How To Write Content That Shows Up in AI Overviews: LLM-driven Search Writing Tips

You may have seen a section in some briefs titled “AI Overview Information to Consider.” That refers to what shows up in AI-generated summaries on Google, Gemini, ChatGPT with browsing, and other tools that are now surfacing content directly in search results.

These tools scan existing content and generate answers on the fly—often by quoting from web pages. And yes: your content can show up there if it’s formatted in a way these tools can easily understand and use.

Understanding AI Overviews: What Are They and Why Do They Matter?

You’ve probably seen Google’s AI Overviews in action — the generated boxes that appear at the top of some search results, summarizing information pulled from various sources. Similar summaries also show up in tools like Gemini, Perplexity, and ChatGPT with browsing enabled.

These overviews are driven by large language models (LLMs). Instead of indexing and ranking web pages in the traditional way, these tools extract and synthesize information from across the web to generate a cohesive answer.

Unlike featured snippets, which typically pull from one web page, AI Overviews often draw from several — but they still rely on structured, clearly written content to decide what to pull and make it happen.

Why does this matter to you, dear writer? Search is evolving, and so is what it means to write content that gets seen. The more you understand how AI Overviews work, the more valuable your writing becomes. And getting good at this doesn’t just help your clients — it helps you stand out. Writers who can adapt to AI search will be better equipped to grow with the industry.

How (and Why) Brands Target AI Overviews

As AI-generated answers become more common in search results, brands are adjusting their strategies to stay visible. Instead of relying solely on traditional SEO rankings, they’re now asking: How do we get our content cited by the AI itself?

AI Overviews (like those in Google or Gemini) pull from live web content to generate summaries and often cited multiple sources in a single response. For brands, showing up in these summaries means staying competitive as user behavior shifts away from scrolling links and toward quick, direct answers.

That’s why content teams are focusing more on clarity, credibility, and structure, making their content easier for AI tools to recognize, extract, and rephrase.

Writers may not see this strategy spelled out in every brief, but the way a piece is written still matters. If you’re writing clear, well-structured, accurate content, you’re helping clients show up in the search formats that matter now — not just the ones that mattered five years ago.

Here’s a breakdown of how brands are approaching AI Overview optimization and where you, as the writer, can contribute to that effort (look for the 💡 to spot writer-level tactics):

1. Understand What LLMs Are Prioritizing

Research shows that LLMs (like those powering Google’s AI Overview or ChatGPT’s search results) are looking for content that is:

• Accurate: fact-based and up-to-date

• Well-structured: broken into clear sections, lists, or short summaries

• Trusted: hosted on accessible, crawlable, and reputable websites

• Extractable: phrased in a way that’s easy to lift and reuse

💡 Content Clarity: Focus on phrasing your ideas clearly and concisely. Lead with facts and structure your content in a way that’s easy to summarize.

2. Evaluate the AI Overview Landscape

SEO teams may use tools or manual searches to see what shows up in AI Overviews for their priority keywords. They look at:

• What sites are being quoted

• How the information is presented (bullets, steps, short summaries, etc.)

• Which topics or subtopics are consistently mentioned

💡 Mirror What’s Working: When AI Overview Information is provided in your brief, read it carefully. Use it to inform how you frame your answers, which formats you choose, and what key points you include. When it's not in your brief, Google your primary keyword and see what comes up, then apply the same best practices.

3. Build Content That Can Be Repackaged

AI tools don’t just index pages — they restate and synthesize what they find. That means your content should be written in a way that can be easily adapted or quoted out of context.

💡 Lead With the Takeaway: Put key information near the top of each section. When answering a question, respond directly in the first line or two.

💡 Use Bullets and Short Sections: Group related facts or steps into lists. LLMs often pull these directly into AI-generated answers.

💡 Summarize Often: Include short “summary” or “bottom line” statements after more complex sections to help LLMs and readers alike extract the key point.

4. Optimize for Structure and Readability

While AI Overviews don’t rely on structured data (like schema markup) the way featured snippets sometimes do, they still respond well to content that’s easy to scan and understand.

