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I is here to stay — and whether they know it or not, travelers are drawing from the chatbot to find vacation destinations, plan trips and activities, and design corporate events. From the quick snippets at the top of every Google search to personalized itineraries produced by chatbots, AI-generated recommendations are informing every aspect of the travel industry. That’s why it’s so important for resorts, hotels, and other hospitality-focused businesses to know how to show up in ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, Perplexity, and other AI engines.
That may sound intimidating, but here’s the good news: The best practices for ranking well on AI searches — what’s now called answer engine optimization, or AEO — aren’t all that different from what you’re probably already doing for SEO. Like Google and Bing, AI engines are attracted to content that’s easy to understand, provides clear value, and has a reliable and trustworthy voice. In other words, high-quality, knowledgeable content is still king, just as it’s always been.
That said, being familiar with the ins and outs of AEO can boost the impact of your website, blog, and social media channels. Here are five tips for getting traffic from ChatGPT and other AI assistants.
1. Make Your Content Easy to Crawl
The general guidance about online content is that an eighth grader should be able to understand it. Not every sophisticated concept can be broken down to that level, but you can structure your content to be both digestible and insightful. Like SEO engines, AI engines look for information that’s easy to crawl and integrate into snippets, summaries, and more detailed plans.
Try these approaches for ranking in AI searches:
- Clearly label sections of content: Use H2s and H3s that directly reference the information included in that section, like Reviews, Prices, Accommodations, etc. (That sounds like a “duh,” but there’s a ton of content out there that ignores this basic logic.)
- Answer the right questions: Include FAQ sections to answer questions that people are searching for, in the language they’re using. Tools like Google Trends, Google Keyword Planner, and Google Search Console offer data on search volume and trending topics.
- Break information into chunks: In your long-form content, use bulleted lists or short paragraphs with brief sentences. Remember, shorter doesn’t have to mean dumbing it down: You can chop one long sentence into two or three without losing the nuance.
- Add internal links: Make sure relevant pages are cross-linked throughout your website. Software like SurferSEO can help with this.
- Provide information visually: Since AI engines can now scrape data from PDFs and images, use photos, charts, tables, and infographics to organize information or compare options in a clear, crawlable format.
2. Keep AEO in Mind, But Don’t ‘Keyword Stuff’
If you’re already taking SEO into account when crafting content, don’t be discouraged if you’ve noticed your web traffic dropping. Gartner predicts that organic search volume will drop by as much as 25% by next year due to AI chatbots. But if your strategy is on target, your content should still show up in AI-generated summaries, which builds brand recognition and leads to conversions.
Here are some ways to write for AEO using keywords:
- Try long-tail keywords: Meet searchers’ specific needs by going beyond short phrases that are harder to rank for. Rather than “beach hotel in Florida,” for example, use “beach hotel in the Keys with spa and breakfast.”
- Don’t “keyword stuff”: Avoid using keywords too often and too obviously in your content. That’s a “black hat” SEO tactic that will detract from your authoritative voice, mark your content as lower quality, and demote you in the rankings.
- Edit AI content carefully: Generative AI is notorious for keyword stuffing. So if you use AI to produce content using keywords, review it closely and be liberal with the delete key. The bots don’t yet have the finesse to integrate keywords in subtle ways or limit how often they appear.
- Pull insights from data: To see how well your strategy is working, keep track of your metrics, including website engagement (both paid and organic), SEO rankings, and search impressions. There are also new tools available for tracking your ranking in AI overviews.
3. Tap Into User-Generated Content
Some of the biggest downsides of AI chatbots are their tendency to hallucinate, generate connections that don’t actually exist, and provide certain answers just to make users feel good. That’s why more people are turning to forums like Reddit, where the opinions and information come from actual people. To show up in ChatGPT and other search engines while standing out from competitors, you’ll want to share real-life stories and testimonials.
Here are some ways to generate and disseminate UGC (user-generated content):
- Work with influencers: Consider a collaboration with one of the blogosphere’s top content creators. Our guide will help you choose an influencer who aligns well with your brand.
- Make testimonials pop: AI models, particularly Large Language Models (LLMs), are more effective in extracting information from shorter, contained pieces of text. To take advantage of that, highlight short quotes from reviews within stylized website modules and social media graphics. (Don’t be afraid to gently edit UGC — users won’t mind if you remove typos and extraneous words.)
- Build a dedicated review gallery: Along with integrating them across your website, create a page just for reviews, so AI (and human visitors) can browse multiple testimonials with ease. Whenever possible, give details that help prove your reviewer is real, such as the city they live in and their full name — or first name and last initial if they prefer.
- Engage with users: Responding to comments, liking posts, and sharing UGC demonstrates your brand’s appreciation. As a result, you build a stronger connection that ideally leads to another stay, more raves for your property, and more content to boost your AEO.
4. Stay Fresh and Update Often
You don’t want AI to veer away from your content because it’s old — or, almost as bad, grab and share outdated information. To avoid either of those outcomes, make sure the information and details on your site, blog, or social media channels accurately reflect your property and services. Plus, add new content on a regular basis, so the bots recognize your business is active.
Try these tips to get new content to show up in ChatGPT:
- Post on your blog as often as possible: Publish once a week if you have the bandwidth, or once a month if that’s not possible. Continually revise and re-date older content to keep it fresh. (That’s preferable to deleting old posts, as they may still be ranking on search.)
- Be time-sensitive: Use words and phrases like “tomorrow,” “next week,” “right now,” and “this summer” to mark your content as up to the minute. (And if it lives on your website, be sure to update it when it’s out of date.)
- Don’t rely on the same old reviews: You can hang on to the testimonials that are great and still accurate. But be sure to add new ones on your site and social channels on a regular basis.
- Keep other types of content fresh: Use timely language on your staff pages (“2025 Guest Chefs,” for example), menu (“New Spring Brunch Menu”), and special seasonal offers (“Great Deals for Holiday Getaways!”).
- Show what’s new: Use social media videos and blog posts to highlight new amenities or onsite renovations, like room refreshes, an expanded fitness center, or a restaurant opening.
5. Be the Expert
Ironically, one of the best ways to show up in GPT and other AI answers is to offer what AI can’t: thought leadership and real-life expertise. Building trust and credibility will improve your SEO and AEO rankings, as well as your reputation and reservations. That’s why the rules of E-E-A-T (Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, and Trustworthiness) apply now more than ever.
Here are some ways to establish E-E-A-T across your content:
- Demonstrate knowledge of your geographic area: In your social media and blog posts, include detailed references to regional attractions and events. You could profile actors at the theater festival that comes to town every summer, describe a new installation at the outdoor sculpture park nearby, or give readers the scoop on five secret spots to catch a picture-perfect sunset.
- Highlight your partnerships with respected orgs: You might mention the farms where you source produce, the fundraiser you hosted for a local nonprofit, or the turtle walks you offer on your beachfront, led by educators from a nearby ecological center.
- Show off your expertise: Highlight an award won by your chef or your CEO’s recent speaking engagement or podcast appearance. Or, offer a complimentary webinar on something your property does well, like maintaining long-term guest relationships or encouraging longer stays.
- Lead by teaching: Feature staff in a series of how-to videos on your social media channels. Your in-house authorities can provide short lessons on their areas of expertise, like flower arranging with your floral team, a deep-breathing technique guided by your yoga or fitness instructor, or a demo with your mixologist on how to make a custom cocktail.
Got great ideas for how to show up on ChatGPT, and need some support to bring them to life? Our experts can build and execute a plan to boost your SEO and AEO. Find out more about our approach to content marketing.