Search is dead 😵
It’s official: the way we search online has changed. Google, long hailed as the world’s leading search engine, is steadily evolving into something different, an answer engine. With the rise of generative AI and new features like AI Overviews now dominating results pages, users no longer need to click into websites to get the information they’re after. Google gives it to them, neatly summarised at the top of the page.
While this shift may feel like progress from a user experience perspective, it’s creating an uncomfortable reality for website owners, content creators, and SEO professionals. Organic traffic is declining. Click-through rates are dropping. And the traditional rules of SEO are being rewritten, again.
Let’s dig into what’s happening, why it matters, and what you can do about it.
Welcome to Google’s new High Street
Think about your local high street.
In the past, if you were looking for something, say a pair of trainers, a book, a gift, you’d wander into different shops to browse their shelves, see what was on offer, and maybe speak to a salesperson. The only way to know what a shop stocked was to physically walk in and look around.
That’s how Google search used to work. A user would enter a query, scan a list of blue links, and click through to multiple websites to find the answer. Your website was one of those shops.
But now?
Google is showing you the entire high street at once and going further. It’s taking the content from inside those shops, unwrapping the products, and laying them out in the window so that the shopper doesn’t need to go inside at all. They see what they need, they get their answer, and they move on without ever stepping foot into your site.
What are AI Overviews, and why should you care?
AI Overviews are Google’s latest leap into generative search. They appear at the top of certain search results, offering concise, AI-written summaries that pull together answers from various sources on the web. These aren’t just snippets or featured snippets. They’re multi-paragraph responses, tailored to the query, and often include links to “source” content (though many users don’t click them).
A recent report by Search Engine Land, based on Semrush data, found that AI Overviews now appear in over 13% of U.S. desktop searches, more than doubling in prevalence in just two months. As of March 2025, they’re showing up in everything from health and finance queries to travel, e-commerce, and tech.
Critically, they’re not just a novelty, they’re changing user behaviour.
If Google serves a well-written, trustworthy answer at the top of the page, most users have no reason to look further. Why scroll when your question is already answered?
The decline of the click
For website owners, the consequences are becoming clear. Across the board, sites are seeing drops in organic traffic, particularly for informational content.
A study by Ahrefs found that when AI Overviews are present in a search result, the click-through rate for the #1 organic listing drops by 34.5%. Amsive’s research echoes this, showing a 15.5% average decline in CTR across various sectors.
But it's not just about numbers. It’s about visibility. When AI Overviews dominate the top of the page, traditional listings get pushed further down, sometimes below ads, “People also ask” boxes, videos, and local packs. Even if your content ranks first organically, it may appear halfway down the page, buried under layers of Google's own AI-generated content.
The blurring line between discovery and delivery
This new search model, where discovery and delivery are merged presents a fundamental change in how people interact with the web.
Previously, Google was a gateway. Its job was to help people find the best places to go to get their answers.
Now, it’s positioning itself as the destination.
This shift raises tough questions about the future of content marketing. If users no longer need to visit your site to get value from your content, what does that mean for your brand, your business model, and your analytics?
So, what can website owners do?
While this might sound like the beginning of the end for organic traffic, it's not all doom and gloom. But it does require a strategic rethink. Here are a few approaches that can help you adapt:
- Optimise for Inclusion in AI Overviews
Although Google doesn’t yet offer a clear way to “rank” in AI Overviews, it’s clear that content which is well-structured, credible, and easy to summarise has a higher chance of being surfaced. Focus on:- Answering user questions directly and clearly.
- Using schema markup to help Google understand your content.
- Building E-E-A-T (experience, expertise, authoritativeness, trustworthiness).
- Double Down on Branded Search
Branded queries (searches that include your company name) are far less likely to trigger AI Overviews. If someone searches for "Thing or Two digital marketing", they’re coming to the right place not an AI summary. So build brand awareness, invest in PR, and create content that drives loyalty and recognition. - Create Content That AI Can’t Replicate Easily
In-depth tutorials, original research, opinion pieces, case studies, these types of content offer unique value that generic AI summaries struggle to capture. Make sure your content goes beyond simple answers. - Drive Users to Actionable Tools and Interactions
Think calculators, quizzes, assessments, live chat, configurators, any form of interactive content that’s hard for AI to replicate and encourages user engagement on your actual site. - Monitor SERP Changes Carefully
Track your key terms. Compare CTRs and impressions month-to-month. Tools like Search Console, Semrush, and Ahrefs can help you spot patterns and adjust your strategy as Google’s SERPs continue to evolve.
The big picture: what comes next?
Google’s shift towards being an answer engine isn’t a glitch it’s a strategy. And it’s not going away. The company’s focus is on improving user experience, increasing retention, and delivering instant value, often without requiring users to leave the platform.
That’s not entirely surprising, it’s a trend we’ve seen across platforms. Think of how Instagram keeps users within its app instead of linking out, or how TikTok’s in-app browser avoids losing traffic. Google is following suit.
So while SEO is far from dead, it’s being redefined. It's no longer just about rankings it's about relevance, authority, and being useful wherever your content appears, even if that’s just a mention in an AI Overview.
Final thought
If your website traffic is down, it’s not necessarily because your content is poor or your SEO strategy is broken. It could be because the rules of the game have changed.
The question now is: how will you play differently?
At Thing or Two, we’re helping brands navigate this new search landscape with smart, adaptive SEO strategies that reflect where Google is going, not where it’s been. If you’re seeing a decline in clicks or wondering how to get your content noticed in an AI-dominated world, let’s talk.
