Want to optimize your firm's thought leadership so that AI platforms recognize its value and include your insights in answers to user questions? Chances are you're doing some of this already. If you're optimizing your content for SEO, following the editorial best practices we share, or listening to general counsel about what they value most in your content, you're on the right track.
In these (still early) days of AI ascendancy, some optimizations align with older, familiar strategies—just reframed for a new context.
...users ask AI platforms direct questions; platforms reward content structured similarly.
The rise of ChatGPT, Bard, and copious other AI platforms/agents is changing how your audience seeks answers and how your expertise surfaces in response. But you don’t need to begin from scratch. You just might need to fine-tune your approach. For a start:
1. Write Clearly (and Simply)
When crafting content for AI visibility, clarity is paramount. AI algorithms favor content that answers questions succinctly, plainly, and directly. If your content clearly addresses specific issues or questions in understandable terms, it’s more likely to be surfaced by AI.
General counsel have long asked of law firm thought leaders: "Please, spare me the legalese." Your content is most useful—and most shareable within organizations—when it speaks clearly to both legal and non-legal stakeholders. Turns out AI-driven tools favor the same clear, practical writing style.
Editorial action item:
Review your firm’s top-performing articles. Does each one clearly answer a specific question in plain language, without jargon? If not, consider rewriting the opening and takeaway sections for simplicity and clarity.
2. Answer a Specific Audience’s Need
On JD Supra we have seen, time and again, that the most successful content explicitly addresses a specific audience’s concerns or business challenges. Similarly, AI-driven platforms prioritize content that provides clear, audience-specific insights.
Our analytics frequently show a strong correlation between specificity and engagement. Content targeted (and directly addressed) to particular industries or business challenges generates stronger readership and engagement—exactly the content type AI identifies as authoritative and helpful.
Action item:
Identify your target audience clearly at the outset of each piece. Include language directly relevant to their industry, business challenges, or regulatory environment. For example: "Tech companies grappling with recent FTC regulations should..."
3. Format Content for Easy Scanning and Structured Data
AI platforms value content that’s easily parsed and indexed. Content structured with subheadings, bullets, clear takeaways, and schema markup (structured data) helps AI identify and elevate your insights in user queries.
Structured content—headers, bullets, concise summaries, schema markup—has long been fundamental to effective SEO. It also aligns closely with JD Supra’s findings on reader behavior: before committing to read a full article, busy readers quickly scan titles, subheadings, quotes, and highlighted points to determine if the long text merits their time and attention. In other words, by optimizing for AI and SEO, you’re simultaneously optimizing for real-world reader engagement. Funny how that works.
Action item:
Evaluate your existing content templates or formatting styles. Ensure each article includes clear headings, bullet lists, actionable summaries, highlighted quotes, and FAQs structured with schema markup (such as Q&A schema). If your content management system doesn't support structured data yet, consider that upgrade.
4. Lead with Actionable Takeaways
AI-driven discovery platforms are programmed to deliver clear answers, recommendations, and actionable insights in response to queries. The more explicit and practical your content is, the greater its chance of being selected as a resource by AI.
General counsel often express frustration at overly theoretical legal updates. They crave content that clearly defines next steps, key takeaways, or recommendations—exactly the type of content AI prefers to surface.
Action item:
Challenge your authors to start each article with a summary of actionable takeaways: "What do readers need to do next?" These takeaways should appear prominently at the beginning or end of your piece.
5. Anticipate Questions and Address Them Directly (FAQs)
Content organized in a question-and-answer format naturally fits the conversational nature of generative AI queries. Users ask AI platforms direct questions; platforms reward content structured similarly.
Overlap with SEO & JD Supra analytics:
SEO best practices have emphasized the value of FAQ sections and Q&A formats for several years, especially with the rise of Google featured snippets. Our analytics also frequently show strong reader engagement with clearly titled, question-driven content.
Action item:
Include a dedicated FAQ section in your articles, structured around anticipated audience questions. This helps not only SEO and AI visibility but also aligns content precisely with reader expectations and queries.
Get Strategic About Your Content Optimization
- Audit your content library to identify strengths and weaknesses in alignment with the practices outlined above.
- Meet/communicate with authors and practice leaders to reinforce the necessity of clear, concise writing, explicit audience targeting, and actionable takeaways.
- Monitor content performance regularly, using analytics to refine your approach continually.
In short, the same strategic principles that make your thought leadership relevant and discoverable through SEO, valuable to general counsel, and highly engaging on JD Supra, will ensure your content thrives in the age of AI discovery.
No need to reinvent the wheel—just make it stronger, clearer, and more strategic.
Want to improve your AI visibility? Learn from ... wait for it ... human reading habits
If you’re wondering how to optimize your content for AI, one effective way is to look closely at human reader behavior.
For example, we know that readers quickly scan new content for relevance before committing their time to a full read. Clear titles, engaging subheadings, concise summaries, and well-structured information catch readers' eyes—and it turns out, AI values exactly the same thing.
In essence, what works best for human readers also translates into better discoverability in AI-driven search. Focus on creating clearly framed insights and guidance for busy readers, who don't have to work hard to find the point. By anticipating human behavior, you're simultaneously positioning your content to succeed with AI.
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Also see: AI Training versus AI Visibility (And Why It Matters to Your Content)
