S2 Ep 39 What It Takes to Win AI Search

🎧 Show Notes — Episode 39

Title: What It Takes to Win AI Search
Guest: Robert Mitchell, Chief AI Officer at WSI

Overview:
The Final part of our conversation with Robert Mitchell, we go beyond reputation—and into action.

If Parts 1 and 2 opened your eyes to how AI-powered search is changing visibility, this episode shows you what to actually do about it. We break down how AI ranks content, what kinds of stories get surfaced in search, and how business owners can make sure they're not just "on the web"—but actually being found.

💡 Key Themes & Insights:

• Your website alone isn’t enough
  Language models don’t just crawl your site—they interpret signals from across the web. You need to feed them with real-world relevance: case studies, stories, and context that matches how real people search.
  
  
• AI rewards what sounds helpful, not what’s technically correct
  Search today is conversational. If your content doesn’t mirror that tone—or solve a very specific user intent—it gets skipped.
  
  
• You’re not competing with websites. You’re competing with answers.
  Being “on page one” isn’t the goal anymore. Being the featured answer is.
  
  
• Your visibility is shaped by what others say—not just what you publish
  AI uses a wide pool of data to form its responses. That includes reviews, Reddit posts, TikToks, articles, and anywhere else your business is mentioned.
  
  

🔥 Memorable Quotes:

“Language models don’t care about backlinks. They care if your story matches what someone’s looking for.” — Robert

“If your content doesn’t feed the model, it doesn’t matter how good it is.” — John

“The next buyer isn’t Googling ‘services near me.’ They’re describing their exact problem—and AI is connecting the dots.” — Kelly

🧠 Strategy Breakdown:

• Go beyond product pages
  Add context-rich content to your site—customer stories, specific use cases, and helpful breakdowns that match real searches.
  
  
• Train the model by being everywhere
  Google isn’t the only source. Make sure your brand is consistently represented across platforms AI scrapes: reviews, forums, YouTube, Reddit, TikTok.
  
  
• Focus on semantic association
  Think like the user: “cold weather hiking backpack for dog owners” > “outdoor backpack.” Specific, natural language wins.
  
  

🎙️ Guest Mention:

Robert Mitchell, Chief AI Officer at WSI, helps businesses navigate AI strategy with clarity, creativity, and real-world application.