Grant Brott | | Artificial Intelligence
Featuring image - Everything
You Need to Know
About SearchGPT

What Is SearchGPT?

SearchGPT is a search engine created by OpenAI. It differs from search engines like Google and Bing because, at the foundational level, they are looking for specific words that match the search terms. Instead, SearchGPT uses AI to understand the intent behind a user’s query and delivers direct answers, not just a list of relevant websites with possible answers to the query that require the user to visit and search each listed site for the answer.

SearchGPT also cites its sources of information, allowing you to fact-check the data. SearchGPT is a conversational tool, which means you can have a conversation with it, allowing you to ask follow-up questions or refine what you’re looking for instead of starting over with a new search attempt. It also has the ability to have voice conversations, enabling a more natural and hands-free way of searching.

How SearchGPT Works

While OpenAI has not made public the exact way SearchGPT works, its process does appear to blend various AI techniques with real-time search capabilities via web search. Here’s a simplified breakdown:

    1. Understanding Your Query
      SearchGPT interprets your query, allowing it to understand its meaning, context, and intent. This lets it provide relevant answers whether your question is broad (“What are pain and suffering damages?”) or specific (“What is the statute of limitations for personal injury cases in Texas?”).
    2. Finding Relevant
      InformationSearchGPT uses real-time web data, some of which is sourced from trusted sources through partnerships like the ones mentioned below. This helps it ensure the information it provides is up-to-date and reliable.
    3. Delivering Contextual Answers
      Google and Bing provide just a list of links, whereas SearchGPT analyzes the most relevant information sources on the topic and presents a concise, conversational answer. It also provides links to its sources, allowing you to check them and look further into the subject if you want to.

Why It Matters for Personal Injury Lawyers

Saves Time: SearchGPT can help you find sources quickly without having to search through multiple websites for an authoritative source or data.
Transparency and Trust: With sources linked, you can quickly verify facts or reference original sources for your research. This also applies to potential clients who may see your website in the source links of a question they are trying to answer.
Interactive: You can ask follow-up questions to further research specific legal concepts or scenarios.

Partnerships

OpenAI has partnered with several media companies to provide data that allows up-to-date information on topics like weather, stocks, sports, news, and maps. Below are some examples of those partnerships:

  • Associated Press
  • Axel Springer
  • Conde Nast
  • Dotdash Meredith
  • Financial Times
  • GEDI
  • Hearst
  • Le Monde
  • News Corp
  • Price (El Pais)
  • Reuters
  • The Atlantic
  • Time
  • Vox Media

Observations From Leveraging SearchGPT

As digital marketing in the legal field changes, it is key for us to understand how tools like SearchGPT interpret and present results. SearchGPT introduces new dynamics in search that law firms can capitalize on to connect with potential clients.

  1. Beyond Traditional Rankings: We have often seen that the responses from SearchGPT do not rank in the top 100 search results in Google. This tells us it is not just looking at well-ranked content but also well-indexed, high-quality content. Personal injury lawyers can benefit by creating comprehensive content that covers client pain points and get potential results because of the quality, context, and authority of the firm and content, even if it’s not on page 1. Rankings are not a key driver of a successful campaign these days but an indicator of direction.
  2. Expertise Wins: For specialized queries, SearchGPT often outperforms the results in Google and Bing, making it a great tool for personal injury firms targeting unique case types, such as specific types of accidents or injury claims. This further shows us the need to craft highly focused, authoritative content to answer nuanced client questions.
  3. Local Search Feature Is Weak: SearchGPT’s local search experience lacks reliability. For personal injury law firms, this underscores the importance of optimizing for local SEO and ensuring accurate and consistent information across the web and on your website.
  4. Brand Consistency: Consistent messaging across all online presence seems to help with showing up in SearchGPT. Your firm’s content should align with client expectations while addressing common variations in search phrasing.
  5. Content Opportunities: SearchGPT understands time-sensitive questions. Personal injury law firms can take advantage of this by publishing timely updates on legal changes, case trends, or high-visibility local events related to their practice areas.

One thing to note is that anything related to AI evolves quickly, which means lots of change in little time. Often, you can ask a question and then ask it again and end up with different answers and sources of information. While it is likely that the answer is still just as accurate, it can mean you may show up as a cited source in one search but not another. The best you can do is create well-structured, comprehensive content and get brand mentions in hopes of showing up more often until more ways to gain visibility come to light.
Here is an example of searching for “I was in a car accident and suffered a broken leg. Should I talk to an attorney?” We asked this three times and got three very different answers.

