Online visibility in the AI age : What eCommerce retailers now do must

Online visibility in the AI age : What eCommerce retailers now do must

AI answers – and Your shop remains invisible ? So prevent this.

 

Around 70% of Europeans use AI tools How ChatGPT , Gemini or Perplexity at least weekly as Search engines . What should you do to ensure that​ your  Content of AI tools found become ?

Here are the basics for understanding search engine optimization for AI.

 

What is AI SEO?

AI SEO means optimizing content so that it is understood, cited, and referenced by AI-based search engines and answering systems (e.g., ChatGPT, Google Search Generative Experience, Bing Copilot, Perplexity ) .

SEO used to be primarily about appearing
in Google's organic search results . Now, it's increasingly about appearing in AI answers —where AI provides the user with a direct answer rather than displaying traditional search results .

 

Why is this important?

AI response systems use content from the web to formulate their answers.
If your website or business listing is recognized by the AI as a trusted source , it can:

  • Quote or link to you ,
  • Your information directly ,
  • Your offer in the reply text .

This is particularly relevant because AI-supported search is increasingly replacing the classic click on websites .

 

Which sources do AIs prefer?

According to current analyses, most AI responses come from:

  1. First-party websites (44%) Official brand or company pages
  2. Listings (42%) e.g. E.g. Google Business, Yelp, Tripadvisor
  3. Reviews & Social Media (8%) User-generated content

This means:
If you prepare your own content in a structured, up-to-date and AI-readable manner , you have a good chance that the AI will use your data .

 

First-party websites

These are websites owned by a brand or company —that is, sites operated and controlled by the brand itself .
Examples:

  • The official company website (e.g. www.nike.com or www.bosch.de )
  • A company's own product page or blog
  • Your own online shop

In this context, this means that
when AI systems (e.g., chatbots or search engines with AI answers such as ChatGPT or Google SGE) cite information, 44% of these citations come directly from official company sources , i.e. from content published by the company itself.

 

Listings

"Listings" are industry entries or company profiles on third-party platforms that aggregate company data.
Examples:

  • Google Business Profile (Google Maps listing)
  • Yelp
  • Yellow Pages
  • Industry portals such as Tripadvisor , Trustpilot , Facebook Pages or Booking.com

Here, this means:
42% of AI citations come from listing pages where companies provide content (e.g. opening hours, address, reviews), but the page itself is not owned by them but is operated by a platform .

 

Reviews & Social Media

Here differentiate we between Rating platforms and social Networks and explain with short Hints why they are relevant for AI SEO are . Together 8% of all AI citations come from out of Reviews and social media content .

 

1. Reviews (review platforms)

These pages provide trust-building signals that AI systems (e.g., ChatGPT, Google SGE, or Bing Copilot) evaluate to assess brand reputation and customer experience.

General review portals

  • Google Reviews → most important source for local businesses and shops (directly linked to Google Business Profile).
  • Trustpilot → strong for online shops and service providers, often visible in AI citations.
  • ProvenExpert → widely used in German-speaking countries, especially for service providers.
  • Trusted Shops → very established, especially in eCommerce, signals seriousness and buyer protection.
  • Yelp → relevant in the service and restaurant sectors.

Industry-specific review sites

  • Tripadvisor → Travel, Hotels, Restaurants.
  • Booking.com / Google Travel → Accommodations, experiences, services.
  • Kununu → Employer ratings, important for employer branding.
  • App Store / Google Play Store → Reviews of apps or digital products.

Why this is important:
AIs often use such ratings to support statements like “This provider is particularly reliable” or “Customers praise the fast support.”

 

2. Social media platforms

These provide current, user-generated content that uses AI to identify sentiment, trends, and brand awareness.

Relevant social media channels

  • Facebook Pages → Business profiles with reviews, comments, and opening hours.
  • Instagram → Product launches, customer interactions, brand-related hashtags.
  • LinkedIn → B2B communication, company updates, professional articles.
  • YouTube → Product reviews, tutorials, interviews – very AI-relevant due to Google affiliation.
  • TikTok → Trends, viral brand content, especially among younger audiences.
  • X (formerly Twitter) → Mentions and discussions that AIs often use for sentiment detection.

Why this is important:
Social networks help AI understand how active, authentic, and relevant a brand is.
For example, if many users speak positively about a brand, it increases the likelihood that AI systems will consider it trustworthy or mention it in replies.

 

 

How do you optimize for AI SEO?

