Microsoft explains how to optimize content to improve visibility in AI-powered search

Microsoft explains how to optimize content to improve visibility in AI-powered search

For a brief moment, some of us—perhaps naively—believed that the arrival of AI in the search business would encourage an improvement in the literary quality of the content we read online every day. It’s still too early to give up hope entirely, but signs are emerging that suggest the trend might actually move in the opposite direction.

The rise of LLMs is causing panic across the publishing industry, and that panic extends in many directions. One of the activities being directly affected is web content creation—and consequently, all professionals involved in SEO in one way or another.

Recently, Microsoft shared recommendations for those who want to optimize their content to be eligible for inclusion among AI-generated answers. Specifically, it has released guidelines on how to structure content to increase the chances of being selected as a source for AI-generated answers in platforms powered by Bing. We can also assume that these recommendations apply broadly to other platforms and models.

Key aspects to consider

Most of the guidance published by Microsoft reinforces well-established SEO practices. For example, the use of structured formatting and the correct implementation of schema markup—a tagging language added to a webpage’s HTML code to help search engines better understand its content.

Microsoft places special emphasis on how content is selected to feed AI-generated answers, pointing out that structure, clarity, and citability are key factors. In traditional search, visibility meant appearing in a list of links. In AI-powered search, rankings still exist—but the focus has shifted away from entire pages toward identifying which specific fragments of content can earn a place in the final answers.

LLMs break webpages down into manageable chunks, assess their authority and relevance, and then build responses by combining information from multiple sources. Fundamentals like crawlability, metadata, internal links, and external links remain important, but mainly as starting points in the overall process. The final selection increasingly depends on how clearly structured and easy to interpret each section of a page is.

Good and bad practices according to Microsoft

The core message is that “good structure” favors content citability. Below are some of Microsoft’s key recommendations—what’s worth doing and what to avoid:

• Align the title, meta description, and H1 so that the purpose of the page is communicated clearly and unambiguously. Microsoft also recommends adding schema in JSON-LD format, tailored to the page type.
• Avoid long, dense text blocks that mix multiple ideas. The less effort AI has to make to understand and process your content, the better the chances it will be cited. Likewise, avoid vague or imprecise statements. The clearer, the better.
• Use descriptive H2 and H3 headings that cover only one idea per section. AI values simplicity and clarity. Short lists and comparison tables are also helpful—but don’t overuse them. Structuring and summarizing information is increasingly important.
• Adopt a “Q&A” style when possible, creating blocks that can be cited independently. Adding original FAQ sections to your content also helps. In short: more structure and simplicity make it easier for AI to do its job effectively.
• Avoid hiding key content in elements that might not render properly. Similarly, don’t place essential information only within images without alt text or an HTML alternative. Also, avoid decorative symbols or excessive punctuation. Keeping punctuation clean and simple helps.

The main takeaway: well-structured content is far more likely to be selected and cited. According to Microsoft, when everything is organized as described, Copilot and other Bing-powered tools can extract a coherent understanding of your page—bringing us back to the classic foundations of SEO.

Search engines are still here

There is no evidence that search engines as a channel are disappearing. They remain the primary driver of traffic to websites—and will continue to be for a long time. However, it’s time to accept that the “search peak” has passed and that the total number of clicks search engines send to websites will not grow significantly in the future.

It’s crucial to understand that the citability battle matters. For websites whose sales funnel depends on search engine traffic, optimizing for LLMs is relevant and represents added value. Visibility within these AI-generated answers can drive traffic and conversions. While the overall volume of visits may be trending slightly downward, all signs suggest that their quality is increasing.