AI search volume is growing like a tsunami, and LLMs favor YouTube. This is why we advise tech companies to invest in YouTube content to help offset declines in organic search traffic.
Recent data from Ahrefs, an SEO software, underscore how essential YouTube has become for brands that care about visibility in the AI era.
YouTube Mentions Correlate Highest With AI Brand Visibility
Tim Soulo, CMO at Ahrefs, shared on X today that Ahrefs analyzed more than 1 billion data points across 14 studies pertaining to AI search.
Out of all the factors that Ahrefs studied, YouTube mentions have the highest correlation (0.737) with AI brand visibility. Across ChatGPT, AI Mode, and AI Overviews (AIOs), YouTube mentions outperform conventional SEO metrics like backlinks, page count, and domain rating.
(Note: YouTube mentions refer to any time a brand name appears in a YouTube video title, transcript, or description.)
In addition, YouTube mention impressions, which counts YouTube mentions weighted by the number of views each video received, have a 0.717 correlation with AI brand visibility. This ranks No. 2 in the study.
The YouTube Correlation Holds Up Across AI Platforms
YouTube is a Google-owned property, but the correlations between YouTube mentions and AI brand visibility hold up on ChatGPT as well.
Per Ahrefs, YouTube is the sixth most-cited domain on ChatGPT.
This isn’t a big surprise given reports that OpenAI uses data from YouTube videos to train its GPT 4 model.
Other Data On AI Discoverability
Last month, we shared how the rise of AIOs is accelerating the path to a zero-search future. In fact, Ahrefs says that AIOs reduce clicks to the No. 1 organic search result by 58%. And 10 months earlier, it was 34.5%, so the trend is accelerating.
With Google introducing a new AI-powered search experience at their Google I/O conference in May, expect organic results to be relegated further down the page.
This adds urgency for brands to find other avenues to reach people and build intent. And YouTube should top your list of priorities.
Other Resources
For more information related to YouTube, video strategy, etc., see below:
- Focus on YouTube to appear on AIOs
- Why tech companies need a video strategy
- Begin with a video audit
- 3 video shifts every tech company needs to win
- 3 myths about using video to grow your tech company
- Video is the No. 1 driver for B2B marketing
If you’re struggling on where to start relative to your video strategy, schedule a free consultation with us.
