• 9 min read
How AI Is Changing SEO and What It Means for Your Brand
AI Search Series: Article 2: Why AI Traffic Converts | Article 3: How AI Search is Changing Visibility
Artificial intelligence (AI) in search engine optimization (SEO) is changing the marketing industry rapidly.
From AI-powered search overviews and summaries to advanced SEO tools that generate content, AI is changing the way people search for brands as well as what they do once they discover new solutions. In the process, it’s creating new opportunities (plus a few challenges) for brands everywhere.
Some brands are worried that SEO is dying out, claiming that only old fossils will keep plugging away at keyword research and search trend analysis. But the truth is the exact opposite: SEO isn’t dead. In fact, AI is more important in SEO strategies than ever. To really grasp these changes, we sat down with Erica Gregory, who leads our Web Performance and SEO teams, and Brandon Godwin, our VP of Client Strategy. Their conversation covered how AI-powered tools are changing the face of the SEO industry, what digital marketers should track now, and why thinking holistically is the key to future success in organic search.
Here’s what we learned:
- SEO isn’t dead, but it is evolving. AI-driven search is reshaping how content is delivered and consumed, but the fundamentals (like keyword strategy, technical SEO, user experience, and high-quality, authoritative content) remain critical.
- AI and SEO work together. Google’s AI Overviews heavily rely on traditional SEO rankings to determine what content gets featured, so being at the top of search pages is still critical for visibility.
- Click-through rates are dropping, but visibility is rising. CTR can drop by up to 64% when AI Overviews are present. That’s because more users are finding what they need directly in Google search summaries. However, impressions, brand awareness, and even high-intent site traffic can still grow.
- Zero-click search results are the new normal. Understanding the full range of KPIs is vital, as opposed to focusing on just one metric to the exclusion of others.
- Conversion optimization is more important than ever. With less traffic but more qualified users, turning attention into action is key.
- Think holistically. From omnichannel strategy to full-funnel planning, SEO doesn’t exist in a silo.
- Topical authority and structured content are rising in importance. High-quality content with a clear website architecture fuels both AI visibility and user trust, leading to better search results and better performance further down the funnel.
Interview Highlights: Erica Gregory and Brandon Godwin on AI + SEO
[This interview has been edited for clarity and brevity]
Brandon: Did AI kill SEO? Is SEO dead?
Erica: It’s definitely not dead. But it is evolving, right? It is shifting. But if you think about it, AI has been a part of SEO for years.
In 2015, Google released RankBrain, which was its algorithm update that incorporated machine learning. So AI has been impacting SEO and rankings for close to a decade, at least.
But let’s talk about what’s changed. The fact is — the way Google displays the information has changed a lot with AI overviews now (those are the Google generative AI search results). What we’re seeing is that users are getting a much more robust answer. Overviews are summarizing multiple sources right there so, often, the user doesn’t have to click through to the website to get the answer to maybe these top-of-funnel, high-research, high-level questions.
It’s not necessarily indicative that something’s broken. It’s just a sign that the times are changing, and how users are interacting with those search results — and what those search results actually look like — is changing too.
Brandon: We know from some conversations we’ve had with marketing leaders that they’re in a spot where they need to make some specific decisions, not only about their plan, but also about their budget. If a marketing leader came to you and said, “Erica, I gotta cut somewhere,” should they cut their SEO budget?
Erica: I’d say absolutely not. What we know is that AI and SEO still really have a strong synergy. Your SEO impacts your AI visibility. I mean, in recent studies done by SEMrush, for example, they know that up to almost 80% of AI Overviews were made up of those traditional top ten organic results. So your traditional SEO and how you’re found in organic search still greatly impacts how you’re found in AI.
Brandon: You’re not seeing it as “you have to pick between AI or SEO”, right? But how do they work together, and if so, how?
Erica: Yeah, absolutely. So AI Overviews, ChatGPT, Copilot, Perplexity. These are all AI platforms that we know use the web index. So your ranking traditionally in SEO is still what’s also helping you show up in AI. So they really go hand in hand.
I think we’re also seeing the clients we’ve had that have been investing in SEO for multiple years, committing to the right plan, they’re actually starting to see additional payoff from their investment versus those brands that may be trying to catch up or, you know, backfill a hole, so to speak.
Brandon: If I’ve got a situation where my website traffic has gone down, but my leads are staying the same or even increasing — can you explain what’s going on there?
Erica: Users are still finding your website and your brand in the search result page. So they’re still getting that brand recognition, but they may be learning what they need to learn at the top of funnel searches early on and not visiting your website.
An example of this is something like “how to make pizza at home” versus “pizza delivery near me.” The “pizza delivery near me,” is the search where somebody is likely to take action, which means conversion optimization is becoming even more important.
We’re really seeing that this is the area that you need to double down on, because you want to make sure when you’ve got that high-intent traffic landing on your website, you’re taking that really quality attention and you’re turning it into action.
Brandon: We had one client where we were having a meeting, and the report showed that a number of metrics had gone up. But one metric that was important — click-through rate — had gone down. Why did AI cause click-through rate to go down?
Erica: The fact is, is that the way that Google is showing the information in the search results page has changed. Now with AI Overviews, it is producing more of a robust answer for the user.
What the user’s finding is that often they don’t have to click through to the website to get the answer to maybe some of these kinds of high-level questions. But the other side of that is you have the opportunity for more eyeballs to be seen on these AI Overviews because your site is showing up sometimes more than once in these results.
With that, your impressions go up, but you’ve got these things called “zero-click results.” We’ve had these for a long time before AI Overviews, so it’s just really understanding all of those different KPIs, understanding what those lurking variables are, the shift in the way that people are searching, and the shift in the way that those results are being displayed. It isn’t indicating that anything’s necessarily broken — it’s just this macro impact that we’ve got to take into consideration.
Brandon: If you had a word of advice for marketing leaders, what three pieces of advice would you give?
Erica: #1: Don’t abandon your SEO strategy, but do shift it, do evolve it. #2: Keep doing content. The content is going to remain important, especially if you want to be found in AI. And #3: Think holistically, omnichannel, and especially about your website. Again, making sure that when those people get to your website, they’re ready to convert.
Brandon: It sounds like you’re saying, “Adapt your plan. Adjust your plan. But don’t abandon your SEO plan.” Is that fair?
Erica: Absolutely. If you still believe that your business being found on the web is important, and you still believe that driving leads through your website is important, then you should not abandon your SEO strategy.
Brandon: We really have to hold a lot of this with kind of a loose grasp. We can’t overly react to one metric or one change or one headline. We’ve got to keep an open grip. I think I would even say we’ve got to keep asking questions, to keep learning, you know — keep talking to smart people like Erica. And if that’s something that we could talk with you about, you want to have a conversation about AI and SEO? We’re here.
What AI means for your SEO
The conversation between Erica and Brandon makes one thing crystal clear: AI is here, and it’s already reshaping search. Could your website traffic or click-through rate decrease due to the growing adoption of AI search? It’s likely. Could your website conversions stay steady or even increase? It certainly seems that way. For brands with a strong SEO foundation, the brands that are still being found through both traditional and AI search, this moment is a growth opportunity, not something to fear.
By aligning your SEO, content, and conversion strategies around how users search (and how AI serves them), you’ll continue to position your brand to thrive in the age of AI search. If your current strategy feels outdated or overly siloed, now’s the time to pivot. Our SEO agency team is keeping AI top-of-mind while strategizing integrations with digital marketing and advertising channels.
While the platforms may change, the core truth remains the same: The best brands are the ones people can find, trust, and choose — wherever they’re looking, however they’re searching.
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