Google’s AI Overviews feature, rolled out in May and now re-introduced after a brief setback, is reshaping the landscape of search engine results for publishers in the US and UK. Research from consultancy Authoritas, analyzing 6,599 keywords across a broad spectrum of categories, indicates that AI Overviews are now appearing in 17% of queries. This AI-driven content predominantly surfaces for less time-sensitive topics rather than current events, marking a pivotal shift in how information is prioritized and presented in search results.
The influence of this technology on publisher visibility is pronounced. For instance, the US consumer media site Martha Stewart, which once ranked first for the query “how to kill wasps,” now finds its article supplanted by an AI-generated summary occupying the coveted top spot. This summary, which significantly leverages content from the Martha Stewart article, appears alongside sponsored links, relegating the original source to a much lower visibility, accessible only after substantial scrolling on a mobile device.
A similar displacement is observed with the Press Gazette in the UK. When searching for “who are the UK national newspaper editors,” an AI overview, heavily derived from Press Gazette’s continuously updated listings, dominates the initial results. The original article now appears much lower in the search results, pushed down to the bottom of the second screen on a mobile phone.
For small business owners and solopreneurs, these developments underscore the importance of understanding and adapting to the evolving dynamics of SEO. The ability of AI to distill and prioritize content from original articles can significantly affect how businesses manage their online visibility. It highlights the need for strategies that anticipate these AI-driven changes, ensuring that their content remains competitive and visible in this new landscape.
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