SEO is always a moving target

Do AI and Google like your CU website?

AI has left a lot of digital marketers scratching their heads. For many, organic search engine traffic has dropped substantially. This is largely because AI tools can synthesize a response without the user ever putting eyes on your website.

You can see for yourself. Google has even built an AI overview right into their search engine, meaning the average Joe or Jane is asking questions and getting answers, no clicks involved.

So how do you get AI and Google to give your credit union’s website that sweet, sweet face-time with users?

Quality content is King.

SEO has always been a moving target. There has never been a permanent, fire-and-forget answer to anyone’s SEO woes. Maybe there never will be.

For a while people stuffed their webpages and meta descriptions with keywords, in an attempt to game the system. But those “tricks” and “loopholes” only worked short-term, until Google adjusted their search engine to compensate. Now we know that writing content for actual humans is better.

At their core, search engines have always been about finding the most relevant information. They want the best answers to everyone’s burning questions. So that’s what you and your credit union’s website content need to do, too. Stay local and stay human-focused.

Even if we do find a quick fix to get AI to pay attention, there’s no telling how long it will work or which AI tools it will work on.

Stay informed on different AI tools

There are so many AI solutions out there, and every big tech company is working to make sure theirs comes out on top. Like most new tech, there’s a decent chance that AI-landscape will settle into a few big names that everyone uses. 

But you can’t just pick just one yet. Remember Skype? There’s always a chance a competitor will Zoom right past the obvious favorite.

So for now, we have to keep our eyes on the most used tools. You’ll need to research your membership and which tools they’re using, if any. While individual memberships will vary, Google’s AI overview seems like an obvious place to start since it’s built right into the most-used search engine.

Be patient, stay involved and experiment often

As the AI-world continues to develop, your digital marketing strategy will likely change and then change again. If you are placing Google Ads, for example, you will need to monitor them closely and do plenty of A/B testing to see how placement, keywords and other variables affect results.

On the topic of Google Ads, there seems to be some hubbub online about their effectiveness in a hyper-AI world. It’s true that their AI Overview directly affects how the search results page works. It’s reasonable to be concerned if you place a lot of Ads. But keep in mind that Google has every incentive to make their AI tools integrate as seamlessly as possible with paid services like Google Ads. They know that no one will pay to place Ads if they don’t work.

Furthermore, it’s easy for people to get “linked in” into an online bubble where they believe everyone everywhere is using AI for everything. They’re (probably) not. Joe and Jane Shmoe are not surrounding themselves with AI tools, and it’s easy to forget that if you read a hundred articles about AI and don’t actually ask the Shmoes.

Be resilient

It’s fair to say that digital marketing is going through some growing pains, thanks to AI. But given time, things will clear up and hopefully be improved. In the meantime, marketers need to be willing to try new things, monitor the results, and avoid getting bogged down when things don’t work out.

Sam Dicken
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