With the advent of search-enabled AI tools like ChatGPT (Large Language Models) and AI overviews, the SEO community is feeling the same pressure that copywriters, graphic designers, brand strategists, and project managers have been feeling for the past year. Over my 7 year career as an SEO professional, my main KPI has been clicks/sessions that have transferred into conversions. It seems as if that chapter of digital marketing is coming to a close.
According to a December 2024 survey from Bain & Company, “80% of consumers rely on “zero-click” results in at least 40% of their searches, reducing organic web traffic by an estimated 15% to 25%”
As an end user myself, like most of us are, this makes a ton of sense. Most of the time when I’m looking for an answer to a question, I try to find what I need without having to click into a site, wait for it to load, accept cookies, turn off my ad blocker, and scroll once to either get a paywall or a CTA. Typically, I only traffic to the site once I’ve already made my decision or I need additional information just to make sure it’s exactly what I’m looking for.
As an SEO and search marketing professional, this is frustrating. For years, I’ve watched organic traffic numbers increase over time and been able to share great reporting results with clients. Moving forward, the traffic I’m driving from informational content like blogs will likely decrease as more users rely on information aggregators to learn about top-of-funnel subjects instead.
As someone who genuinely wants the best for my clients, there’s a part of me that’s very excited for the future. I want their content to rank for topics that are semantically related to their products or services, but at the end of the day, how many people clicking on broad-topic blogs are going to end up making a purchase. Realistically, we want people who are already either in the purchase or consideration phase landing on our site. That’s the type of traffic that really moves the needle.
Thesis Statement:
SEO isn’t dying—it’s transforming into something more strategic, technical, and conversion-focused than ever before. The question is, as search marketers, how do we integrate ourselves into the conversation and continue to drive results?
What is a Zero-Click Search?
A zero-click search happens when a user enters a query into their search bar, reaches the search results page, and only reads the content displayed on the search engine results page without clicking into the information source. More often than not, zero-click searches result from informational queries.
Text-based informational content like blogs/articles (especially without depth or nuance) will often be overlooked because the user can quickly get their answer from either an AI overview or other LLM. Visibility in these areas is still important, especially for very specific and targeted queries that require depth to properly explain the subject matter, but it’s unlikely they’ll drive traffic like they did before.
We recommend de-emphasizing content generation about surface-level topics and focusing instead on providing comprehensive content that provides genuine depth and expertise about more complex topics. To quote Field of Dreams, “If you build it, they will come.” In other words, users who click through despite having an AI overview available are actively seeking the expert-level analysis and nuanced insights that only quality content can deliver.
This is part of a larger shift in online behavior that follows the trend of instant gratification rather than conducting deep, focused research. In partnership with Datos, Rand Fishkin, Sparktoro’s CEO, released a 2024 study that 58.5% of US searches result in zero clicks:
We have to imagine that zero-click search percentages have only increased with the advent of AI mode and overviews.
Why do less clicks matter for SEO?
For years, clicks and organic traffic have been one of, if not the, most important KPIs for SEOs and marketers alike. With less clicks, especially from engaged organic channels, bottom line revenue could be negatively impacted.
6 Ways We’re Pivoting Our Enterprise SEO Strategies
Moving forward, we’re focusing on improving our clients’ AI visibility through these six methods:
- Crawlability optimization to ensure that any piece of content or information is able to be accessed, read, and indexed by web crawlers.
- Keyword strategies focused on improving ranking positions of transactional and commercial queries searched by users either in the mid-funnel or bottom-funnel.
- Using branded and navigational queries, as well as chatter on forums like Reddit, to identify target audience pain points and recommend new content to cater to common questions and issues.
- Emphasizing the importance of social proof through case studies and customer reviews on sites like softwareadvice.com, g2.com, and capterra.com.
- Collaborating with our PR teams to improve brand sentiment and earn placements in high authority publications.
- Recommending topics for multimedia assets like surveys, videos, infographics, and interactive experiences that can be dispersed throughout all marketing channels.