Here are the most important levers:

1. Structured Data & Schema Markup

  • Use structured data for products (automatically included in epages Now ), opening hours, reviews, prices, etc.
  • This helps the AI better understand what your content means (not just what it says ).

2. Clear, concise texts with semantic context

  • Write so that your answers are short, direct, and clear – similar to AI answers.
  • Use clear headings and FAQ structures.

3. Strengthen authority & EEAT

  • Demonstrate expertise, experience, authority, and trustworthiness (EEAT).
  • E.g. through “About us” pages, author information or certificates.

4. Timeliness and technical quality

  • Keep content up-to-date and ensure fast loading times, clean URLs, and a good mobile experience.

5. Maintain listings and profiles

  • Make sure your listings on Google Business, Yelp, Facebook, etc. are consistent and complete.
  • This data is often the second main source of AI answers.

 

Example

If someone asks:

“Where can I buy sustainable clothing in Hamburg?”

Then an AI response system like Google SGE or ChatGPT pulls:

  • Data from your website (e.g. if you have “Sustainable Fashion Hamburg” in the title, text and schema),
  • plus your Google listing (address, opening hours, reviews),
  • and combines that into a direct answer.

If you optimize your content for AI, the answer might be something like:

" GreenWear Hamburg offers sustainable clothing made from organic cotton.
Source: greenwear-hamburg.de"

 

 

AI SEO checklist

1. Technical basis (first-party website)

These points ensure that AI crawlers can understand and evaluate your website. These criteria are taken into account in epages Now Shops.

  • HTTPS active – secure connection is a basic requirement.
  • Fast loading times ( PageSpeed > 80, especially mobile).
  • Mobile-first optimized – all content must also be visible on smartphones.
  • Clean URL structure (short, descriptive, e.g. /sustainable-fashion-hamburg/).
  • XML sitemap and robots.txt set up correctly.
  • Structured Data / Schema.org markup included for:
    • Products ( Product )
    • Company ( Organization / LocalBusiness )
    • Ratings (Review / AggregateRating )
    • FAQs ( FAQ Page )
  • Open Graph & Twitter Cards maintained (for social snippets and AI links).

 

2. Content (content optimization)

Goal: Design content so that it functions like answers.

  • Clear, direct language – short sentences, active formulations.
  • FAQ structure: typical user questions as subheadings (“How does … work?”, “How much does … cost?”).
  • Paragraph beginnings with a clear answer – AIs often use the first line of a paragraph as an answer.
  • Include semantic keywords (e.g., instead of just “shop,” also “online shop,” “store,” “e-commerce”).
  • Use current, accurate figures and facts.
  • Provide visual elements with ALT text and explanatory context.

 

3. Structure and comprehensibility

  • A clear H1 per page.
  • Logical hierarchy with H2 and H3 headings.
  • Use lists and tables – AI prefers structured, easily understandable information.
  • Create an FAQ or glossary section (often an AI citation source).
  • Formulate meta titles and meta descriptions naturally (“Learn how…” instead of “Homepage”).

 

4.Authority and Trustworthiness (EEAT)

“EEAT” stands for “ Experience , Expertise, Authoritativeness , and Trustworthiness. So becomes this to AIs Tools best conveyed:​

  • About us page with real names, photos, and competency information.
  • Contact page with imprint and privacy policy complete.
  • References to awards, certificates and press reports.
  • Author information under blog articles (with a short bio).
  • Provide sources and references – AIs prefer comprehensible content.
  • Regular updates of the content (e.g. “As of October 2025”).

 

5. Listings and external signals

AIs heavily access public profiles – you should maintain these perfectly:

  • Google Business Profile: all fields filled in (photos, description, opening hours, website link).
  • Bing Places and Apple Business Connect are also maintained.
  • Business directories (Yelp, Tripadvisor , Trustpilot, Facebook, LinkedIn) consistent.
  • Respond to reviews regularly – shows activity and trust.
  • NAP data (Name, Address , Phone) is identical everywhere.

 

Bonus: AI-friendly formats

  • Prepare content as short answers or summaries.
  • “What is…” article with precise definition at the beginning.
  • Comparison tables, how -to guides and list articles are often used by AIs.
  • If possible: Provide a .well- known /ai- plugin.json file (future standard for AI attribution).

 

Do you need support or help implementing AI SEO measures?

If you need support implementing AI SEO measures, we can identify the most appropriate plan with the measures that represent the most relevance for indexing for AI answers. These measures can be implemented with your resources, ours, or in partnership.
For more information, please contact us.