First Attempt:

searchgpt first attempt screenshot

Second Attempt:

searchgpt second attempt second attempt

This attempt did not show icons for sources, but when we clicked Sources, it opened them up, and we did see an overlap here. The same source icon from the above and below was also here, showing that that firm was doing a good job covering this topic because it was cited in all three attempts, but other sources did vary.

Third Attempt:

searchgpt third attempt screenshot

SearchGPT vs. Google vs. Bing

Now, let’s look at how SearchGPT compares to Google and Bing and how to use this information in your digital marketing strategies. Here’s how these platforms differ and why these differences matter to your online presence.

Conversational vs. Keyword-Based Search

SearchGPT is a conversational AI that allows users to speak naturally to it and refine their request through follow-up questions or directions to SearchGPT. This is closer to how potential clients might ask about your legal services, such as, “How do I file a personal injury claim after a car accident?”

Google and Bing rely heavily on keyword-based searches. While it has improved, it still does not provide a good direct answer in the results and requires you to search through the content it thinks answers your keyword or phrase search.

Key Takeaway: Creating conversational, client-focused content that is well structured can help your visibility on SearchGPT and is often more in line with what users are looking for.

Direct Answers vs. Lists of Links

SearchGPT provides a direct answer by aggregating data from various sources and then citing those sources. This offers potential clients better clarity. For example, “What is the statute of limitations for personal injury cases in [your state]?”
Google and Bing provide a list of links that require users to sort through multiple sites to find the information they need. This traditional approach is more involved and takes more time.

Key Takeaway: Position your firm as a trusted source by offering concise, authoritative content that can be used as a source in AI’s responses.

Dynamic Context vs. Isolated Searches

One of SearchGPT’s features is its ability to maintain context across requests from users. For example, a client might ask, “How much is my car accident case worth?” and then follow up with, “What if the other driver is uninsured?” SearchGPT takes into account the previous interactions when answering this follow-up question just like if you were talking to another person.

Traditional search engines treat each search as an isolated request. This requires users to repeatedly rephrase or refine their search requests until they find what they are looking for.

Key Takeaway: Offer comprehensive content that covers various client pain points in a structured manner. Cover various follow-up questions a potential client might ask.

SearchGPT vs. Google AI Overviews

Similarities Between SearchGPT and Google AI Overviews

Both platforms work to streamline searching for something:

  1. AI Summarization: Both use AI to condense information from multiple sources, making it easier for users to find answers quickly.
  2. Direct Answers: Instead of listing links, both tools provide concise responses to user requests.

Key Differences Between SearchGPT and Google AI Overviews

  1. Source Attribution
    • SearchGPT: It gives you citations with clickable links to sources used to provide the answer. This helps with trust and credibility, which are key for legal topics.
    • Google AI Overviews: It does not have as much direct attribution, which makes it harder for users to fact-check the source of information. However, this is constantly changing. Some days, we see good attribution, and at other times, it’s gone.
  2. Conversational Experience
    • SearchGPT: It lets you have a conversation to get your answer. You can ask follow-up questions and refine your request. This is similar to how a client might talk to you during a consultation. For example, a user might ask, “What should I do after a slip-and-fall accident?” and follow up with, “What evidence should I gather?”
    • Google AI Overviews: Offers single, static responses, and if you do another search, it does not consider what you asked previously, so it is like starting an entirely new conversation.
  3. Scope and Depth
    • SearchGPT: Draws from a wide variety of sources and provides easy-to-understand answers. It can also respond with multimedia elements at times.
    • Google AI Overviews: Focuses on brief overviews, emphasizing key points and offering links for deeper exploration.

As AI tools become more popular by the day, it is vital for law firms to continue to improve their content and how they connect with potential clients. Well-structured content, good context, and user-focused topics answering their questions and potential follow-up questions are necessary. Well-structured markup for helping AIs to understand the content is also critical now. Make your content informative and engaging. If you need help with this, contact Consultwebs and let us assist in ensuring your content and website are set up for future success in what is becoming an AI-driven world.

 

Author: Grant Brott
Grant Brott

Grant, an accomplished Director of Strategy at Consultwebs, has been a driving force within the company’s leadership team since December 2020. Over his decade-long tenure with the company, he has demonstrated exceptional expertise in guiding digital marketing strategies, ensuring departmental alignment, and continuous progress in a dynamic industry. His leadership extends to the Content, Email, and Outreach teams, integral to client strategy development.