Ultimately, direct communication and information from product and service providers is still in demand.. As SEOs, our primary goal is to improve overall visibility and give consumers the best possible digital experience so they feel like they’re armed with everything they need to make an informed purchase.
Technical AI SEO: Optimizing for AI Crawlability
AI spiders function similarly to regular search engine spiders, except the content they are looking for is based directly on the user prompt. A web spider is deployed and reads through the HTML of the page to extract structured data, which is then sent to an index. When the user enters in a search query (via search engine or LLM) a ranking algorithm is used to help sift through the massive amount of structured data in the index. Once the best information is parsed, that information is fetched from the index and the results are served back to the end user.
The parts of your site that you want to rank with AI overviews and within AI tools must be able to be crawled and indexed: This is the most critical step of AI SEO. Most of the online chatter regarding AI SEO/ GEO fails to acknowledge this critical step, and throughout my career I’ve encountered hundreds of normal marketers who don’t have a solid grasp on this fundamental search concept. Here’s the bottom line: If bots can’t access your information, you will not be included in AI results. We recommend using a tool like Screaming Frog or hire an SEO agency like Matter to audit your site’s crawlability.
Semantic Search Optimization
What we’re seeing is that people are using more natural, conversational language when interacting with AI tools. We’re now emphasizing the importance of FAQ schema and long-tail keyphrase optimizations to match the way users are searching for information. Additionally, AI bots are much better at discerning meaning and context from web pages. That means that while it is important to have a target keyword to optimize for, it’s also important to optimize pages with semantically related keywords (aka synonyms) in case users are using variations that have similar meanings.
Structured Data, Schema, and Hierarchical Content
If you dig into the code of this blog post, you’ll notice that all of our content here is labeled hierarchically with header tags. AI web spiders and other search engine bots have to parse through a tremendous amount of information while crawling. The faster the bot can crawl the page, the faster it can complete its ultimate goal of serving the user information.
We want to make sure we’re helping the bot however we can. By labeling content hierarchically, we’re giving the bot a basic rundown of everything on the page as well as several context clues that denote the importance of each section of information. The faster it can accurately read and understand our information in its entirety, the more likely we are to be included in its end result.
Technical Infrastructure Requirements (the Basics)
We won’t spend too much time here since technical website infrastructure can get pretty complex, but it’s important to understand some basics. Here are some of the high notes and best practices we consider when optimizing for AI:
Ideally, your site should be structured in a way where information is clearly labeled and subfolders are utilized to categorize information hierarchically. See Matter’s site structure:
When appropriate, your pages should have schema or structured data within the HTML to denote the purpose of the page. Learn more about the different types of structured data at schema.org:
This isn’t a new concept, but it’s worth mentioning that your site needs to be fast, responsive, and secure in order to maximize your SEO potential. Site speed is considered a ranking factor, albeit not the most critical factor when compared to content quality and originality:
For more information and actionable steps to improve your site speed, I highly recommend reading this reddit thread:
Gated Content
Gated content also isn’t dead, but it’s important to carefully choose what content requires a lead form to access. If a piece of currently gated content is highly search friendly or catered toward users at the top of the funnel, we would recommend ungating that asset for maximum visibility. Reserve your gates for content that directly impacts a prospects buying decision.
AI SEO Keyword Strategies: Mid/Bottom Funnel Approach and Branded Query Emphasis
In the past, our keyword strategies heavily emphasized ranking for informational-intent keywords through the creation of blogs and other long-form content. We still recommend writing blog content, but we want to utilize our blog to provide a deep dive into strategies and tactics while providing original ideas like we’re doing in this post.
Moving forward, we’re focusing more on long-tail key phrases that have either commercial (mid-funnel) or transactional (bottom-funnel) intent. For an integrated marketing and PR agency like Matter, that means keywords like:
In addition to these types of phrases, it’s important to understand the kinds of content your audience is looking for. The correct destination for the queries above are Services and Solutions landing pages, but you must always consider what the most appropriate content type is, whether that be video, graphic, interactive tools, or long-form content.
