Searchable, Scannable, Recommendable: The New Visibility Rules
- Joy Morales
- 2 hours ago
- 6 min read
June 26, 2025
As a small business owner, you’ve relied on instinct, experience, and intelligence to grow your business.
But in today’s AI-powered world, being smart isn’t enough if AI can’t find you.
So far, we’ve covered Signal 1: Your Digital Footprint and Signal 2: Domain Expertise—the foundational steps for being recognized as a trusted source.
Now, it’s time to level up.
Signal 3: AI Discoverability is all about structuring your digital content so AI can recognize, recommend, and rank you.
If Signal 2 proves you know your stuff, Signal 3 ensures AI sees it—and believes it’s useful enough to share. Whether someone’s searching in Colorado Springs, London, Paris, or New York City, you’re now visible.
This signal leans a bit more technical than the first two—but don’t worry, we’re keeping it simple, actionable, and human-friendly.
After all, your expertise is in the nuts and bolts of your business—not the bits and bytes of AI.
Let’s break it down.
What Is AI Discoverability?
We like to think AI is smarter than us.
It's not. So, no worries about the Terminator breaking down your door while you’re reading this.
That said, AI doesn’t read like a human.
It scans, summarizes, ranks… and rewrites.
It's like having a robot editor reviewing everything—your blogs, your posts, even those videos you keep meaning to make.
And here’s the catch:
If your content isn’t structured for that process, you’re invisible.
You’ll get skipped over—like the potato salad with raisins at the Fourth of July picnic.(It might be there. It just isn’t getting chosen.)
As Joy puts it best: “AI can’t recommend what it can’t read.”
So, let’s break down what AI does do—and how you can show up where it’s looking.
How Does AI Find You?
Like a fine-tuned engine, when you have things set up correctly your visibility will rev up your business. It comes down to a few key signals under the hood—things that help AI know what you’re about and why you matter.
1. Schema Markup: Speak AI’s Language
Schema is a type of code that helps AI understand how your website is organized.
It essentially says to AI:
“Hey AI, this is our About page. This is a FAQ. This is a testimonial. Come on in—read all about us.”
As Tim puts it:
“Schema markup is the code you put on your website to show the organization of it. So, if you set up your website correctly with headers and content that’s easy for AI to crawl… schema helps show the structure.”
Now—we’re not going to dive deep into code today.
This blog is here to clean the windshield, not change the timing belt.
(But don’t worry, a full breakdown on schema is coming soon.)
For now, here’s what you need to know:
You don’t have to be a developer to start using schema.
“It’s not the scary thing that might intimidate you. It’s more of a practical thing. And there are tools out there to help you get started.”—Tim
Most modern website platforms—like Wix, Squarespace, WordPress, and Webflow—include built-in schema support. With a few clicks and some clear content, you can start signaling to AI what each section of your site means.
And if you’ve hired a developer? Schema should already be on their checklist.
If it’s not… it might be time to talk to someone who knows the ropes.
Because visibility today isn’t just about being online—it’s about being readable, scannable, and structured for AI.
Let’s keep going and make your message crystal clear.
2. Say What You Do—And Say It Clearly
We’ve said it before, but it’s worth repeating:
Clarity is visibility.
Joy shared a perfect example from a recent podcast:
“(A company) used this marketing website that said, ‘Oh, we help businesses be found.’ But what does that mean?”
That vague line got replaced with something specific and searchable:
“We help law firms get found by people searching for attorneys.”
That’s the difference between clever and clear.
Between invisible and findable.
As Joy summed it up:
“If you're trying to use language that's flowery—don’t. Be crystal clear. Say exactly what you do, right at the beginning of your website.”
This same principle applies across your content—not just your homepage.
🎥 And yes, that includes video.
When you speak naturally on camera—about what you do, who you help, and how—you’re training AI systems to associate your voice with your value.
It doesn’t have to be perfect. But it does need to be practical.
No fluff. No jargon. No performance.
Just facts, spoken clearly, in your own words.
Because today, AI is parsing every kind of content:
Video transcripts
Voiceovers
Blog intros
Social captions
Alt text (and we’ll get to that next)
The clearer you are, the more AI can understand, categorize, and recommend you.
Ready to give your images a voice, too?
Let’s break down the power of Alt Text—and why it’s one of the easiest ways to boost AI visibility.
3. Images That Talk Back
Every image on your website or social feed is an opportunity for visibility—if AI can “read” it.
That’s where alt text comes in.
As Joy put it:
“You also want to do some work with embedding texts and doing some alt texts. Again, it seems upfront like this is going to be difficult... but there are tools that can help.”
Alt text isn’t a “nice-to-have” anymore.
It's a visibility tool. A searchability tool. A recommendability tool.
If you follow us on LinkedIn or X (and if you’re not… come on over), you’ll notice something about our posts:
We often drop a follow-up comment that describes the image.
Why?
Because it gives AI another layer of context about what that image means and how it connects to the topic.
It’s like closed captioning for pictures.
Just like some people turn on subtitles to follow the story better, AI systems need alt text to interpret what your image is saying—and whether it’s relevant.
Alt Text = AI Closed Captioning.
Clear. Purposeful. Effective.
Whether it’s a chart, a product photo, or a clever visual metaphor—alt text makes it usable by AI. That means your content is more likely to surface in feeds, summaries, and search results.
And the good news? You don’t need to overthink it.
Just describe what the image shows—and why it matters.
Up next, let’s take these visibility tools on the go—because in an AI-first world, your mobile site matters more than your laptop.
4. Mobile First = AI Friendly
When it comes to visibility, Google and AI systems prioritize mobile-first websites.If your site isn’t fast, clean, and readable on a phone, your visibility drops.
As Joy put it:
“People search on their mobile phone. So, make sure that your website is mobile-friendly and quick, because people won’t wait.”
Tim backed it up with real-world experience:
“If you start with mobile thinking, it’s easier to transition over and make the desktop version better.”
For years, many of us built websites desktop-first, then adapted for mobile.
But AI has flipped the script.
Search is now happening on mobile, in apps, and through voice assistants—and if your site isn’t easy to access there, it may never be surfaced at all.
AI tools like ChatGPT, Gemini, and Perplexity are reshaping how people discover businesses.
They summarize content, answer questions, and recommend resources—and mobile usability is one of the signals they look for.
Here’s the rule:
If your website is hard to load, slow to scroll, or confusing on a phone… you’re out.
This isn’t just about how your site feels to visitors, it’s about whether AI sees it as usable and worth recommending.
Because today, whether someone’s typing a search or asking a voice assistant, AI is picking winners.
And structure, speed, and clarity are what push you to the top.
You’re not just building a website anymore.
You're sending a signal to AI that says: “We’re the business you’re looking for.”
TL;DR Recap: AI Discoverability Checklist
Use schema to structure your site
Write clear headers (not cute ones)
Add alt text to every image
Make your site mobile-first and fast
Be crystal clear about what you do
This isn’t SEO in the traditional sense.
This is about being seen by AI, in AI, and through AI.
It’s changing how we think—and how businesses get found.
If you’re content showing up on Page 3 of a search result, you’re probably good to go.
But if you’re the best business you can be?
Then it’s time to be Found First.
And AI is how you get there.
Coming Up: Signal 4 – Local Relevance
Now that AI can recognize your value, let’s make sure it shows you to the right people in the right place.
Need help making your site more AI-discoverable?
Let’s talk.
Schedule a consultation and we’ll scan your signals together.
And don’t forget—Signal 4 drops next week.