for the content.
Regarding Google AIO, as an experimental way, some companies have been researching the Google AIO concept and have concluded the following:
Fortunately, many other strategies can improve your construction SEO for AI Search Engines.
How to Improve Your Construction SEO Strategy for AI Search Engines
If we look at the Google AIO stats of 2024, construction websites, have frequently appeared in AI snippets, and this trend is increasing with time (images added). So, it is clear that Google presents construction content. All you have to do is optimize it for SEO, like for any other niche, for example, ecommerce or lawyer seo.
Here are some key ways to improve your SEO strategies:
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Use Long-Tail Keywords
That has become an obvious, foolproof strategy to rank for AI search engines. If you have used ChatGPT or any other AI tool, you must have seen that the more detailed your query, the better its output. Similarly, if you optimize SEO for a long-tail keyword, your chances of featuring in the AI snippet are high.
If we analyze the research done by SE Ranking, we can see that longer search queries were more likely to trigger AI snippets. Queries with over four words result in 60.85% of the Google AIOs. Here is an image showing data for 5 months of 2024 (From bottom to top: January, June, July, August, November)
Go for conversational queries and optimize for semantic search. Add an SEO section in your content to include all the conversational queries directly.
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Align with Current Construction Standards
One key aspect of a successful construction SEO strategy is aligning with current construction standards. Google’s algorithm changes can instantly turn the tables, and construction content can change quickly.
So, to improve your SEO strategy, align your content with the current construction standards. That not only reassures your audience of the accuracy and reliability of your content but also boosts your SEO strategy.
Focus on revamping the content as per the Google guidelines. Add new content, if any, and keep it relevant to the long-tail search queries. You can collaborate with a reputed expert and cite legitimate sources to gain authority.
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Adapt Content Structure and Language
Google loves a well-formatted article or blog. If your article has a proper content structure (with quality), it has a higher chance of ranking in the top SERPs. To ensure an appropriate structure,
- Add proper headers (H1, H2, H3, etc.)
- Include a key takeaways section at the top for quick content skimming.
- Add a table of contents with jump links.
- Keep the paragraphs short.
- Include the FAQ schema section in your content. It is easier for the AI to scan and extract for the “People also ask” section.
Besides all this, write as if you’re talking to a person. Avoid any fancy jargon and keep the language simple and concise. As we know, AI tracks long-tail keywords, so forced keyword stuffing will automatically reduce.
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Localize Your Content
Local searches are growing at a remarkable rate. As per local SEO stats captured by Backlinko, around 46% of Google searches have local intent. Moreover, 76% of consumers who search for “near me” visit a business within a day. So, to ace construction SEO for an AI search engine, you need to produce content optimized for local search.
One of the best ways to do this is to dedicate website pages specific to your expertise and location. Furthermore, focus on looking for long-tail search queries and optimizing the website pages for them. That will improve ranking, build topical authority, and earn you a spot in the Google AI snippet. Here’s what we got when searching for “best construction companies”.
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Improve Technical SEO
Technical SEO deals with making your site easy to crawl for the search engine and easy to access for the users. Now, AI does not crawl the site as Google does, but one thing is the same.
If your site has structured and semantically rich content, it will be featured among the top SERPs and may be in the AI snippet. Here are some tips to improve technical SEO.
- Use llm.txt to surface content that may not be available via traditional crawling.
- Implement schema markup elements, such as breadcrumbs, FAQS, how-to, reviews, events, etc., to make the search engine understand the meaning of your content.
- Avoid loading content via JavaScript, as AI crawlers do not execute JavaScript. Instead, use server-rendered content or raw HTML.
A technical SEO audit is essential to improving the overall website performance and protecting your building business from claims.
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Adapt to Zero-Click Searches
Zero-click searches are the culprit behind websites losing organic traffic. However, businesses are addressing the issue by adapting to zero-click searches, which are queries for which the answers are provided on the search page.
Users don’t have to open a specific website to find the answers. Knowledge panels, featured snippets, and the People Also Ask section are examples of zero-click searches. Here is an example.
Optimizing for zero-click searches is crucial in the current SEO landscape. By prioritizing user search intent and directly addressing long-tail search queries, you can enhance your chances of appearing in featured snippets. Additionally, using schema markup can help search engines better understand your content.
Pro tip: Google often presents that content in the featured snippet as tables, lists, or bullet points. To optimize for zero-click searches, add such content to your website.
Conclusion
AI is the future of search. While some claim that SEO is dead, it is not. We need to understand the difference here. As long as SEO exists, AI can filter out the best results. And for the construction sector, AI is slowly becoming a boon as AI Overviews present building-related content.
If you are a construction business, you need to leverage and align these SEO practices so that AI recognizes you as an authority. The methods described are tried-and-tested strategies that have worked splendidly for businesses.