For middle and bottom-of-funnel queries, we’re recommending revamping services, solutions, and other webpage types with additional information and multimedia assets to provide our users with a better digital experience than direct competitors. Having different content types based on these types of queries allows you to spread your content across multiple platforms instead of being constricted to your website.
It’s also imperative to keep an eye on your branded queries, whether that be through an SEO tool like SEMrush or Google Search Console. We have coverage for all of these queries on our website, but if we didn’t have a dedicated page for our Denver office, we would want to add that to ensure we were providing users with a dedicated organic entry point to learn more about that specific location.
Social Proof via Reviews and Public Relations
EEAT (aka Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, and Trustworthiness) is the main ranking framework that Google uses to determine keyword rankings. Other than following on-site SEO best practices, there is no better off-site signal of EEAT than a positive online reputation in the form of customer reviews and media coverage.
Customer Reviews
In a study published by the Northwestern Medill Spiegel Research Center, researchers found the following:
- Displaying Reviews Can Increase Conversion rates by 270%
- Reviews Have a Greater Conversion Impact for Higher-Priced Products
- Reviews Have a Greater Conversion Impact For Higher-Consideration Items
- Negative Reviews Establish Credibility
This should come as no surprise, since you likely reference reviews before you purchase products and services, but for enterprise programs it’s even more important than it was before. The process for getting more reviews varies by industry, but for B2B software (which comprises most of our enterprise programs at Matter) this guide developed by Capterra is a helpful source. Some quick best practices for getting more software reviews include:
- Sending review emails to more recent customers, specifically ones who have implemented your solutions in the last 30-60 days
- Providing incentives to users if they complete a review (gift cards, discounts, free add-ons)
- Integrating review requests into CRM workflows so you can optimize and A/B test your sends to maximize review completions
- Target the right people, specifically those who champion your services rather than sending requests at bulk.
The Role of Digital Public Relations
One of the most crucial components of AI visibility is brand recognition. The more buzz and online mentions a brand has, the more likely they are to be included within overviews. The best way to improve brand recognition comes down to the execution of both traditional PR tactics in concert with SEO best practices. To quote Ben Jacobson in his “Why PR is becoming more essential for AI search visibility” article:
“AI search is reshaping the rules of discovery, elevating brand reputation, mentions, and authority over traditional SEO tactics.
In this new environment, PR has shifted from being a supporting act to a starring role in digital marketing strategies.
Brands that invest today in strategic, AI-savvy PR – earning influential mentions, building consistent topical authority, and proactively shaping their digital footprints across domains – will be the ones leading tomorrow’s search landscape.
The future of search isn’t just about links and keywords.
It’s about being talked about accurately, contextually, and authoritatively, in the right places, and by the right voices.
In the age of AI, visibility begins with reputation. If you’re not being mentioned, you’re not being found.”
As our agency’s search marketing department, we’ve been helping the PR teams here at Matter by defining and recommending target placements based on competitive intelligence. The logic is simple: if both competitors A and B are backlinked or mentioned in the same place, but our client isn’t, we need to insert ourselves into that conversation:
The Evolution of SEO in the AI Era
Rather than bore you with a long-winded (and likely incorrect) assumption of the future, here’s a summary of the information detailed above:
Key Takeaways
- Technical SEO matters now, more than ever. If your content isn’t structured and accessible to web bots, you’re not going to see any citations in AI results.
- Focus less on broad stroke explanations of ToFu topics. Instead, spend time figuring out the queries that people are using when they want to buy your solutions/services, and figure out creative ways to improve your visibility in those locations.
- Consider different content types. Blogs are great, but if a video would serve your audience better and provide them with the information they need more efficiently, you should make that recommendation.
- Request more product reviews from satisfied customers – it’s worth it!
- Invest in PR- there’s no better way to improve your brand’s overall visibility.
Do you agree with our approach? If you’re interested in working with us, contact us here!