How to Structure Content for AI-Generated Summaries and Improve Search Visibility (2025)

Tony Yan

·October 2, 2025

·7 min read

A practical 2025 playbook: Lead with a 30–70 word answer, use question-based headings, short paragraphs, lists, and an on-page FAQ. Pair this with accurate, server-rendered JSON-LD schema that matches visible text, accessible semantics (alt text, headings), and a monitoring loop for AI Overview (AIO) visibility and CTR changes. Expect variance; test and iterate.

Why this matters now

Based on 2025 datasets, AI Overviews appear for a notable share of queries and can depress clicks when they show up. Semrush observed AI Overviews in 13.14% of queries in March 2025 (up from 6.49% in January 2025), with most being informational, according to the Semrush AI Overviews study (2025). Methodologies differ on source overlap; Ahrefs analyzed 1M+ AIOs and found that 76.10% of cited pages rank in the top 10 (2025), while another 2025 dataset put the top-10 overlap closer to ~52%. On user behavior, a July 2025 analysis by Pew reports that users are less likely to click when an AI summary appears in results.

What this means in practice: you need to be extractable (for AI) and compelling (for humans) at the same time.

The structural blueprint that AI summarizers can parse reliably

I’ve found that most wins come from simplifying how your content is segmented and labeled so that LLMs can identify self-contained, fact-dense passages.

Executive answer at the top (30–70 words)

Answer the core question in one tight paragraph before any background.
If you cite a stat, include the year in the same sentence.

Question-based H2/H3s

Use “What/How/Why/When/Can/Should” subheads and keep the first paragraph under each to 2–3 lines with a direct answer, then elaborate.
If you’re new to heading hierarchy, see a concise deep dive on HTML header tags in 2025.

Bullets, steps, and tables

Convert multi-step guidance into numbered steps. Use bullets for checklists. Tables help when comparing options (one row = one decision factor).

On-page FAQ (3–6 questions)

Write succinct, standalone Q&As. Reuse phrasing from People Also Ask and your own search logs. Keep answers 40–80 words where possible.

Fact proximity and labels

Place definitions, stats, and key takeaways immediately below the most relevant header to improve passage extraction.

Descriptive anchors

When linking out, make anchor text summarize the fact you’re citing, not generic “here.” Keep link density moderate.

Quick recap: Make every section a self-contained module that a machine (and a skimmer) can understand in isolation.

Schema markup that actually helps in 2025

The goal of structured data is to reinforce what’s already clear on the page—never to replace it. Two non-negotiables in 2025:

Your schema must match the visible content on the page, and you should validate regularly. See Google’s Intro to Structured Data (2025) and the Search Gallery for eligibility.
Prefer server-rendered JSON-LD for critical markup to reduce the chance of crawlers missing it.

Recommended types for this use case

Article (or BlogPosting): for most editorial content
FAQPage: for your on-page FAQ block
HowTo: when you have clear step-by-step procedures
Organization/Person: to clarify authorship and entity info

Snippet and indexing controls

If your goal is to be quotable, avoid nosnippet and overly restrictive max-snippet values. Google’s guidance on succeeding with AI search emphasizes quality content and appropriate snippet availability; see Succeeding in AI search (2025).

Evidence and expectations

Well-implemented schema correlates with richer visibility, but does not guarantee AI Overview inclusion. A Search Engine Land review highlights variable outcomes when adding schema for AIO visibility (2025). Treat schema as a necessary hygiene factor, not a silver bullet.

Passage selection: What we know across platforms

Google (AI Overviews/AI Mode): Google states that AI features synthesize answers and link to multiple sources inline. The official documentation for site owners is AI features and your website (Google, 2025). In my experience, concise, well-labeled passages with recent, attributable facts have the best chance to be cited.
Perplexity: Uses real-time web retrieval with prominent numbered citations. See How does Perplexity work? (Help Center, 2025) and the product blog on Deep Research (2025). For Perplexity, clarity and credible sourcing on your page are especially important.

Practical implication: Write for passage-level clarity, not just page-level ranking.

Accessibility and internationalization that improve machine understanding

Machine readability improves when your structure is accessible and consistent.

Semantic HTML and headings: Use native sectioning elements and a logical H1–H3 outline. This helps AI and assistive tech interpret your page reliably.
Alt text and media transcripts: Add concise alt text to non-text content and transcripts/captions for audio/video.
Language and hreflang: Set the lang attribute and implement bidirectional hreflang clusters with x-default where applicable. Follow Google’s localized versions guidance (2025).
Standards: The W3C’s WCAG 2.2 (2025) principles—especially Robust and Understandable—align with making content consistently parseable by machines.

Summary: Accessible, internationalized markup lowers ambiguity for LLMs and helps route the right language version to the right user.

Monitoring and measurement in 2025

There isn’t a native “AIO citation” metric in Google Search Console yet. Here’s a layered approach I’ve seen work:

Choose a tracker for AIO visibility: Vendors like Semrush and Surfer provide AIO/AI visibility tracking. For example, see Surfer’s AI Tracker update (2025). Vet the model and sample carefully.
Manual spot-checks: Maintain a list of 20–50 priority queries. Weekly, check if AIOs appear, which URLs are cited, and collect screenshots.
Correlate in analytics: Annotate major AIO rollouts and watch impressions/clicks for impacted queries. Expect potential CTR declines on AIO-triggering queries.
Iterate: When visibility drops, revisit structure, freshness, citations, and schema alignment.

