Is Google dead? The rise of AI and how it’s affecting SEO
In 30 seconds:
AI tools are springing up (seemingly) out of nowhere, meaning people aren't as reliant on Google's search offering alone for the internet's best answers
Even on Google, AI is changing search engine results pages - with AI Overviews satisfying user intent for more queries.
How can SEO professionals get ahead of generative AI and optimise for AI algorithms? In this article, we look at what's still important in the SEO industry - and how to ensure your brand lands that vital spot in AI-generated answers.
Is SEO dead? Well, if you just typed those exact words into a search bar or chat to get your answer, we can assume that it's alive and well for now.
It's true that SEO is changing. In February 2025, Google's market share decreased - from 91.61% to 90.15%, so it’s not time to call it quits just yet - but artificial intelligence is causing marketers to question the future of SEO. The traditional SEO techniques we've perfected will need readdressing and updating, as the way people retrieve information from the internet is transforming. And even Google's own search results are getting a facelift, with AI Overviews - Google's search generative experience - serving users with relevant content without the need to click on results.
Like any big shift in the SEO landscape, this has opened a can of worms. We’re truly entering a Wild West of advice, with plenty of cowboys offering unqualified “tips” on how to remain competitive.
One of the biggest questions to arise has been the impact of brand when building SEO strategies for AI. For years now, SEO marketers have advised brands to build out non-branded content to drive new users to sites. But whilst this strategy is still important for traditional search engine strategies, the popularity of AI tools has changed the role of brand awareness in search engine algorithms.
It can be exhausting to try to keep up with the ever-changing industry, but this is why we’re here to help. In our recent thought leadership report, we broke down the increasing importance of brand as a ranking factor for search. You can read the full report here.
If you don’t have time to take in the whole report, don’t worry, we’ve summed up some of our main points below to keep you up to speed and offer some handy tips.
Rise of the robots: are chatbots the new search engines?
Another day, another report of the robots taking over.
While Google's still our go-to for traditional search results, the latest search trends indicate that new behaviours are emerging. A report from Search Engine Land claimed a huge 52% of people asked stated they use AI chatbots for search queries instead of Google. This percentage was even higher when you look at the responses from Gen Z specifically, as 61% claimed they use AI powered tools over search engines. That's a big deal if your brand's target audience skews young.
But what are these chatbots?
Chatbots, also known as LLMs (Large Language Models), use machine learning to process language and feedback answers, using parameters to self-supervise their own training and learning. AI chatbots are the next-generation of these, which are able to produce generative answers in response to a prompt. Examples of AI products built on LLMs include Google Gemini and Chat GPT.
These chatbots aren't necessarily search engines. They share similarities - finding and presenting information from a vast dataset - but many don't have access to real-time information, or can only access this through an API.
Here's the difference between chatbots and search engines:
| Search Engines | Chatbot | AI Chatbot | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Primary Function | To retrieve and present information relevant to a user's query | To understand user questions and provide relevant answers or perform specific tasks | To engage in dialogue, provide personalised responses and generate new content |
| Process | Use algorithms to index and rank web pages based on keywords and other trust and relevancy factors | Utilise natural language processing (NLP) to understand user input and generate appropriate responses | Utilise NLP and machine learning to understand user input, access a knowledge base and generate new responses |
| Output | A list of web pages, images or other results related to the search query | Text-based answers, recommendations or actions based on the user's recommendation |
Primarily text-based responses, potentially including actions like ordering a product or making a booking, based on trained knowledge base |
| Example | Google, Bing | Chatbots on websites, customer service platforms | Google Gemini, Chat GPT |
If you want the latest and greatest advice from the internet, search engines like Google are still the best way to go for now. Chatbots just can't give you the most up-to-date information, as their answers are drawn from a static dataset. The new breed of chatbot, with generative AI technologies, is also held back by this, most of the time. Other AI chatbots only have access to "new" information through integrating with existing search engines - i.e. the answers they give are still drawn from Bing or Google search results.
Soon, however, more AI chatbots will be able to crawl the internet themselves - and that's when search engine trends will look radically different.
As Google has been the dominant player for search for as long as we can remember, this current shift to users going to AI chatbots marks a massive change, and is something Google is already looking to tackle with its own AI integrations rolling out. For now, Google is still holding its search engine crown, but it will definitely be interesting to see how things progress in the coming years of AI development. And of course, in the meantime, we have Google’s AI Overviews.
What does this mean for online searches?
The integration of AI into search engines - most prominently in Google’s AI Overviews - represents a fundamental shift in the digital world, transforming how users find information and how businesses approach digital marketing strategies.
