- Apr 13, 2012
- 242
- 182
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- First Name
- George
Here's a quick trick to find out.
Pop this regex search string into Google Search Console's query filter:
^(what|how|why|who|when|is|can|does|are)\b
(Regex is just a pattern-matching shorthand language, a way to tell a search tool "find me anything that looks like this.")
This regex filters for question-form organic search queries, the kind that people type into ChatGPT, Claude, Perplexity, or Gemini AI Overviews, rather than traditional search.
I tested this for a large Chevy dealer client and the results were eye-opening, and are attached to this post.
Their blog pages are now ranking for queries like:
→ "what are the payload capacities of the 2026 Chevrolet Silverado HD?"
→ "what changed with the 2026 Chevy 1500?"
→ "how much weight can a Silverado 1500 carry in the bed?"
Compared to the same period last year? These pages weren't showing up at all.
Now they are.
The theory is, as more searches are influenced by AI tools, queries are getting longer and more conversational, and begin with “what, how, why, who, when, is, can, does or are”. Blogs written to answer real questions are picking up that traffic in ways that traditional keyword optimized pages are not.
I’ll put another screenshot in the comments, for guidance on how to use this regex filter.
If you manage a website with a blog, spend 5 minutes in Google Search Console and run this regex filter, you might be surprised what's already ranking.
Pop this regex search string into Google Search Console's query filter:
^(what|how|why|who|when|is|can|does|are)\b
(Regex is just a pattern-matching shorthand language, a way to tell a search tool "find me anything that looks like this.")
This regex filters for question-form organic search queries, the kind that people type into ChatGPT, Claude, Perplexity, or Gemini AI Overviews, rather than traditional search.
I tested this for a large Chevy dealer client and the results were eye-opening, and are attached to this post.
Their blog pages are now ranking for queries like:
→ "what are the payload capacities of the 2026 Chevrolet Silverado HD?"
→ "what changed with the 2026 Chevy 1500?"
→ "how much weight can a Silverado 1500 carry in the bed?"
Compared to the same period last year? These pages weren't showing up at all.
Now they are.
The theory is, as more searches are influenced by AI tools, queries are getting longer and more conversational, and begin with “what, how, why, who, when, is, can, does or are”. Blogs written to answer real questions are picking up that traffic in ways that traditional keyword optimized pages are not.
I’ll put another screenshot in the comments, for guidance on how to use this regex filter.
If you manage a website with a blog, spend 5 minutes in Google Search Console and run this regex filter, you might be surprised what's already ranking.
