AI-powered search summaries led to less clicks to websites
The narrative around AI-powered search is pecuilar. For example, Google has released AI Overviews that puts AI-powered results at the very top of the search page for a number of queries. Google has claimed that putting the links to the underlying source alongside the summarised answer generates more traffic to those sources.
You would think that the opposite is true! You would think that you are less likely to click on other search results if you are given a prominent and satisfactory answer on top. The worry is that lower click-through rates (CTR) will diminish the incentive to publish high quality content because it will dramatically lower the ad revenue of publishers. Which version is true?
Google’s view on AI-powered search results
In a discussion with The Verge, Google CEO Sundar Pichai, makes the argument that new, transformative technologies like AI always cause some short-term disruptions. He said the following about injecting AI results into Search:
People are responding very positively to AI Overviews. It’s one of the most positive changes I’ve seen in Search based on metrics. But people do jump off on it. And when you give context around it, they actually jump off it. It actually helps them understand, and so they engage with content underneath, too. In fact, if you put content and links within AI Overviews, they get higher clickthrough rates than if you put it outside of AI Overviews.
When asked about making data public about click-through rates in AI Overviews, Mr Pichai skirted around the topic. Instead he stated that they have “the right incentive structure” and “are committed at an aggregate level to do the right thing”. Your guess is as good as mine to what that means.
Ahrefs analysis on clickthrough rates for AI Overviews
Ahrefs did some analysis on this topic recently and found that AI Overviews reduces click-through rates by 34.5%. Their conclusion is that AI-powered summaries result in more zero-click searches. Also, since AI Overviews often contain multiple citation links, it makes it less likely that any single link will earn the lion’s share of clicks.
Final thoughts
The evidence suggests that Google will refer less users to websites in the long-term if it proceeds on its current path with AI Overviews. How Google will handle the incentives of content creation is a dilemma. If you are getting significantly less visitors, will you continue to create content?
Google Search Console hasn’t been updated to show if clicks are coming from AI Overviews or a standard search result link. It looks like so far Google doesn’t want to show and tell to back up their bold claims about AI results being a net good for the web. The research from ahrefs contradicts their claims.