Here's what we mean:
The rise of zero-click searches
AI is certainly having an impact on SEO as a whole, as introducing sophisticated search engines that deliver answers directly within search results - essentially pulling in information and regurgitating them in a more contextual format - means users find information immediately without clicking through to websites. Google's algorithms now frequently display AI Overviews (AIOs), with Advanced Web Ranking recently reported that a third of Google searches are presently triggering AI-generated snippets.
The trend presents a significant challenge for businesses relying on organic traffic. When AI systems pull information from websites, they effectively reduce click-through rates to source websites. This is a worry for content creators who invest resources in developing high quality content - such as long-form blog posts - only to see them summarised by AI without receiving traffic for them.
The intellectual property debate
The practice of AI systems "borrowing" content has sparked heated debates around intellectual property rights. Many brands argue that when their carefully crafted content is absorbed and redistributed by AI systems without attribution or compensation, it's a form of intellectual property appropriation - or theft, in layman's terms. This conversation is likely to intensify as AI gets cleverer. We could be looking at a future with new regulations or compensation models for content creators.
The need to get ahead of future trajectories
For businesses concerned about their search rankings and targeted traffic, working with agencies that stay at the forefront of these changes is increasingly valuable. Well-informed SEO professionals are developing specialised approaches to identify which keywords are most vulnerable to zero-click searches, and which will still drive meaningful traffic - and, indeed, how brands can leverage AI to get extra visibility without the need to click.
In the coming years, we're likely to see search interfaces evolve even further, with more interactive elements and personalised results based on individual user patterns. The traditional list of blue links will become ancient history. This evolution will create both challenges and opportunities for businesses seeking to stay at the top of their customers' minds and search fingertips.
How can I use AIOs in my search strategy?
While it might sound doom and gloom as clicks across search engines are reducing and traffic is being diverted from accessing websites, there is a silver lining. In fact, there's a significant opportunity for creative players in this new digital landscape.
It is impossible to adapt your marketing strategy to aim to appear in AIOs. We’re spilling the beans on what you need to know now - and ways you can adapt.
1. Brand has become the ultimate ranking signal
Many SEO markets will be rolling their eyes as they’ve suspected this for years, but the Google API leak in the summer of 2024 let the cat out of the bag for once and all, confirming brand signals as essential ranking factors. For AIO targeting, this is even more pronounced, as AI-powered answers are currently relying heavily on brand signals to help determine credibility.
Our insight: AI systems prioritise recognisable, trusted entities when sourcing information. Unlike traditional algorithms that might be influenced by technical SEO tactics, AI-powered search engines evaluate brand authority at a much deeper level. They analyse mentions across the web, social engagement patterns, and the overall "digital footprint" of your brand to determine credibility.
Strategic opportunity: this creates a virtuous cycle where fame drives findability. Brands that invest in comprehensive awareness campaigns across multiple channels create an interconnected web of recognition signals that AI systems interpret as authority markers. This is precisely where the dual expertise of fame-building PR and technical SEO creates a competitive advantage.
2. Expertise, Experience, Authority, and Trust (E-E-A-T) define AI source selection
You’d have to be living under a rock in SEO-land to not have heard about the progression of E-A-T (expertise, authoritativeness and trust) guidelines to include another E (for experience). This guidance has moved across traditional search engine strategy advice to apply to AIOs, as AI aims to borrow knowledge from what it determines as credible sources to deliver answers to search users. It's not just about having technically sound content - it's about real world evidence to give you credibility.
Our insight: AI systems are increasingly sophisticated at evaluating the qualitative aspects of content beyond keywords. Factors like author credentials, citation patterns, content richness and audience engagement determine which sources deserve to be featured in AI Overviews.
Strategic opportunity: Creating high quality content that showcases genuine exerise through case studies, original research and thought leadership positions your brand as an authoritative source that AI systems will preferentially cite. Combine it with original, one-off web experiences that users genuinely love to return to, and you have all the signals to ensure your expertise influences AI tools, while users still return to your site because they care about you.
3. Digital PR creates a network effect for AI recognition
Being featured in authoritative and relevant publications isn’t just useful for building links, as it now has the added benefit of boosting your brand credibility from the perspective of AIOs. A study published in Search Engine Journal, where they referenced other studies and conducted their own first hand research, shared that having a consistent presence in credible and trusted outlets increased the likeliness of being featured in AIOs.
Our insight: AI systems evaluate brand presence contextually, looking for patterns of association with established authorities in your industry. Each quality mention - whether linked or unlinked - contributes to a comprehensive trust profile that AIs reference when determining sources to cite.
Strategic opportunity: this validates our integrated approach to digital PR, where we focus on securing meaningful brand coverage across diverse, relevant platforms. If you can orchestrate campaigns that generate real media interest and lead to conversations online, it creates the precise patterns of contextual relevance and conversation that AI recognises and prioritises. For brands, this means every piece of earned media can help to build your AI visibility.