💡 Organize Content Logically: Follow the provided outline, use keyword-rich H2s and H3s, and separate ideas clearly.

💡 Avoid Fluff: LLMs deprioritize content that feels promotional, repetitive, or vague. Stay focused on delivering useful, factual information.

💡 Maintain a Neutral, Informative Tone: AI tools are more likely to pull from content that feels objective and trustworthy.

5. Monitor What's Changing

AI Overviews are still evolving. Google continues to test new formats, and other platforms like Gemini, Perplexity, and ChatGPT are surfacing web content in slightly different ways. SEO teams will continue to adapt — but as a writer, you can stay ahead by focusing on the fundamentals:

• Write clearly

• Organize content intentionally

• Present helpful, accurate information

💡 Keep Learning: As we learn more about how AI tools handle content, we’ll update guidance here. In the meantime, apply what you know about search intent, structure, and reader needs. Those principles still hold.

What Writers Can Do: Working With Briefs

When you're working from a Compose.ly-created SEO brief, you may see a section labeled “AI Overview Information to Consider.” This section captures what currently appears in the AI-generated box at the top of the Google results page for the assigned topic. (In some cases, it may also include phrasing or themes from Gemini or ChatGPT with browsing.) Basically, our SEO team already did one step of your homework for you.

This information is intended to give you a strategic head start — a glimpse at what LLMs are surfacing right now. It can help you align your language, structure, and subtopics with what’s already working. But unlike keywords or outlines, this isn’t something to mirror word-for-word. Instead, use it to shape your judgment. Think, how can your writing make it easier for AI tools to pull from your content?

Note: If you’re working from a client-provided brief, this section may not be included. Even so, the tactics below apply across all projects (though see the note in the next section about understanding whether the content you're writing is actually meant to rank!).

To improve the chances your writing will be surfaced in an AI Overview by applying the following strategies, here's what you can do:

1. Prioritize Factual Precision

Be specific and verifiable. Write with the assumption that your sentence might be pulled and displayed as-is. That means:

• Provide numbers, timelines, and definitions when relevant.

• Avoid vague generalizations (“many experts say…”).

• State facts clearly: who, what, where, when, how much.

Example
Instead of: Military drivers may qualify for various discounts depending on their status.
Try: Active-duty service members can save up to 15% on auto insurance by providing proof of military status, such as a DD-214 or current orders.

2. Use Structured Content

LLMs are more likely to pull from content that’s organized in digestible formats.

• Bulleted or numbered lists work well for step-by-step guides, comparisons, or grouped facts.

• Short paragraphs that lead with the takeaway allow for clean summarization.

• Definition-style statements make it easier for LLMs to repackage your content accurately.

Example list format for extractable content:
To qualify for a military discount, you may need to:

• Submit a DD-214, LES, or proof of active duty

• Ask about discounts related to deployments or base parking

• Compare rates across multiple insurers

3. Answer Questions Directly and Early

If a section addresses a specific user question or FAQ, lead with a direct answer. LLMs typically prefer short, front-loaded responses that clearly match the query. Avoid burying the answer three sentences into a paragraph.

Example
Question: How much can veterans save on car insurance?
Answer: Veterans may save 5% to 15%, depending on the insurer. Discounts vary by location, service history, and policy type.

4. Include Brief Summaries or Takeaway Statements

Quick takeaways help both human readers and AI tools. These might be:

• One-sentence recaps at the start or end of a section

• Mini “Bottom Line” summaries before moving to a new subtopic

• Clear explanations of key terms or processes

Example
Summary: Most car insurance providers require military members to request a discount and provide proof of service, which usually takes just a few minutes.

5. Mirror What's Working, Without Copying It

When the brief provides AI Overview context, read it closely. Notice:

• Which topics or subheadings are included

• What kind of phrasing is used (lists, definitions, instructions)

• Whether specific providers, products, or actions are mentioned

Use this as a signal. If “compare rates from multiple insurers” shows up in the Overview, that’s likely a high-value search intent. Your content should match — and, ideally, improve on — that information.

