Is SEO dying or just evolving? Feeling lost with all the AI changes

You’re definitely not alone. Every SEO I talk to is grappling with this.

The fundamental shift:

Search is no longer a platform - it’s a behavior. Users search through Google, ChatGPT, Perplexity, even TikTok. Optimizing for one platform isn’t enough anymore.

What’s actually happening to your traffic:

That 18% decline with steady rankings is classic AI Overview impact. Users are getting answers directly in Google without clicking. It’s not that you’re doing worse - it’s that the game changed.

The new success metrics:

1. Brand visibility in AI responses - Are you being cited?
2. Share of voice - Compared to competitors across platforms
3. Conversion rate - Quality over quantity
4. Branded search volume - Are people looking for YOU specifically?
5. Citation frequency - How often AI systems reference you

For leadership:

Reframe the conversation. “We’re not just an SEO team anymore - we’re a visibility team. Here’s how our brand appears across all search surfaces.”

The traffic number in isolation is becoming misleading.

The mindset shift that helped me:

Old thinking: How do I rank for this keyword? New thinking: How do I become THE authority AI systems cite for this topic?

What this means practically:

1. Create original research - AI systems love citing unique data
2. Expert positioning - Clear author credentials, real expertise
3. Comprehensive coverage - Topic clusters, not isolated posts
4. Question-answer format - Match how AI responses are structured

Example:

We stopped creating “Best [Product] 2026” listicles. Started creating original comparison methodologies, proprietary benchmarks, expert analysis.

Result: We get cited by AI systems explaining WHY products are good, not just listed among options.

The content that wins in AI search is genuinely expert content. The “write for Google” formula is breaking.

Running an agency with 30+ clients. Here’s what we’re doing:

The integrated approach:

We’ve stopped treating SEO, PR, and content as separate. They’re all feeding into “brand visibility.”

What gets brands cited in AI:

• Authority signals - PR mentions, expert quotes, industry recognition
• Content depth - Genuinely comprehensive, not just long
• E-E-A-T proof points - Real expertise, not manufactured
• Structured data - Help AI understand your content
• Consistent brand presence - Same story everywhere

Our new reporting:

We now show clients:

• Traditional rankings (still matter)
• AI visibility score across platforms
• Citation frequency trending
• Brand mention sentiment
• Conversion quality metrics

Tool we use:

Am I Cited for AI visibility monitoring. Links directly into our reporting alongside traditional SEO metrics.

Clients initially resisted the new metrics. Now they’re asking for them first.

The “visibility team” reframing is really helpful.

Question: How are you actually monitoring AI visibility?

I can manually check ChatGPT and Perplexity, but that doesn’t scale. What tools are people using?

Good question - the tool landscape is still maturing.

What we use:

Am I Cited - Best for cross-platform monitoring. Tracks ChatGPT, Perplexity, Claude, Google AI Overview. Gives visibility scores and competitor comparison.

Manual audits - Weekly spot checks on key prompts across platforms. Still necessary for nuance.

Google Search Console - Traditional but still important. The AI Overview impact shows in CTR changes.

Brand monitoring tools - Mention, Brand24 for broader brand visibility signals.

What to look for:

• Are you mentioned in responses to your target topics?
• What position are you mentioned (first vs. fifth)?
• How are you described (positive, neutral, negative)?
• Who are you mentioned alongside?
• What sources are cited instead of you?

The gap analysis:

Compare your AI visibility to traditional rankings. If you rank #1 on Google but aren’t cited in AI responses, that’s a problem. Those users are increasingly going to AI first.

PR perspective here - this is actually great news for my discipline.

Why Digital PR is becoming crucial:

AI systems learn brand authority from web-wide signals. Where is your brand mentioned? Who’s quoting your experts? What publications feature you?

What moves the needle:

• Expert quotes in industry publications
• Original research picked up by media
• Thought leadership pieces with genuine insights
• Brand mentions in authoritative contexts

The convergence:

SEO and PR used to be separate teams. Now we’re working together because:

• PR builds the authority signals AI trusts
• SEO optimizes the content AI cites
• Both feed into “brand visibility”

My advice:

If you’re not working closely with your PR team (or doing PR yourself), start now. The brands getting cited by AI have strong authority signals beyond their own website.

B2B SaaS SEO here, similar situation.

What’s working for us:

1. Bottom-funnel focus - Less top-of-funnel informational, more problem-solution content
2. Comparison content - “Us vs. competitor” pages that AI can cite
3. Integration content - How we work with other tools (AI loves this)
4. Customer story format - Real examples AI can reference

The counterintuitive insight:

Our highest-traffic pages lost the most to AI Overviews. But our conversion-focused pages actually gained because the traffic quality improved.

