The first results of a search on most web search engines is now
from Artificial Intelligent agents - AI. And many younger people,
when they want to ask a question about a nonprofit, don't look at
the nonprofit's web site; instead, they ask ChatGPT, Gemini or
Perplexity or some other AI agent for the information.
Sometimes a nonprofit or community group ranks well on a search
of its name or some other phrase, like volunteer in
Louisville, Kentucky, on Google, Bing or Duck Duck Go, but
then barely gets mentioned in AI-generated answers, or the info
provided by AI is outdated or even completely inaccurate.
Your nonprofit, NGO, or other community program needs to do an AI
visibility check on various search engines and AI agents to see
what your results are at least twice a year. You may find that you
need to engage in some activities to improve the results that come
from AI agents.
How do you do that? This page offers detailed, specific advice.
These are tasks that your marketing director, social media
manager and web site manager should all understand (and at most
nonprofits, NGOs and other community organizations, that's the
same person).
I want to note here that, once again, as happens every few years,
there's another GREAT reason to make your web site accessible for
people with disabilities. The vast majority of web sites that made
this committment were instantly mobile ready: the web sites did
not have to be redesigned for smart phones. And then when people
started navigating the web with voice prompts, something people
often do in cars, web sites that were accessible were already easy
to navigate this way. There is ZERO REASON not to make the
commitment to web accessibility.
AI agents are using Reddit content as a source for its results
(among other sources). This is because Reddit has been, for many
years, providing human-written opinions by people who are not
formally-affiliated with whatever they are talking about and
real-world experiences. The text on Reddit often has the authentic
feel that polished marketing text lacks. How long this will last,
however, remains to be seen.
AI agents rely heavily on Wikipedia as a source. Note that these
AI companies, all-for profit, donate NOTHING to Wikimedia, a
nonprofit organization that overseas Wikipedia.
Your nonprofit, if at all possible, should be on Wikipedia.
However, this is much more difficult than getting on any other
platform. Here is advice on
how your nonprofit can leverage Wikipedia.
Facebook is still the largest social media platform. Your
Facebook account should be regularly updated with your latest
activities, with volunteering opportunities, with what volunteers
are accomplishing, with information about the results of your
work, etc. Here is specific
advice on how your nonprofit should be leveraging Facebook.
Do you know what web sites by government agencies and other
nonprofits link to your organization's web site? You should, and
you should know how those agencies refer to you. If they have
outdated information or a mistake, let them know!
Also, keep your business data, hours, and services consistent
across your website, Google Business Profile, and directories like
Yelp.
Optimizing
your website for generative AI features on Google Search -
from Google.
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