{"id":23999,"date":"2026-10-06T14:46:36","date_gmt":"2026-10-06T18:46:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.sanctuarymg.com\/academy\/?p=23999"},"modified":"2026-10-07T16:18:49","modified_gmt":"2026-10-07T20:18:49","slug":"ai-recommendations-reveal-gaps-in-content","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.sanctuarymg.com\/academy\/content\/ai-recommendations-reveal-gaps-in-content\/","title":{"rendered":"How AI Recommendations Can Reveal Gaps in Your Content"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

As a Content Manager<\/a>, a decent portion of my day is spent thinking about questions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What questions are our clients’ customers asking? What information are they looking for before making a decision? What aren’t we answering on the website yet? And, of course, what should we write about next?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For years, we’ve had plenty of tools to help answer those questions. Keyword research. Google Search Console. Analytics. Competitor research<\/a>. Conversations with clients and their sales teams.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Those things aren’t going anywhere. But AI has given content marketers another pretty interesting source of information: the questions people are asking AI and the answers they’re getting in return.<\/strong> And I’ve found that those answers can tell us a lot about the content we already have, the content we’re missing, and what we might want to create next.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

AI Searches Don’t Always Look Like Google Searches<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Here’s a very real example from my life: I have two dogs. If I were searching Google for somewhere to take them, I might type:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“dog groomer North Canton Ohio”<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

It’s short, direct, and very keyword-focused. But if I’m using ChatGPT or another AI tool, I’m much more likely to ask:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“What groomer is best in North Canton, Ohio?”<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

And then I might keep going.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“Which one is good with nervous dogs?”<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

“Do any of them specialize in grooming [insert dog breed]?”<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

“Which ones have the best reviews?”<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

“What should I expect to pay?”<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Suddenly, I’m not just searching for a groomer. I’m having a conversation that helps me evaluate my options and make a decision.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That’s an important distinction for content marketers. The first search tells me what<\/em> someone is looking for. The conversation starts telling me what matters to them when they’re choosing it.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Your Customers Are Having Those Conversations, Too<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Replace dog groomers with whatever your business sells.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Someone researching a new piece of manufacturing equipment might ask which manufacturer is best for their specific application.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A homeowner might ask which basement waterproofing solution makes sense for the problem they’re experiencing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A marketing manager might ask how much they should budget for a new website or how long an e-commerce website typically takes to build.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A patient might ask what type of specialist they should see for a particular injury. These aren’t always neat, two- or three-word keyword searches. They’re specific. They’re conversational. And they’re often much closer to an actual decision.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For someone responsible for content strategy<\/a>, that’s incredibly useful information.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Start Asking AI the Questions Your Customers Might Ask<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

One exercise I’ve started incorporating into content research is surprisingly simple: Ask AI about the business the way a potential customer would.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

You can start with prompts like:<\/p>\n\n\n\n