The news industry has woken up to the threat posed by AI platforms and is sounding the alarm. Many ad-supported online publications are in decline. That said, every crisis presents opportunities.

Chat GPT, Google AI Mode and other AI LLMs (artificial intelligence large language models) have absorbed huge amounts of news and content and are providing a version of it for consumption, without sending many visitors back to the advert-supported publications that did the reporting. Many “secondary source” publications, deprived of the clicks from the old search engine model, will inevitably fold from the loss of advertising revenue they need to survive.

Over the years, many “primary sources” of domain knowledge in the UK have been competing with, and have had their voices muffled by, “secondary source” publications of varying quality. The advert-supported model has led to the creation of many websites set up to capitalise on the expertise of others. They exist to divert attention by interpreting and sometimes mis-interpreting the messages that expert organisations want to communicate.

Many of the organisations I work with in the UK – such as expert service businesses, trade bodies, membership orgs etc – are “primary sources” – they’re able to fund and create authoritative content without reliance on advertising. For them, the disruption caused by “AI” LLMs is an opportunity to be seized.

As the secondary source ad-supported publications fall away, there is an opportunity for businesses and organisations that contain genuine sources of “primary source” expertise to reach and connect with wider audiences via LLMs. LLMs require primary sources, and many potential customers require accurate information they can trust.

A few tips for organisations wanting to improve their visibility in AI LLMS:

• Agree and document your organisation’s marketing objectives
  Align your leadership, marketing, and subject matter experts around clear goals. Are you looking for brand visibility? Inbound leads? Recruitment? Thought leadership? Clarity here informs every step that follows.
• Audit your firm’s website
  Your website is your organisation’s route into LLM visibility. On your website identify what already exists, what’s outdated, what’s missing, and what performs well. Pay particular attention to content that shows expertise, such as case studies, insight articles, service descriptions, and team bios.
• Draw up a content strategy that maps your organisation’s domain expertise
  This means structuring content around the specific questions, challenges, and use cases your organisation solves. Use topic clusters and pillar pages to build authority in your niche.
• Fill in any content gaps gradually
  Create a prioritised editorial roadmap. Focus first on high-impact, evergreen content that supports your goals and helps LLMs understand what your business is expert in.
• Get the SEO basics in place, including accessibility
  Ensure your site is technically sound: fast loading, mobile-friendly, accessible (WCAG 2.1), with proper metadata and internal linking. Use descriptive URLs, alt text, headers, and title tags.
• Use vector embedding and structured data where appropriate
  For advanced use, structure your data in ways that LLMs and AI tools can interpret semantically. Embeddings help with knowledge retrieval in enterprise LLM systems; schema markup helps with public search visibility. Note: Be careful with vector embedding. Mentioning concepts is not enough. If search engines notice low engagement on certain content pages, they may decrease your visibility.
• Ensure LLM crawlers can actually “see” your content
  Don’t block important pages in robots.txt or via meta tags. Use static HTML where possible. Avoid hiding core content behind logins or JavaScript-rendered elements.
• Make the most of external references
  High-authority external links (e.g. Wikipedia, trade associations, directories, news mentions) that point back to your site validate your authority. Update these to include your web address.
• Develop your website continuously, including schema and technical enhancements
  Implement structured data (FAQ, HowTo, Product, Organisation etc.) to increase your site’s semantic richness. Stay up to date with Google’s and OpenAI’s indexing best practices.
• Encourage experts in your organisation to contribute content
  Subject matter experts’ language, tone and terminology are crucial. Their input ensures accuracy and adds depth, which helps LLMs recognise true domain expertise.
• Distribute your content through high-trust channels
  Publish to platforms where LLMs gather training data: government websites, educational sources, media outlets, trusted blogs, and professional bodies.
• Monitor how your brand is referenced in LLM responses
  Test prompts in tools like ChatGPT and Perplexity to see how your organisation is mentioned. Note any hallucinations or omissions and adjust content accordingly.
• Stay informed about AI developments in your sector
  Keep track of how generative AI is changing search and discovery. Subscribe to updates from Google, OpenAI, and your industry-specific regulators or publications.
• Put in place a feedback loop
  Use analytics (GA4, Search Console, Hotjar etc.) to track which content is working, what drives engagement, and what gets picked up in search or shared. Refine your strategy based on this evidence.
• Recognise that business websites are operational, not capital assets
  A website is not a one-off project. It requires maintenance, updates, testing and development—just like a garden. Plan time and budget accordingly.

• Contact us for a chat about optimising your website for LLMs

• Inside the Media’s Traffic Apocalypse
• Yuval Noah Harari reminding us that truth is costly – but in an AI saturated world, organisations that are able to invest in producing accurate information will differentiate themselves, and will benefit.