Let’s talk about the elephant in the room: Google AI Overviews (formerly SGE).
The numbers:
What we’re seeing across clients:
The weird part:
My questions:
This feels like the biggest SEO shift since mobile-first indexing.
Been deep in the data on this. Here’s what’s actually happening.
AI Overview trigger patterns:
| Query Type | AI Overview Rate | CTR Impact |
|---|---|---|
| Definitional (“what is”) | 65% | -40% to -60% |
| How-to | 55% | -30% to -45% |
| Comparison | 45% | -20% to -35% |
| Local | 35% | -10% to -25% |
| Transactional | 15% | -5% to -15% |
What’s working:
Conversational follow-ups - SGE suggests follow-up questions. If your content answers those, you get multiple citation opportunities.
Comprehensive pillar pages - Content that covers topics deeply gets cited more often.
Structured data - Schema markup helps Google understand your content.
First-paragraph optimization - Lead with the answer, then expand.
The sites winning are those that become the SOURCE for AI Overviews, not just SEO-optimized pages.
Adding content strategy perspective:
The old model: Write content → Rank → Get clicks → Convert
The new model: Write content → Get cited in AI → Build brand awareness → Convert later
What this means practically:
Being cited in AI Overviews IS value, even without clicks:
How we measure success now:
The funnel has changed. Top-of-funnel now happens IN the AI overview.
E-commerce perspective - we’re seeing different patterns.
What’s happening in product searches:
AI Overviews for product queries include:
The good news:
Transactional queries still drive clicks. When people are ready to buy, they click.
The bad news:
Research phases happen in AI Overviews. Users might decide WHAT to buy from AI, then search specifically for that product.
Our adaptation:
The middle of funnel is getting squeezed. Go top (brand) or bottom (transaction).
Local SEO is changing dramatically with AI Overviews.
What’s happening locally:
“Best [service] near me” queries now show:
The Local SEO implications:
Our results:
Clients with optimized GBP profiles appearing in 40%+ of local AI Overviews. Those without? Maybe 10%.
The action:
Publisher perspective - this is existential for us.
Our traffic reality:
Informational content that used to drive millions of visits now gets:
What we’re doing:
The uncomfortable truth:
Some content types may no longer be viable as ad-supported models. The economics don’t work if AI summarizes everything.
We’re pivoting to content AI CAN’T easily replicate.
B2B perspective is different but still challenging.
What we’re seeing:
B2B queries get AI Overviews less often (~8-10% vs 13%+ overall). But when they do:
Our strategy shift:
Measurement changes:
We now track:
If someone mentions us in a sales call after AI research, that’s a win we couldn’t track before.
Running an agency, here’s how we’re positioning this to clients:
The pitch:
“Ranking #1 in AI Overviews is the new ranking #1 in search.”
What this means for services:
| Old Service | New Service |
|---|---|
| Keyword rankings | AI citation tracking |
| Backlink building | Authority building |
| Content optimization | AI source optimization |
| Rank tracking | AI visibility monitoring |
The tools we use:
Client education:
Biggest challenge is explaining that fewer clicks can mean more value. Quality over quantity. Harder sell but true.
YMYL (Your Money Your Life) perspective:
Health content in AI Overviews:
Google shows disclaimers: “Not medical advice” BUT still summarizes health content.
What we’re seeing:
Our clients (healthcare):
Those with:
The takeaway:
YMYL content needs stronger authority signals than ever. The bar for AI citation is higher than traditional rankings.
Analytics perspective - how to actually measure this:
The challenge:
AI Overview clicks aren’t tracked separately in GA4. You can’t see “came from AI Overview” directly.
Proxy metrics:
Our dashboard:
| Metric | Source | Why It Matters |
|---|---|---|
| AI citations | Am I Cited | Direct visibility |
| Brand impressions | GSC | Awareness proxy |
| Branded search | GSC | Downstream impact |
| Traffic quality | GA4 | Value per visit |
The insight:
Don’t just measure volume. Measure INFLUENCE. AI visibility drives outcomes that don’t show up in direct click attribution.
This thread has been invaluable. My synthesis:
The new reality:
Winning strategies:
Content:
Measurement:
Business model:
Our agency’s new framework:
AI Visibility → Brand Awareness → Search Intent → Conversion
↓ ↓ ↓ ↓
Monitor Track Optimize Measure
The game has changed. We’re not just doing SEO anymore - we’re doing AI visibility optimization.
Thanks everyone for the incredible insights.
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