Nanny agency owners have been asking me lately how to make their business appear in AI search.
And I completely understand why. Tools like ChatGPT, Gemini, and Perplexity have become part of everyday life.
At the same time, traditional search engines are now showing AI-generated answers at the top of their search results. So even when prospective clients and candidates are googling, the results are often created by AI.
It can feel like everything is changing, yet again. You’ve finally got to grips with SEO, and suddenly we all need to learn a brand-new marketing strategy? But the first thing I want to do is reassure you.
This isn’t a total reset. It’s an evolution. Around 90% of the work you do to show up in traditional search will also help you show up in AI-generated results, so if you’re doing well there, you’re probably further ahead than you thought you were.
How does AI search work?
When we talk about AI search, we mean both people asking questions directly in tools like ChatGPT, Gemini, and Perplexity, and the AI-generated answers that now appear at the top of traditional search engines like Google.
In both cases, these systems are designed to summarize and recommend information from across the web. They look for websites and brands that are clear, trustworthy, and authoritative (something that traditional search already does), and then use that information to generate answers for users.
Good SEO also powers AI search
Let’s go back to that game-changing statistic:
Around 90% of the work you do to show up in traditional search will also help you show up in AI-generated results.
This means that our clients who rank highly in Google for strong, high-intent keywords are also appearing in AI answers.
Interestingly, most of them never intentionally optimized for AI search at all.
They focused on creating clear, helpful, well-written content for real people. That same content is now being used by AI systems when families ask questions about hiring a nanny or finding a trusted agency.
How to make your nanny agency appear in AI search
The way people connect with brands is changing, but people themselves haven’t changed.
We still use the same language.
We still search with the same intent.
We still want expert guidance when making important decisions for our families.
The difference is that instead of using a search engine to generate a list of links to answer their query, clients are using AI tools or seeing an AI answer at the top of their search results.
Keyword research is still a priority
The questions are the same. They’re just being answered in a different format.
This is why good keyword research is still incredibly effective. We’re talking high-quality content, with high-intent keywords at the heart of your strategy.
If your website uses the same words and phrases your ideal families are searching for, you are laying the foundation for visibility in both Google and AI-generated results.
Online brand visibility matters more than ever
One of the biggest shifts I’m seeing is how important brand building has become across all platforms, not just your website.
As well as your website, AI systems look at signals from across the internet:
- Are people talking about your brand?
- Are you mentioned on other websites?
- Do you have reviews and testimonials?
- Are you visible on social media?
- Have you appeared in the press or industry publications?
- Is your website technically sound?
This doesn’t mean you need to be everywhere all at once. But it does mean your business should have a consistent and credible digital footprint beyond your own website.
Helping AI understand your website
AI may be intelligent, but it is also easily confused by messy websites! By structuring data correctly, machines can understand what type of content exists on your site and how it’s organized.
For example:
- Which pages describe your services?
- Which pages are educational resources?
- Where are your pricing pages?
- Where are your testimonials and reviews?
- Which content is for families and which is for candidates?
When your website is clearly structured and logically organized, it becomes easier for AI systems and search engines (not to mention humans!) to understand what you do and who you serve.
The human touch matters more than ever
My favorite part of the AI revolution so far is that search engines and AI tools are starting to deprioritize content that feels generic or disconnected from real experience.
Yes, that’s right! While we were worried that AI would take all ‘humanity’ out of the internet, it is now actively promoting sites that focus more on firsthand experience, and the things that make us unique as people and brands.
The brands that are thriving right now are the ones with personality and lived experience. They talk about their journey, their challenges, and what they’ve learned from working with real families and real nannies.
Firstly, this improves search visibility because it demonstrates first-hand expertise.
Second, it improves website conversions because families feel comfortable approaching you.
Third, it makes your sales conversations easier, because clients feel like they already know you before they ever speak to you.
The human touch isn’t just good for AI search. It’s good for business.
SEO foundations still matter
Even with all this change, the fundamentals of SEO have not gone away.
These are the things that still matter:
- Clarity of services and language
- Well-written, relevant content that demonstrates expertise
- Trust signals such as reviews, endorsements, and links from other sites
- Regularly refreshed and updated content
- A website that truly serves your audience
These same principles that powered strong SEO now power AI-generated search results as well.
A final thought
AI-generated search results are simply another way families are discovering businesses they already want to trust. If you are already investing in your brand, your content, and your clarity, you are far more prepared than you might think.
Good marketing has always been about communicating clearly who you are, who you serve, and why you’re different. That principle hasn’t changed. We’re just applying it in a new format.
And in many ways, the shift toward personality, experience, and trust is a wonderful opportunity for nanny agencies who care deeply about their work and the families they serve.
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My name is Claire Ransom, and I’m the Founder of Aloha Life Digital, a boutique SEO agency based in Massachusetts, USA. We are experts in SEO for nanny agencies, and we’re proud to count several APNA board members and members as our clients. We help nanny agencies attract high-net-worth clients and elite candidates by ranking in the top search results for things people are actually looking for.
We aren’t like a regular tech bro SEO agency. Like most nanny agencies we work with, we’re female-run, and kindness and empathy are core values of our team. If you’d like to learn more about how SEO works and the type of strategies that are proven to work, I’d love to chat with you. Feel free to book a call with me.