Users who click through AI answers are more ready to buy. We optimized our landing pages for this warmer traffic.

Metrics that helped with leadership:

• Pipeline from organic (up 12% even with traffic down)
• Organic conversion rate (up 23%)
• Branded search (up 8%)

Frame it as “quality over quantity” and show the business impact.

I help companies navigate this transition. Some patterns I’m seeing:

The three types of queries:

1. Informational - AI is absorbing these. Focus on being cited, not clicked.
2. Navigational - Still go to websites. Protect your brand terms.
3. Transactional - AI influences, users still buy on sites. High value.

Strategy by query type:

Informational: Create expert content AI will cite. Measure citations, not traffic.

Navigational: Dominate brand terms, rich snippets, knowledge panels.

Transactional: Conversion optimization, product structured data, AI visibility for buying queries.

The 82% stat:

Research shows 82% of consumers find AI search more helpful than traditional. But only 22% of marketers actively monitor it.

That gap is opportunity. The companies tracking AI visibility now will dominate.

Enterprise perspective on the leadership conversation.

How we repositioned SEO internally:

We stopped calling it SEO. It’s now “Organic Visibility” - encompasses traditional search, AI search, and brand presence.

The dashboard we show leadership:

1. Traditional metrics - Rankings, traffic (with context)
2. AI visibility metrics - Citation rate, share of voice
3. Business impact - Pipeline, revenue, CAC from organic
4. Brand health - Branded search, mention sentiment

The narrative:

“Users are fragmenting across search platforms. Our job is visibility wherever they search. Traffic to our site is one metric, but our brand is appearing 150,000 times per month across AI responses. That’s brand impression value even if they don’t click.”

Leadership actually likes this framing better. It’s broader, more strategic.

Writer’s perspective on what’s changing.

What I’m being asked to create:

Less: “Write an article targeting this keyword” More: “Create expert content that establishes us as the authority on this topic”

What that looks like:

• Original research and data
• Expert perspectives (interviewing actual experts)
• Comprehensive guides that answer all related questions
• Clear, citable statements AI can extract

What I’m NOT doing anymore:

• Keyword-stuffed content
• Thin articles for keyword coverage
• Content that rephrases what already exists

The bar for content is higher. But honestly? The content is better. AI is forcing us to be genuinely helpful, not just SEO-optimized.

Small business owner doing my own SEO.

My simplified approach:

I don’t have time for complex multi-platform strategies. So I focus on:

1. Being genuinely helpful - Answer real customer questions comprehensively
2. Claiming expertise - Clear about what we know and why
3. Monitoring basics - Weekly check of AI responses in my niche
4. Structured data - LocalBusiness schema, FAQ schema
5. Review presence - Consistent across platforms

What I’ve noticed:

AI seems to favor authentic, specific expertise over polished generic content. As a small business, I can be more authentic and specific than big competitors.

It’s actually leveled the playing field in some ways.

Perspective from someone who’s seen search evolve many times.

This isn’t the first disruption:

• 2000s: SEO was keyword stuffing and link farms
• 2011: Panda killed content farms
• 2012: Penguin killed link schemes
• 2015: Mobile-first changed everything
• 2020: Core Web Vitals added technical requirements
• Now: AI is changing answer delivery

What’s stayed constant:

Every change has rewarded genuine value and punished manipulation. AI is the same. It’s trying to surface truly helpful, authoritative content.

My prediction:

The fundamentals won’t change: Create genuinely valuable content, build real authority, help users accomplish goals.

What changes is HOW that content gets surfaced and WHERE users find it. Adapt to that, but don’t abandon the fundamentals.

This thread has been incredibly helpful. Thank you all.

My new perspective:

SEO isn’t dying - it’s expanding. The skills are still valuable, but the scope is broader:

• Traditional rankings still matter (foundation)
• AI visibility is the new frontier (growth)
• Brand authority ties it together (strategy)

My action items:

1. Reframe for leadership - Organic visibility, not just SEO
2. Add AI monitoring - Am I Cited to our toolstack
3. New reporting metrics - Citations, visibility score alongside traffic
4. Content strategy shift - More original research, expert positioning
5. Work with PR - Build authority signals together

The mindset shift:

Stop obsessing over traffic, start obsessing over visibility. If users are getting our brand name from AI without visiting, that’s still a win.

Feeling much more oriented now. The future isn’t scary - it’s just different.