Designing Websites for an AI-Driven Future: What AIO SEO Means for Your Site

Table of Contents

• Start Here
• What is AIO SEO?
• How AI Search Works
• Steps to Prepare Your Site for AI Search
• Why This Matters for Designers

Start Here ↴

The way people search online is changing fast. With AI-powered search and chatbots like ChatGPT, Gemini, and Perplexity now shaping how users find answers, web designers can no longer think only in terms of traditional SEO.

If you’re a Squarespace Circle Member or a small business owner building on Squarespace, this shift matters. The good news? By layering AI Optimization (AIO SEO) onto your site strategy, you’ll help your website get surfaced in AI-powered search responses and stay ahead of the curve.

What is AIO SEO?

AI Optimization (AIO), also called AI SEO, is the practice of making your site easily understood by large language models (LLMs). Instead of simply ranking for keywords like traditional SEO, your goal is to make your content:

• Crawlable by AI so it can be referenced in AI answers

• Structured and clear so AI understands your content

• Trustworthy and authoritative so your brand is cited in results

Traditional SEO is still vital—but AIO builds on those foundations to position your site inside AI-generated answers and recommendations.

How AI Search Works

AI search engines crawl your website much like Google, but instead of returning a list of links, they generate responses to match intent. This means your site could appear in one of three ways:

1. Direct answers – AI summarizes information from multiple sources (with citations).

2. Featured sources – Your site is cited prominently as a key source.

3. Conversational recommendations – Chatbots suggest your brand, product, or service in a conversational reply.

Steps to Prepare Your Site for AI Search

Let AI crawl your site

• Check that your Squarespace settings allow crawlers (Settings → SEO → toggle AI crawling ON).

• Don’t block AI bots in your robots.txt.

1. Structure your site clearly

   • Use only one H1 per page, followed by nested H2s and H3s.

   • Keep navigation simple and clear—one purpose per page.

2. Update content often

   • Maintain a blog with fresh, relevant posts.

   • Add FAQs and summaries—AI loves structured answers.

   • Link your social media profiles for extra authority.

3. Build your brand niche

   • Specialize in one area of design or service.

   • Create content that reinforces your expertise.

4. Encourage third-party mentions

   • Guest posts, backlinks, and citations boost trust signals.

   • Authority = higher likelihood of being cited in AI results.

5. Create helpful, original content

   • Write FAQs, summaries, and “how-to” articles.

   • Highlight key takeaways in bullet points.

   • Prioritize clarity over jargon.

Why This Matters for Designers

With Squarespace’s built-in SEO tools (page titles, descriptions, image tags, structured data), you already have what you need to make sites AIO-ready. By adding blogs, FAQs, and structured content, you’re positioning client sites for AI-driven discoverability.

AIO isn’t just another design trend—it’s how websites will stay visible in a search landscape that’s becoming less about keywords and more about intent.

Designing for an AI future means pairing great visual design with clear, structured, optimized content. When you do, you’re not only building beautiful websites—you’re also equipping clients with future-proof visibility in AI search.

👉 Want more tips? Subscribe to Lab Notes here at The Simple Site Lab.

What This Blog Is, Why It Exists, and What to Expect

Welcome to the official lab journal of The Simple Site Lab — where clean websites and smart strategy meet.

This isn’t a blog full of fluff, trends, or cookie-cutter how-tos. *This is where we test, document, and share what actually works for small business websites in 2025 and beyond.* From clean design to AI-friendly SEO to strategic launches — it’s all here, written by me (Lisa) for founders, freelancers, and first-timers who care about building something that lasts.

Why Start a Blog at All?

Good question — because most people don’t read blogs, right?

That’s *partly* true. But blogs still matter (a lot) if you want to:

• Get found in search — especially in AI-generated results

• Educate your audience without having to “sell” all the time

• Build long-term trust and authority

• Create reusable content for Pinterest, Instagram, and emails

And since I’m always answering questions in DMs and inside project calls, this blog lets me build a smarter place to store those answers — and share them with more of you.

What You’ll Find Here (No Fluff, Just Facts)

Expect short, skimmable posts covering:

• Website strategy + design tips

• Smart SEO + AI optimization moves

• Real client stories + before/afters

• Simple tools + tips for growing online

• News from behind the scenes of The Simple Site Lab

Whether you're still figuring out your website or you’re ready to upgrade from DIY to done-right, this blog was built to meet you there.

Got a topic you want me to cover? Drop it in the Contact Form — I’d love to hear what you’re curious about.

Stay tuned — it’s about to get real useful in here.

How Our Co-Lab Build Works: A Transparent Breakdown

Web design doesn’t have to be confusing or expensive.

Our most-loved package, The Co-Lab Build, is built for business owners who want to create a custom, strategic website — without the overwhelm.

