You’ll already know that the age of searching and scrolling through Google listings for specific businesses is changing fast.
Look for a firm of chartered surveyors, a local engineering company or even ‘cool gift experiences near me’ - whatever you search, Google’s AI Overview or ChatGPT (or insert any AI model of choice) comes back in seconds with hand-picked suggestions.
As consumers, we don’t question how that AI model decided to show us those answers. But as businesses hoping to be those answers, we must absolutely consider how to make ourselves ‘pickable’ by AI search results - and the answer, as always, lies in content.
The slightly scary search experiment
Let’s get the ominous doom-mongering dealt with quickly, shall we? First, do this task. Open a private or incognito browser window, and open Google search or ChatGPT.
Ask it what you think your customers would ask, to find a business like yours. It’s a hard look in the mirror, we know, but it’s essential you do it.
As our experiment, I used Dyffryn Springs, one of the core wedding venues part-managed by our client Spiros Fine Dining & Events. We’d recently published a video tour of the venue on the website, alongside footage of a real wedding.
I gave ChatGPT this prompt:
i'm looking for an outdoor-style wedding venue in the vale of glamorgan, south wales, for a relaxed and fun wedding. im hoping to book sometime in summer 2027. i'd like to see inside the venue first to understand what it looks like and how it does weddings
And, it worked! It was the #1 result, and ChatGPT specifically referenced being able to view inside the venue. That’s big news for potential bridal couples - if scanning that info hits the spot, then Dyffryn is the venue they’ll look into first.
Interestingly, ChatGPT didn't link to our YouTube videos at all - it took all its information from the venue's website and Google Business listing. Which tells you something important - the video needs to live on your website too.
How did your experiment do? Did your business come up?
If it didn’t, this is where content becomes critical.
How does AI decide what to recommend?
AI pulls answers from content it can find and read - so that’s websites, blogs, YouTube and reviews. It prefers content that's fresh, clear and genuinely useful, and that answers real questions.
If a business hasn't published anything for a year, AI has very little to work with. If a business has published barely anything at all, AI will most likely disregard it in favour of its chattier competitors online.
Why is YouTube rising in AI search?
Recent studies tracking AI tools like ChatGPT, Gemini and Perplexity found that YouTube is now the most-cited social platform in AI answers, ahead of Reddit¹. That’s quite a feat, seeing as Reddit was previously a major source of results.
So, why are videos rising to the top?
The text used around videos (transcripts, captions, descriptions) makes them easy for AI to read
YouTube videos are more evergreen - they stay around for longer whereas Reddit threads or comments are at risk of getting deleted
Videos usually have a point and stick to it. Reddit threads are messy and full of tangents, jokes and off-topic chat, so AI deems it less relevant
Google owns YouTube of course, so its AI tools tend to prefer it
But video, like man, is not an island. It works best as one of several parts working together. Which brings me to…
¹ https://www.adweek.com/media/youtube-reddit-ai-search-engine-citations/
Why blogs and written content are back, and bigger than ever!
Rejoice, frustrated writers! We knew this day would come and you’d all come crawling back for our wordplay and clever puns*!
Blogs are among the most-cited types of content, especially recent ones. ‘Freshness’ matters. We’ve told clients for years that publishing regularly is key (not that we always follow our own advice…).
A well-written, human-made blog post that answers potential questions for clients, with one published every 2-3 weeks, is gold for AI search.
Another factor in the results is external written content away from your own website - so that’s press releases, content about you on partner websites, reviews, etc. All of these also matter, so bear in mind how other people are talking about you.
*Sadly none were available in the making of this blog.
How to harness the power of video & content for your business
In simple terms, your business needs to present itself as the answer for your customers’ or clients’ problems. When they search, you need to show up, which means having relevant, high-quality content across multiple touchpoints - and in many guises.
One reason we love video as much as we do is that it splits down into so many assets - the core video itself gets transcribed, and that gets turned into 3 supporting blogs, and social captions - why not a multi-page visual PDF too? A mailshot. A web page. All from one video.
That’s between 7-10 instances that AI can pick up your content and use it to showcase your business when someone makes that search.
Repeat that process for other key FAQs or services within your business and soon you’ll build a library of reasons for AI results to highlight you.
A few key takeaways
Before you start making that content, here are a few quick tips to keep you focused:
Use content to answer questions customers actually ask, and talk in the same language
No one searches ‘trusted, family-run plumbing solutions’, but they do search ‘how much does a new boiler cost south wales’ - so that’s the query to answer.
Keep content fresh
The only thing harder than getting started with content… is sticking to it. Trust us, we know. That’s why producing at scale then releasing regularly is a good approach to keep on top of your content and not let the plan drift.
Put your videos on your website, not just YouTube
Despite its popularity with AI search, several tools still prefer to read web pages. So if any of your video content goes on YouTube, it also needs to be embedded on your website in a landing page or dedicated blog.
Always add transcripts & descriptions
Use a tool like rev.com to get cheap, AI-generated captions - then make sure to comb through and correct it (Welsh place names always get mangled). Upload these proper captions to YouTube rather than relying on auto-captions, and make sure the description is searchable, as well as informative.
Plan & book your content shoot
We’re currently taking bookings for November to get your content ready for Q1 2027 - a great way to start the new year with everything filmed, edited and ready to go rather than scrambling in January.
Ready to start planning content? Let’s have a chat - email me at meg@burningred.co.uk to suggest a time or pick one using our online calendar system 😁
FAQs
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In a search engine, the AI Overview is the section that appears at the top when you ask it a question - everything from top rated gym cardiff to how to choose estate agent for selling house (Can you tell I don’t grace my searches with proper grammar or sentence structure?)
This section appears near the top of results, and above the organic (non-paid) listings. It uses multiple sources to inform its answers, and usually breaks itself down into several sections with sub-points, for easy scannability.
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It has to work with your team and capacity of course, but a realistic schedule for a business could look like:
Website / blog: one or two quality posts a month, plus updating key pages (services, FAQs, pricing) every few months so they stay fresh
YouTube: around one video a month is good - aim for a steady drip of content
Social: a few times a week, mostly made from clips and stills you already have
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Don't worry - this is one of the most common things we hear, and it doesn't mean video isn't for you. There are plenty of ways to make great content without putting anyone in the spotlight:
Show, don't tell - film your space, your products or your process in action. Some of the most effective videos don't feature a single face.
Use a voiceover - someone can tell the story without ever appearing on screen.
Let your customers do the talking - testimonials are often more convincing than anything you could say about yourself.
Keep it casual - if someone's willing but nervous, a relaxed chat with one of our team feels far more natural than talking straight to camera.
Whatever you choose, we'll guide you through it, there's no pressure to get it perfect first time, and you'll see everything before it goes live. Most people who are dreading it end up surprised how easy it was!
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You definitely can! AI can't watch your videos, but it can read everything around them - so a few simple changes can make a big difference:
Upload proper captions - auto-captions often get names and places wrong, so an accurate captions file helps AI read it correctly
Write a useful description - say what the video shows, where you are and who it's for, rather than just a one-line summary
Put your videos on your website - embed them on the pages people (and AI) already visit, with a short written summary underneath
Turn them into more content - one video can become a blog post, social clips and FAQs