In a recent analysis conducted by seoClarity, it was found that the sources cited in Google AI Overviews now align with webpages from the top 10 organic search results 99.5% of the time. This significant change marks a departure from the early days of Google’s Search Generative Experience (SGE) where sources outside the top 10 organic results were often displayed, leading to the inclusion of less authoritative and trustworthy content in AI Overviews.
This change comes after Google faced criticism for displaying incorrect and potentially harmful information in AI Overviews. In response, Google made efforts to reduce the visibility of AI Overviews and promised improvements. However, the past three months have seen considerable volatility in AI Overviews since their official launch.
To put this change into perspective, a previous analysis by Authoritas in January found that the sources appearing in SGE differed from the top 10 organic search results 93.8% of the time. The majority of generative links came from sources outside the top-ranking organic domains, with only a small percentage directly matching a page 1 organic URL or showing a different URL from the same organic ranking domain.
The implications of this change suggest that Google may now be incorporating more traditional search ranking signals into its custom Gemini model. This means that optimizing for AI Overviews is now synonymous with optimizing for Google itself. Ranking highly in Google is now one of the best ways to increase visibility in AI Overviews.
This finding is significant for both marketers and users. Marketers can now focus on improving their Google rankings to enhance their chances of being featured in AI Overviews. Users can have greater confidence in the information presented in AI Overviews, as the sources will now more closely align with the top organic search results.
Overall, this analysis highlights a significant shift in Google’s approach to AI Overviews, with a much higher overlap between cited sources and top organic search results. This change brings more credibility and reliability to the information presented in AI Overviews, benefiting both marketers and users alike.
