How Google’s AI Overviews Could Change The Game of SEO
Google is integrating AI into the search bar like never before with AI Overviews. Powered by their artificial intelligence model Gemini (previously known as Bard), this feature provides users with a summary of text displayed above website links based on their query put into Search. While these AI-generated summaries won’t come up for every single search and users have the ability to turn the feature on and off, it’s most likely to show up when the input includes complex questions that require multi-step reasoning. Let’s break it down and get into how AI Overviews might impact your website’s search engine optimization strategy (SEO).
When AI Overviews Will Show Up
You may have noticed AI Overview summaries throughout your search results lately, or have heard about some of the bizarre answers generated in the past months, like the wild suggestion to put glue on pizza. While Google has said they are working out the kinks, they do provide users a disclaimer about utilizing the feature: “Generative AI is experimental. Quality and availability may vary.”
Overall though, AI Overviews will show up if you have the feature on and then type in a complex task. This may look like, “Create a weekly meal plan for a family of 4,” or “Find the best-priced burrito bowls within 5 blocks,” to which you’d receive a full result without even having to click on another link.
Here’s an example:
Google input: Make a meal plan for a family of 4.
If you aren’t a fan of it or prefer the old school way of viewing search results, you can disable AI Overviews via Google Labs. However, turning the feature off doesn’t affect its function outside of your own user experience, so it’s going to be a factor in the search engine rankings (SERPs) regardless of individual user settings.
How Will AI Overviews Impact SEO Rankings?
While AI Overviews shoots to streamline planning processes by providing quick solutions, some wonder what its effect on organic website traffic will be, and if businesses that rely on this traffic will be taking a hit. Why the concern? Zero-click searches may become more common with users locating the information they need directly from the summary and without visiting a website.
When their questions are answered right there on the results page, it removes their need to click on a site for offerings. This means they won’t click on sites as often to browse for other valuable information, submit lead forms, or work through sales funnels. That said, there are specifications Google provides us to deliver the content that AI Overviews will index and rank, such as utilizing on-page SEO and SEO-friendly content.
Ranking Higher in The SERPs
For your website’s content to be eligible for AI Overviews, Google will need to crawl and index it before you’ll discover it in a summary. Crawlability refers to the ease with which search engine bots (like Google’s) can discover and navigate your content. The bot will “crawl” through your pages by following links and ‘reading’ the content. Google will always prioritize high-quality, people forward content.
The more well-structured and maintained your site is, the better its crawlability as well. Know that crawling can take anywhere from several days to several months, based on Google’s determinations for refreshing pages. If you’ve made recent updates to your content, you can request that Google recrawl your pages. You can also use Google’s URL Inspection Tool to request crawling of individual pages.
There’s also nothing special Google says we need to do just yet in order to be highlighted in an AI Overview summary, beyond following regular SEO best practices as outlined in Google Search Essentials. So, if you’re already optimizing your content effectively, you’re on the right track for being featured.
How Do Website Links Appear in AI Overviews?
The links in AI Overviews are chosen automatically by Google’s systems based on their relevance and usefulness to the topic. These links help users explore the topics they're curious about even further by providing diverse content from publishers, creators, businesses, and more. There’s no specific action required from website owners to be included in these links, other than following standard SEO best practices.
If you prefer not to have your content appear in AI Overviews, use Google’s search preview controls to manage how your content is displayed. This way you can control which parts of your site are visible to users in these summarized views.
Looking Ahead of Google’s AI Overviews
By the end of the year, AI Overviews are expected to be part of the search experience for nearly 1 billion people. For now, adhering to standard SEO best practices is the best strategy to stay ahead in this new era of search. If you’re new to the SEO scene but want your site to rank higher, having an SEO audit completed can help you understand where your content stands in relation to these AI-driven changes.
If you’re ready to revamp your brand’s SEO strategy today, just fill out the form below to achieve a ranking that Google can’t ignore.