Here’s exactly how it works:

Step 1: Discovery + Strategy Session

We start with a 1:1 Zoom to get super clear on your business goals, audience, and site priorities. You’ll leave with a shared vision, a visual moodboard, and your core messaging sorted.

Step 2: Shared Workspace + Weekly Progress

You’ll have access to our shared Google Drive and shared site inside SQSP (depending on your preferences) + project timeline. Each day we focus on one key area: homepage, about, services, etc. You’ll get prompts, examples, and full support.

• You give feedback inside the shared doc (no tech headaches)

• We meet daily, weekly or biweekly depending on your pace you specified

• You don’t need to know design — that’s my job ☺️ you just tell me what you like.

• We get your site and copy ready for social media

Step 3: Build + Final Polish

Once the layout and copy are finalized, I’ll build out your full Squarespace site using brand fonts, colors, and smart layouts. You get a private walkthrough and have 5 days to request tweaks and additional services - there will never be any pressure to purchase beyond what you need.

What’s Included

• Strategy call + visual moodboard

• Collaborative copywriting support

• Full Squarespace site build

• Mobile optimization

• On-page AIOSEO setup (titles, meta, basic structure)

• Launch support + mini walkthrough video

What You’ll Walk Away With

• A polished, strategic website that reflects your business goals

• Clear messaging and a conversion-ready homepage

• A site you understand — and feel proud of

Ready to collaborate? Explore the Co-Lab Build and let’s build something better — together.

What Makes a Website AIO-Ready (And Why It Matters in 2025)

Search is changing. So should your website.

If you’re still designing your site like it’s 2018, you’re going to have a hard time showing up in today’s AI-powered search results. Whether it's Google’s Search Generative Experience (SGE) or the answers people get from ChatGPT, your site needs to be AIO-optimized — that means AI Indexing Optimized.

Here’s how you make that happen.

What Does "AIO" Even Mean?

AIO stands for AI Indexing Optimization — it’s the new standard for getting your site seen by both human readers and intelligent bots.

It includes:

• Clean site structure with proper heading hierarchy (H1, H2, H3)

• Keyword-smart titles and meta descriptions

• Content that’s clear, helpful, and structured (not just pretty)

• Text-based information that AI tools can extract and summarize

In short: AIO is how you show up in both search engines and AI-generated answers.

What AIO-Ready Websites Have In Common

Most AIO-optimized websites share these traits:

• One clear H1 per page (your main headline)

• Skimmable content with H2s + short paragraphs

• Keywords used naturally in your headings and body text

• Meta descriptions that speak to humans *and* hint at relevance

• Blog content that answers real questions your audience is searching for

At The Simple Site Lab, every site we build includes AIO structure built-in — without the overwhelm.

How We Build AIO Into Every Website

We use:

• SEO-friendly titles + page descriptions in Squarespace’s SEO settings

• Thoughtfully written copy that’s easy to summarize (hello, AI!)

• FAQ blocks, image alt text, and simple layouts that help bots understand your message

We don’t:

• Keyword stuff

• Rely on vague templates

• Use headings for decoration only

Why This Matters (Especially in 2025)

AI-driven discovery is no longer a future trend — it’s here. If your website isn’t structured for it, you risk:

• Being invisible in ChatGPT/Bing/Google SGE results

• Missing out on organic traffic and referrals

• Falling behind as competitors adapt

Want to check if your website is AIO-Ready? Book an Elevate Session and we’ll walk through it together.

Or start your site the smart way with a Co-Lab Build— AIO included.

How to Write Website Copy That Doesn’t Sound Weird

Writing copy for your website feels way harder than it should. And if you’ve ever stared at a blank page thinking, “Why does this sound like a robot wrote it?” — you’re not alone.

This post is here to help you write clear, helpful, human-sounding website copy that actually connects with the people you want to work with.

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Why Website Copy Feels So Hard to Write

• You're too close to your business

• You’re trying to sound “professional

• You’ve never been taught how to write for the web

All of that makes sense. The good news? It’s fixable.

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The Basics of Good Website Copy

• Clear over clever

• Talk like a human

• Focus on benefits

• Use short paragraphs

• Break it up

If your website sounds like your favorite client would say, “That’s so you” — you’re doing it right.

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AIO-Optimized Copywriting Tips

• Use heading structure (H1, H2, etc.)

• Include natural keywords

• Make it skimmable

• Action-based CTAs

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What to Write on Each Page (Quick Guide)

• Homepage: Who you help, what you do, and what they should do next

• About: Why you do this, who you are, and why they should trust you

• Services: What you offer, who it’s for, what they’ll get

• Contact: How to get in touch — keep it simple

Start with this. Edit later.

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Final Tips

• Read your copy out loud

• Use contractions

• Don’t try to impress — try to connect

Remember: Done is better than perfect.

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Want help refining your website copy? Book an Elevate Session or explore the Co-Lab Build for a collaborative site writing experience.