Refining On-Page SEO for AI: Boost Token Efficiency & Clarity

AI-Ready On-Page SEO: Optimizing for Both Users and Machines in 2025

As search engines increasingly leverage AI to interpret and display content, traditional on-page SEO practices need refinement. Today’s optimization isn’t just about keyword density and headings—it’s about creating content that both humans and AI can effectively process. Let’s explore how to make your pages truly AI-ready while maintaining strong SEO fundamentals.

Understanding Token Efficiency

Token bloat—unnecessary words and code that AI systems must process—reduces the effectiveness of your content. Here’s how to slim down:

• Clean up your HTML – Remove redundant div containers, inline styles, and JavaScript that add no semantic value
• Simplify complex tables – Large, unwieldy tables waste tokens without adding proportional value
• Implement semantic HTML5 tags – Use proper <article>, <section>, and <nav> tags instead of endless <div> containers

When AI systems can parse your content with fewer tokens, they’re more likely to understand and accurately represent your information in generative results.

Building Semantic Clarity

Semantic clarity ensures AI systems correctly interpret your content’s meaning and context:

• Use structured data – Implement Schema.org markup appropriate to your content type
• Create clear hierarchical structures – Properly nest headings (H2, H3, etc.) to signal content relationships
• Add descriptive image alt text – AI systems use these for multimodal understanding

Sites with clear semantic structure are seeing 3.2× higher citation rates in AI-generated answers, according to recent analysis.

The Rise of LLMO (Large Language Model Optimization)

Beyond traditional SEO, LLMO focuses on structuring content for better extraction by AI systems. Key components include:

• AI readability – Content that needs minimal context to understand
• Technical structure – Clean, semantic code that reduces processing requirements
• Conversational patterns – Natural language that mirrors how people actually speak

With over 60% of informational queries now displaying AI-generated summaries, LLMO isn’t just future-proofing—it’s an immediate necessity.

Four New Optimization Layers to Implement

Modern SEO now includes these specialized approaches:

• AIO (Artificial Intelligence Optimization) – Creating machine-readable content that reduces misinterpretation
• AEO (Answer Engine Optimization) – Structuring content for direct citation by answer engines
• GEO (Generative Engine Optimization) – Ensuring deep, well-sourced content gets cited by AI systems
• LEO (LLM Engine Optimization) – Building authority across platforms for digital ecosystem recognition

Try Our Free AI Readability Scan

Want to see how your content performs for AI systems? Use our open-source DOM-to-Semantic-Markdown converter to check how AI systems view your content.

This tool transforms your HTML content into semantic markdown, revealing issues like token bloat and structural problems that may hinder AI understanding. You’ll get immediate insights into how to improve your content’s machine readability while maintaining human appeal.

Remember, as voice and chat interfaces now account for nearly 40% of search traffic, optimizing for AI understanding isn’t optional—it’s essential for maintaining visibility in an increasingly AI-mediated search landscape.