6. Match the Format to the Content

If you’re writing a how-to guide or process explanation, be sure to structure it that way. Try to:

• Break things into steps

• Label each part clearly

• Use “Step 1,” “Step 2,” or bullet points to separate actions

If the content is conceptual or exploratory, lead with a working definition or explanation that an AI model could quote cleanly.

7. Optimize for Readability and Credibility

Strong LLM-optimized content balances structure with natural flow. LLMs are more likely to quote content that feels neutral, fact-based, and helpful.

• Use subheadings to separate ideas

• Keep your tone clean and professional

• Avoid overly promotional or vague claims

• Attribute data and facts to reputable sources when applicable

8. Thinks About the Big Picture: What Makes Content "LLM-Friendly?"

Search engines don’t just evaluate content for keywords anymore. Now, they evaluate it for usefulness and clarity. Content that performs well in AI Overviews is:

• Clear and focused

• Organized logically

• Written in language that’s easy to paraphrase or extract

• Packed with helpful facts, examples, and steps

You don’t need to chase a formula. You just need to make it easy for the AI to recognize the value of your writing ... and lift it straight into the answer box.

General Guidance, No Matter the Guidelines: Writing for AI Overviews Without Explicit Direction

Clients don’t always ask you to optimize for AI Overviews — and many still aren’t aware it’s something they should care about. That doesn’t mean it’s not worth doing. If your content ends up cited in an AI-generated summary, that’s a visibility win for your client, and it reflects well on your work.

But it’s also important to assess the intent of the project. If you're writing a bottom-of-funnel product page, an in-depth thought leadership piece, or a brand voice–driven editorial for a client who wants a distinctive tone more than search traction, ranking in AI search may not be the goal — and that’s OK.

If you're writing something that does align with informational search behavior, though, here are a few ways to help the content perform in AI Overviews, even when you're not explicitly told to optimize for them:

1. Look Up the Keyword Yourself

Even if the brief doesn't include AI Overview Information, you can run a manual search for the primary keyword(s) in Google or Gemini. Ask yourself:

• Is an AI Overview showing up? If yes, notice how it’s structured. Are there bullets? Direct answers? Multiple sources?

• Which sites are being cited or paraphrased? Do they provide lists, summaries, or plain-language explanations?

• What can you contribute that’s clearer, more complete, or better formatted?

💡 Writers have an edge when they think like a search engine. If something in the AI Overview feels weak, imprecise, or overly vague, that’s an opportunity to do it better.

2. Understand the Goal of the Content

Not all briefs — especially client-created ones — will include a clear statement of intent. So it's up to you to assess:

• Is this content meant to inform, compare, or explain something that’s being searched?

• Or is it more about brand storytelling, conversion support, or thought leadership?

If it’s the former, applying AI-friendly strategies (clear structure, concise summaries, bullet points) can be a smart default. If it’s the latter, then voice, flow, and storytelling may matter more than ranking in search. That's where your judgment as a writer matters most.

3. Structure for Extraction

Even without AI-specific notes, you can structure your content to be more “extractable.” That means:

• Answer key questions early in a section

• Use bullets or steps where they naturally fit

• Avoid burying takeaways in the middle of long paragraphs

• Include one-sentence summaries at the end of key sections when appropriate

This type of formatting is helpful to readers and to AI tools alike.

4. Think Like a Synthesizer

AI Overviews don’t rely on a single paragraph or definition the way featured snippets do. Instead, they summarize, combine, and rephrase content from multiple sources. That means your job isn’t to write a snippet — it’s to make your content summarizable.

💡 Try reviewing your draft and asking: If a tool tried to restate this, would it have the right building blocks? Clear facts, list formats, and quick explanations are all easier to lift and reuse.

5. Prioritize Usefulness Over Cleverness

Plain, precise language helps AI models understand and reuse your work. While brand voice and storytelling still have a place, overly clever or abstract language can make it harder for your content to be cited in AI-generated results.

Even when the brief doesn’t mention AI search, you can still take steps to write content that performs well in evolving search experiences. That starts with assessing the project’s purpose, looking at what’s already surfacing in AI Overviews, and using structure and clarity to your advantage.