Troubleshooting: A stepwise recovery playbook

When pages aren’t being cited or rich features disappear, I run this diagnostic flow:

Validate eligibility and indexation

Google Search Console Enhancements and URL Inspection to surface structured data errors and indexing issues.
Re-run the page in Google’s Rich Results Test and fix invalid/missing required properties. Start with Google’s structured data intro (2025).

Check robots/snippet directives

Confirm you’re not blocking key resources or using restrictive nosnippet / very low max-snippet.

Renderability

Ensure critical content/schema are server-rendered or reliably discovered without heavy client-side execution.

Content quality and recency

Refresh time-sensitive facts; add inline citations; tighten the executive answer and FAQ.

Test and measure

Where feasible, A/B test FAQ additions, schema adjustments, or structural edits. SearchPilot reports a controlled test where adding an FAQ yielded ~9% uplift (study vintage noted in 2025 roundup). Your results may vary.

Practical workflow example: From outline to AIO-ready page

Here’s a compact workflow my teams use to ship AIO-friendly pages in under a day:

Draft a 60-word executive answer at the top that directly answers the target query.
Build the outline with question-based H2/H3s. Under each, write a 2–3 line answer followed by deeper detail.
Add a 4–6 item FAQ and mirror it with valid FAQPage JSON-LD.
Validate schema in the Rich Results Test; fix any mismatch to visible text.
Add alt text, transcripts, lang, and hreflang where needed. Publish, then log target queries for weekly spot-checks.

Example tooling (block-based editing + schema): If you prefer to assemble these modules quickly inside one editor, consider using QuickCreator to generate the executive answer, structure H2/H3 Q&A blocks, and attach server-rendered FAQ schema in one pass. Disclosure: QuickCreator is our product.

Bonus: A compact how-to schema snippet

If your article contains a clear procedure, add a HowTo block that mirrors visible steps. Keep it honest and minimal.

{
  "@context": "https://schema.org",
  "@type": "HowTo",
  "name": "Structure a page for AI summaries",
  "description": "A short, real-world process for making pages more extractable by AI Overviews.",
  "step": [
    {"@type": "HowToStep", "name": "Write a 60-word executive answer"},
    {"@type": "HowToStep", "name": "Use question-based H2/H3s with 2–3 line answers"},
    {"@type": "HowToStep", "name": "Add a 4–6 item FAQ and FAQPage JSON-LD"},
    {"@type": "HowToStep", "name": "Validate schema and fix mismatches"}
  ]
}

Note: Markup must match visible content and be server-rendered where possible.

Advanced and experimental: llms.txt/ai.txt

There’s interest in directing AI agents with files like llms.txt. It’s not an official standard or a ranking factor as of late 2025, but if you maintain developer docs, experimenting is low risk. See the Answer.AI llms.txt proposal (2024) for context; measure outcomes before broad rollout.

FAQ (on-page and mirrored with FAQPage schema)

What’s the most important on-page change for AI summarizers?
- Lead with a 30–70 word executive answer that cleanly addresses the query, then expand under question-based H2/H3s.
Do I need special markup to appear in AI Overviews?
- No single markup guarantees inclusion. Follow Google’s AI features and your website guidance (2025), implement compliant schema that matches on-page text, and keep passages concise and current.
How much do AI Overviews overlap with organic top 10?
- Studies vary. Ahrefs reported about 76% overlap with the top 10 in a 2025 dataset; other studies land closer to ~52%. Treat these as directional, not deterministic.
How do I track whether I’m cited?
- Combine a tracker (e.g., vendors that report AIO citations), manual SERP checks, and analytics annotations. Expect lower CTR on AIO-triggering queries; see the 2025 Pew research on lower click likelihood.

Implementation checklist (keep this handy)

Content structure

60-word executive answer that directly addresses the query
Question-based H2/H3s, 2–3 line answers first, then depth
Bulleted checklists, numbered steps, and a small comparison table when helpful
4–6 question on-page FAQ with succinct answers

Schema

Article + Organization/Person for most editorial pages
FAQPage for the on-page FAQ; HowTo for procedures
Server-rendered JSON-LD, validated; no mismatches with visible text

Accessibility & i18n

Semantic HTML, correct headings, lang on html
Alt text and media captions/transcripts
hreflang clusters with bidirectional links and x-default

Monitoring

Select an AIO tracker and define 20–50 priority queries
Weekly spot-checks with screenshots
Analytics annotations for AIO rollouts; watch CTR deltas

If you’re selecting or auditing your CMS for this workflow, this concise CMS SEO best practices checklist outlines features that make schema, headings, and internationalization easier to implement consistently.

References and further reading

Google: AI features and your website (2025)
Google: Succeeding in AI search (2025)
Semrush: AI Overviews study (2025)
Ahrefs: Search rankings vs. AI citations (2025)
Pew Research Center: Lower click likelihood with AI summaries (2025)
W3C: WCAG 2.2 (2025)
Perplexity: How does Perplexity work? (Help Center, 2025)
Surfer: AI Tracker update (2025)
Search Engine Land: Schema and AIO visibility experiment (2025)

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Author’s note: No schema or format guarantees inclusion in AI summaries. The consistent wins I’ve seen come from clean passage design, accurate markup, accessible semantics, and relentless monitoring and iteration.