4. Your brand sentiment is being monitored - and drives AI inclusion
The way in which your brand is mentioned will matter too, in order to be featured in AIOs. As AI overviews are designed to pull information from all over the web, not just your site, what others say about you matters a lot. AI systems evaluate not just where your brand appears, but the emotional context of those appearances. This is a big shift from more traditional SEO metrics to more nuanced reputation indicators.
Our insight: AI powered search engines employ sophisticated sentiment analysis to evaluate brand mentions across places like review platforms and forums, as well as social media and news coverage. This analysis creates something like a "reputation score". Think of AI as a user building a picture of your brand by taking in information from all sources, first-hand and from the perspective of others.
Strategic opportunity: Reputation management is growing from a defensive necessity to a proactive search asset. This means that investing in a well-rounded marketing strategy is important. An integrated approach that helps brands cultivate great signals through authentic engagement and compelling storytelling, while listening to reviews and forums to make sure you're across the conversation - i.e. our "whole footprint" approach - creates a powerful presence that increases the chances of being favourably featured in AI-generated responses.
5. Content depth and utility are vital
AI-generated answers have matured a lot in the last year, and their systems are becoming increasingly selective about which content elements they extract for those conversational overviews. You might have noticed your AI Overviews have got a little longer, with bullet points or extra structural elements featuring. This is because they're focusing on information that provides genuine utility to users.
Our insight: When creating AI Overviews, Google looks for content that contains clear, structured information that directly addresses user needs. Content that truly gets to grips with search intent, anticipating and answering related questions, while providing contextual understanding is going to help you secure your place in AI-generated results. Add your brand's unique perspectives, or original - qualified - insight, and you're even more likely to be featured.
Strategic opportunity: This is a huge potential advantage for brands who really take the time to get to know their customers. Now is the time to develop truly comprehensive resources rather than thin content optimised only for keywords. Our approach to content for brands focuses on creating genuinely useful resources that address user needs at multiple levels—from quick answers in a playful format, to in-depth exploration- because we want to get to grips with your customers, and make experiences that stand out. And this is the ideal extraction source for AI systems. Win-win!
6. It's not time to park technical SEO practices yet, though
Structured data is website owners' friend here. While some technical SEO elements may have less direct impact on rankings, structured data has taken on new importance in helping AI systems properly interpret and categorise your content. Basically, this is the technical counterpart to our point about content that's well structured.
Our insight: AI-powered search engines rely heavily on structured data to understand entity relationships, content hierarchy, and information context. This means that you should bump up Schema Markup as a consideration for improved search visibility. Proper implementation of this helps to ensure that when your content is featured in AI Overviews, it's represented accurately and completely.
Strategic opportunity: If this sounds a bit techy, no fear. Our technical SEO specialists incorporate structured data within content strategies, as this help AI systems correctly interpret your content's meaning and context. And if you need a hand implementing, we can help there too. This technical foundation, combined with strong brand presence, significantly increases both the likelihood and accuracy of your inclusion in AI-generated responses.
What about appearing in LLMs?
It seems contextual brand mentions are super important for appearing in LLMs also, as Rand Fishkin recently explained in a video:
“The currency of large language models is not links. The currency of large language models is mentions (specifically, words that appear frequently near other words) across the training data.”
Rand explains that to get mentioned more frequently as an option around your target topics, you need to be mentioned in the most trusted and cited content on that topic within the training data. In other words, to be mentioned by ChatGPT etc as a great option for accounting software, you need to make sure you are listed as a good option by the very articles ChatGPT summarises when asked “What accounting software should I use for my small business”
As Rand further explains:
“The brands mentioned frequently for your target topic in the training data have a built-in advantage until the AI chat tool updates the training data.”
You can go to any search engine and look for the best options of a specific product your business sells. The search results are usually dominated by publications curating a selection of brands & products to consider. Put simply, if you are not showing up here, you will probably struggle to rank in AI chat suggestions.
This brings a full circle moment, as it merges the beliefs of traditional marketing with the modern day digital approach. Word of mouth is becoming ever more important and is something to keep an eye on as you brand build your digital business.
There are some clever strategic tips here to takeaway, such as targeting forums like Reddit for LLM inclusion. Some LLMs are partly trained using Reddit, to learn speech patterns and context, meaning if sites are regularly being mentioned here in the correct context it will teach the LLM based platform and help the brand be mentioned more often.
It’s not just all about forums though, as every corner of the web can impact your brand awareness. You also have to consider other potential sources of information for the LLM-based AI-chat tools. Brands that are mentioned frequently on social media, in the news or for relevant product searches on prominent retailers, or whose thought-leaders regularly post or are cited, have a huge advantage here.
