The Impact of Generative AI on Website Rankings and Traffic
In today’s fast-paced technological world, the impact of artificial intelligence (AI) on various industries cannot be underestimated. One area where AI is leaving its mark is in website rankings and traffic. Google’s AI Overviews, in particular, have been found to have a significant impact on website traffic. In this article, we will delve into the effects of generative AI on website rankings and traffic and discuss how businesses can adapt to these changes.
Organic, direct, referral, and affiliate traffic are all expected to decrease as a result of generative AI. While searches are predicted to increase, websites will suffer and generate less organic traffic overall. This is due to the fact that AI results in six times more searches per day but leads to a 60% decrease in average click-through rates (CTR). As a result, there could be a 30% reduction in organic traffic for websites.
A study conducted by Gilad David Maayan, CEO and Founder of Agile SEO, analyzed the traffic drops for 23 websites after the launch of Google’s AI Overviews. The study revealed that organic traffic dropped by 18-64% after the introduction of AI Overviews. This suggests that smaller companies may be pushed out of search results in favor of bigger brands that are featured in the AI Overviews.
Another impact of generative AI on website rankings and traffic is the reduction in crawl budget by search engines like Google. With the increasing amount of AI-generated content, search engines are struggling to keep up with crawling, rendering, and indexing all the content. As a result, websites with thin, unhelpful, or generic content may not be indexed at all. This is an attempt by search engines to combat spam and duplicate content generated by AI.
Furthermore, click-through rates for informational queries have been declining for years and this trend has been exacerbated by generative AI. Websites that rely on informational queries, such as listicles, category pages, glossaries, and top-of-funnel education-style content, have seen a significant decrease in rankings. This shift in user behavior has led to a decrease in the importance of the top 10 organic search results.
On the positive side, more ad inventory due to AI Overviews means that Google Ads will be featured above the AI Overviews, resulting in an increase in Google’s revenue. This may lead to lower cost-per-click (CPC) over time. SEO professionals should work closely with their PPC counterparts to capture opportunities where there may be drops in organic traffic.
While website traffic may reduce, businesses can expect to see higher-quality search traffic. Google’s AI Overviews aim to improve search by asking more questions and providing the best possible search results for users. This means that if your content is relevant and helpful, the searcher who lands on your website is likely to be a higher-quality lead.
The rise of AI will also cause people to stay on Google more or explore other ways of searching. With the introduction of ChatGPT, Perplexity, and Bing, there will be a shift in growth in other search engines. It is important for businesses to set up cross-network tracking pixels to gather more holistic data sets and focus on building content clusters to target more specific search queries.
One industry that has been heavily impacted by generative AI is product review sites. Google’s AI Overviews generate human-like product recommendations, keeping searchers within Google and sending them directly to the store for purchases. This has resulted in a massive loss in affiliate link traffic for product review sites. These sites will need to evaluate their strategies and find new ways to provide value to users.
To adapt to the changing landscape of generative AI, businesses should focus on improving content personalization by labeling the intent of search queries. By training AI to recognize patterns of search queries related to specific datasets, businesses can create more engaging and personalized content.
In conclusion, generative AI is having a significant impact on website rankings and traffic. Businesses need to think critically and experiment with new strategies to stay ahead. It is no longer about following “best practices,” but rather about adapting and pushing the boundaries to find what works in this new AI-driven era. By staying informed and evolving with the changes, businesses can continue to thrive in the ever-changing world of search engine rankings and traffic.
