Generative AI in search like Google’s AI Overviews and platforms like ChatGPT are designed to enhance search experiences by providing quick, concise and easy-to-read answers to questions or search queries. They do this by aggregating information and sources from across the web.
Companies worry that changes to search engines could hurt their website traffic and revenue, since many businesses depend on SEO and paid ads to attract customers—and they are right to worry.
AI is transforming the way people find information through search
Google AI Overviews, Bing Copilot, ChatGPT, Perplexity, Claude and Gemini are reshaping how people find information, discover options and alternatives, form perceptions and interact with businesses online.
And brands are starting to see the impact. Google AI Overviews (AIO)—the conversational AI responses directly below your search query in Google search—began rolling out publicly in early August 2024. Met with initial scrutiny and skepticism due to inaccurate summaries and misleading answers, the Gemini-powered conversational AI has rapidly evolved and improved since its initial rollout.
But AI Overviews aren’t the only generative AI experiences impacting search behavior. Some information-seeking search experiences begin without ever even having an online interaction. AI digital assistants that leverage voice search—like Siri, Alexa, Cortana, Bixby and Google Assistant—have evolved to provide more robust conversational AI experiences beyond their historical limited capabilities.
And with the Apple iOS 18 update, many people now have ChatGPT directly integrated into Siri and their Apple devices. As this partnership continues to evolve and conversational search behavior is more widely adopted, more users are likely to further shift into natural language search queries.
Our takeaway: Search is evolving—but SEO is not dead. The focus for marketers must shift away from traditional SEO strategies that focus on individual keywords and rankings and shift toward bolstering topics and authority. It’s about building your online reputation: not only focusing on how people perceive your brand but how AI and algorithms perceive your digital presence—becoming the authority that AI and people trust for information.
The impact of generative AI in search: SEO and paid search ads
AI in search is changing the way we as marketers need to view search experiences and digital strategy, as well as how we measure effectiveness of content marketing. Specifically, Google AI Overviews has had varying impact on paid search ads and content marketing, largely resulting in fewer clicks and weaker CTR depending on the intent of the query.
- As early as May of 2024, we began noticing impacts to our paid search campaigns. The timing was suspiciously aligned with the rollout of AI Overviews, with click-through rates dropping anywhere from 5%-20% for certain queries and campaigns.
- In late 2024, we identified an interesting trend in our clients’ SEO performance. While their search visibility remained strong or even improved—with steady keyword rankings and growing impressions—organic clicks to their websites dropped by 10%-20%. This suggests that while their content was appearing in search results just as often, fewer people were clicking through to visit their sites.
This decline in click-through rates primarily affects informational searches—when people are researching or learning about topics rather than looking to make a purchase—and we’re seeing this pattern consistently across various industries.
Rethinking KPIs
When it comes to paid search ads, keep in mind about 77% of Alphabet’s revenue comes from online ads. With these losses to ad visibility and clicks, one thing is certain—Google will find ways to recoup potential revenue in one way or another. AI Overviews has already been experimenting with sponsored product links within its generated answers, and Google sources have stated marketers can expect more of these AI Overview paid search features later in 2025.
Our takeaway: Top-of-funnel awareness dips do not diminish the value of SEO, SEM or owned web content. It just demands a shift in digital strategy: how we create, distribute and measure the effectiveness of digital content and overall perception of your brand. There’s a growing emphasis on measuring brand impressions and focusing more on digital ecosystems—connecting content across owned, earned and paid media and reshaping your mixed media modeling to show lift.
Future-forward: Establishing brand authority in AI search
Though there’s no definitive playbook for earning mentions in AI search responses, you can take strategic steps to build the online reputation and authority that increase your chances of being featured.
Start building your AI search authority with these three core strategies:
- Create robust content coverage of topics that are interconnected
- Showcase expertise and clearly define entities with structured data and technical SEO
- Build upon third-party validations that signal trust and reputation
In the metaphorical eyes of AI, you need to have a solid digital reputation in a topic in order to become a known expert. In search terms, that means you need to have robust content that covers ownable topics pertinent to your brand, service or product, and solid E-E-A-T factors (experience, expertise, authority and trustworthiness).
However, AI-generated content at scale is not the solution. LLMs (language learning models) are based on information from the past. Algorithms and consumers of content both want information from brands that is unique and provides authentic value and a unique perspective. AI information is often repeatable and a regurgitation of information that already exists—it needs human filtering and perspective.
Well-informed, unique, value-based content naturally garners third-party signals like earned media links, public recognition and awards or accreditation that bolster trust. Boosting this content through additional content marketing tactics, strategic partnerships and PR can help amplify these reputational signals even faster.
The evolution of AI in search engines isn’t just changing how people find information—it’s fundamentally reshaping how brands need to approach their digital presence. Success in this new landscape requires a strategic shift: moving beyond traditional SEO metrics to build comprehensive digital authority that resonates with both AI systems and humans. By focusing on creating distinctive, valuable content, strengthening your digital ecosystem and adapting measurement strategies, brands can maintain and even enhance their visibility in an AI-driven search world. The key isn’t to resist these changes, but to evolve alongside them, ensuring your brand remains a trusted source of information in both human searches and AI-generated responses. As we navigate this transformation, one thing is clear: the brands that will thrive are those that prioritize authentic expertise and adaptability over short-term optimization tactics.
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