This Month in Google: Are AI Overviews Killing Organic Search?
This Month in Google: Are AI Overviews Killing Organic Search?Make Your MarkFebruary 24, 2025
When AI Overviews (AIOs) first launched on Google, the blowback from those in (and outside) the SEO world was instant, tremendous, and loud. Fear spread quickly, and many marketers began to wonder if their SEO efforts would become virtually useless going forward.
In fact, if you go to Semrush’s Keyword Magic Tool right now and look up “AI overview” you’ll see that a number of broad matches that all say something along the lines of:
“How to disable AI overview”
“AI overview sucks”
“How to get rid of AI overview”
And so on and so forth.
Was the reaction justified? Now, many months after the introduction of AI Overviews, we can take a look at the data and assess the situation objectively to see where we’re at and how we should move forward.
Where Are We Now with AI Overviews?
AIOs have not taken over Google’s search results as many initially feared. While early reports had AIOs appearing in up to 42% of search queries, recent data shows a significant drop, with only 4.5% to 6.7% of keywords showing AI Overviews. Despite these lower numbers, it’s clear that Google’s AI-generated answers are still influencing search, particularly for informational queries.
Interestingly, AIOs tend to show up more often for specific industries, especially YMYL (Your Money Your Life) topics like health, and also for sectors like people and society, science, and food & drink. (Should we be worried that AI is answering most of our health-related questions?) Mobile searches appear to be a bit more affected than desktop searches, with AIOs more prevalent in specific verticals.
So, while AIOs aren’t everywhere just yet, they are showing up with increasing frequency in certain sectors. However, it’s not just about where they appear—it’s how they impact organic search.
How AI Overviews Are Impacting Organic Search
AI Overviews have created a notable shift in the way we interact with search results. For one, they’ve significantly lowered click-through rates (CTRs) for informational queries. As AIOs provide direct answers, fewer users are clicking through to organic listings. Notably, AIOs also seem to rank pages that aren’t necessarily in the top 10 of organic results, which means ranking in organic search no longer guarantees visibility in AIOs.
With this added volatility—AIO rankings fluctuate more frequently than traditional organic rankings—marketers need to adjust their expectations. This is, of course, on top of the general volatility experienced by SEO professionals in the wake of rapid core updates Google rolled out last year. (We at Make Your Mark have actually experienced a sharp increase in organic traffic, with numbers doubling around last December. How did we keep our SEO ship afloat? Come talk to us about the details; we’re happy to share.)
Back to AIOs:
The process of ranking in AI Overviews requires more than just solid SEO fundamentals. It involves factors like content format and relevance to longtail, informational searches. Pages that are highly ranked in organic search but fail to answer specific user queries may find themselves overlooked in favor of other pages that offer concise, detailed answers.
What Does This Mean for Marketers?
Marketers need to adapt to this new environment by adjusting their strategies for AI Overviews SEO. It’s clear that simply ranking in the top 10 isn’t enough. To increase your chances of getting cited in AI Overviews, consider focusing on creating content that directly answers common, long-tail questions in a concise and informative manner. Think less about keyword density and more about clarity and relevance.
Additionally, how to rank in AI Overviews might not be a complete overhaul of your current approach, but it does require a shift. Start by analyzing which pages are currently being cited and aim to match their style and structure. This may involve tweaking your content to better fit the short, direct format that AIOs favor. Run a Cosine similarity analysis to identify areas where your content could align with the answers that AI Overviews provide.
At the same time, don’t abandon classic SEO practices. While AIOs are impacting CTRs, they’re not entirely replacing organic traffic. Marketers should keep their focus on maintaining a strong organic presence while exploring how to optimize for AI Overviews. By taking a balanced approach, you can continue to drive traffic through traditional SEO while also adapting to the growing influence of AI-generated content.
The Road Ahead
As AI Overviews evolve, marketers should stay vigilant, track the performance of their keywords, and be prepared to pivot as Google refines its algorithm. For now, the key is to stay informed about shifts in rankings and adapt content strategies accordingly. Ultimately, while AI Overviews are reshaping search, they haven’t completely replaced the need for strong, traditional SEO efforts.
