Seven Tactics For Ranking In AI Search Results And Building Your Brand

Forbes

4 days ago

Gianluca Ferruggia is the General Manager at DesignRush, a B2B marketplace that connects agencies to businesses.
It's easy to assume that showing up in traditional search results is the finish line, but how people search today is changing, with many now using AI chatbots. This means adapting—and building trust—is essential for brands today. After all, if no one trusts what they find, what's the point?
At my company, a business-to-business marketplace connecting businesses and agencies, our goal has never been just about clicks. We've aimed to build meaningful partnerships and publish content that solves business problems. We first appeared as a top result in a popular generative AI chatbot in 2024, and traffic steadily increased, eventually reaching around 20,000 additional organic visits per month.
Earned visibility results from building trust with clients, partners and readers. And we've found that generative search favors brands that are clearly positioned, frequently referenced and genuinely useful.
If you want to rank in search results on generative AI platforms like ChatGPT, here are seven ways to better position your business.
1. Anticipate where buyers are searching.
Gartner predicted that by next year, traditional search engine volume will decline by 25%, "with search marketing losing market share to AI chatbots and other virtual agents." This shows the importance of becoming discoverable during key decision moments when buyers research options and approach conversion, rather than chasing short-term wins.
Key actions that helped us were getting earned organic mentions from respected sources, improving content clarity and crawlability, and cleaning up our site structure to enhance AI understanding. For other brands looking to do something similar, my advice would be to start with an audit of your external presence, and ensure your high-performing content answers specific, high-intent questions.
2. Let credibility work in your favor.
Brands cited in platforms like ChatGPT are seeing consistent referral gains as user behavior shifts toward generative search over traditional engines, according to Search Engine Land. While earning rankings in AI results generated traffic for us, this traction didn't just benefit our company. It also bolstered the agencies listed on our platform, which shows how trust can be earned when others speak on your behalf.
What we've found can make the difference is highlighting success stories and letting third-party validation support your credibility. These factors speak louder than any tagline. To get started, set up brand-monitoring tools, and repurpose earned media in your outbound strategy. This means taking positive press mentions or third-party validation (like interviews, features or awards) and weaving them into email campaigns, sales decks or social posts to build trust with new audiences.
3. Join the right conversations.
We prioritized being part of industry discussions by showing up in expert-curated lists, relevant blog posts and partner mentions.
A few practical steps you can take include:
• Develop content others want to reference.
• Build media relationships that support editorial mentions.
• Create a monthly 'mention pitch list,' and submit data-backed insights to niche publishers.
To get started, try pitching value-based content to trusted outlets in your niche, and encourage brand mentions that naturally link to your expertise. One effective way is to collaborate with partners or creators in your space, providing them with insights, data or quotes they'll want to cite. This naturally brings your brand into relevant conversations.
4. Reflect on how buyers search.
Buyers today ask specific, problem-solving questions—not vague keywords. We reshaped our content to reflect that shift.
Focus on addressing business needs through use-case content and making listings more informative and outcome-oriented. As you're updating content, I also recommend leading with clarity and intent, not just volume. Ask yourself: Would this answer my question if I were the reader?
To test and adapt, run prompts in ChatGPT and similar chatbots with your target queries. If your brand isn't showing, adjust the messaging or content structure.
5. Show results, not just claims.
We've learned that visibility means little without proof of value. The strongest signal is doing good work and making it easy for others to recognize that. Some tactics that paid off for us were showcasing real results through client stories and prioritizing authentic testimonials over polished taglines.
To showcase your achievements:
• Use case studies to tell compelling success stories.
• Let your customers validate your claims.
• Add a 'results at a glance' box to case studies with return on investment, growth metrics or conversion data.
6. Extend visibility to partners.
Our content strategy wasn't just about our company; we focused on creating value for those listed on our platform, too. That shared exposure drove trust and traffic across the board.
What we learned is the value of building systems that benefit both your business and your ecosystem, as well as making visibility collaborative, not competitive. One tip you can try is including a "featured partner" block or link module on key pages of your website to boost ecosystem exposure in AI results.
7. Look beyond a single channel.
As I mentioned above, traditional search traffic is declining. Meanwhile, Google's searches in Safari declined for the first time in years, according to Search Engine Land. As our recognition of AI platforms grew, it reminded us to diversify how and where people discover our company.
I recommend diversifying your traffic by:
• Tracking shifts in your traffic sources over time
• Reinvesting in visibility strategies that offer more control and credibility
Consider using Urchin Tracking Module, or UTM, parameters for AI-friendly content to better attribute LLM-driven traffic.
Visibility That's Earned, Not Bought
Ultimately, we've found that consistent brand mentions, clear content and topical authority outperform outdated keyword tactics in modern discovery models. For us, success with AI rankings validated the fact that consistency and credibility pay off. The results reflected work that had been quietly building in the background.
If your strategy is still focused on quick wins, now is the time to refocus. Build for trust, and the visibility will follow.
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