Mark Williams-Cook adds to the conversation, including his insight on how powerful backlinks can be on appearing in LLMs and sharing:
“Most GenAI assistants now employ web search. ChatGPT is leaning on the Bing Index, and studies have shown that there is a strong correlation between the link profile of a domain and how often that site/brand appears in the answers.”
So, what impact would appearing in AIOs or LLMs have for my business?
If appearing in AI answers or snippets isn’t linking directly to my site, is there any point? It’s a valid question and the answer is, absolutely it is worth it. Perhaps more than you might initially assume.
Reporting from Search Engine Journal found that being cited in AIOs has a tangible boost on a website’s organic visibility, which as a knock-on effect can increase CTR (click through rates) of their ranked pages. What was interesting about this study was that it found 52% of sources mentioned in AI Overviews rank in the top 10 results, meaning nearly half are pulled from beyond the first page. This shows a very exciting opportunity for brands to leverage AIOs to compete against bigger brands, even when you can’t break onto page one with your own content.
Let's be honest for a second. When was the last time you Googled something (perhaps beyond in-depth research) and actually went beyond page one of results? But AI Overviews are doing it. They're putting in way more effort to find the answers than humans do, which means that it's not just the top players who can get their voices heard.
But what about the lost clicks? Well, even when users don't immediately click to your site from AI Overviews, there's a large school of thought that this still contributes to brand recognition. AIOs still cite their sources, after all. In digital marketing circles, this is referred to as "zero-click branding" - the ability to drive awareness even if you're not getting direct traffic. Research from the Digital Marketing Institute indicates that brands mentioned in AI search experience up to 37% higher brand recall compared to traditional search results. This means that eventually, you could see increased direct traffic and higher conversion rates when users are ready to purchase - as well as better results from other marketing initiatives, such as Google Ads campaigns.
There's also the voice search argument. As AI search expands beyond text to include more multi-modal search varieties (voice, visual etc), being recognised as an authoritative source by AI search systems is even more valuable. Voice search, in particular, typically delivers just one answer rather than multiple results, so the work you do to get ahead now will be critically important.
The best way to know for sure, though, is to measure the impact of AI visibility. Doing this requires expanding your measurement framework beyond traditional SEO metrics. Forward-thinking brands should be tracking AI citation frequency, mention context, brand sentiment and secondary traffic effects. This is because, in essence, the business impact for appearing in AI Overviews extends far beyond the organic traffic question. It's about positioning your brand at the forefront of visibility and consideration. Get tracking this, and you've got a clearer picture of where you need to focus your efforts when you need to set KPIs.
What do I need to do to keep up with these changes?
It might sound overwhelming but actually there are some simple takeaways from these findings.
1. Change how you see the marketing funnel
Studies are showing that the majority of prompts being entered into AI chatbots don’t fit within the traditional marketing funnel. People are using more conversational language to search for things, especially for informational queries. At Bottle, we will continue to serve our typical funnel strategy for clients. But we will continue to learn and adapt the specific tactics that achieve fame, findability, and fulfill goals in the ever-changing environment.
2. Identify the six key brand signals
As we’ve mentioned, you should be thinking about your brand awareness as a priority to compete in this new landscape. We’ve outlined six key brand signals to pay attention to:
Authority: are portraying your brand as an expert voice in its respective field?
Relevance: is your content solving the right problems for the right audiences?
Reputation: are your customers and peers sharing positive sentiment reviews and recommendations?
Trust: are you employing E-E-A-T tactics in your strategy?
User experience: can your audience navigate easily to right information to answer queries?
Consistency: does your brand convey reliable messaging and topical relevance that sticks to core values and identity?
3. Redefine your marketing strategy
If you aren’t ticking all of the above bullet points off, it might be time to re-evaluate your strategy and make some changes. Finding the right digital partner who has up to date knowledge of this emerging landscape will be crucial to putting resources and budgets into the most effective places.
In the AI-first search landscape, the traditional boundaries between PR and SEO have dissolved. Brand recognition (fame) directly influences search visibility (findability) in ways that were previously indirect. This creates unique advantages for agencies like ours that specialise in both disciplines.
By orchestrating integrated campaigns that build brand authority through earned media while optimising for technical discoverability, we help clients create the precise conditions that AI systems recognise as indicators of trustworthiness. This holistic approach ensures your brand not only adapts to the changing search landscape but leverages it for competitive advantage.
The future of search isn't about choosing between fame and findability—it's about understanding how they work together to create a compound effect that elevates your brand in both human and AI perception.
If you're looking to redefine your strategy to adapt to AI search, get in touch. We’ll help you curate a bespoke strategy that makes your customers fall in love with you.
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