SEO Tools and Resources

Google shows AI Overviews in Search largely based on whether users engage with them — and removes them when they don’t. That’s according to Robby Stein, Google’s VP of product for Search. In a CNN interview, Stein explained how Google tunes AI-driven results as it expands ads, personalization, and visual search across its experiences. Engagement drives AI Overviews. Google tests AI Overviews on specific query types and keeps them only if users find them useful. If users don’t click, interact, or show value, the overview disappears. The system then applies that learning to similar queries, Stein said: “The system will learn — so it’ll try it — and then see if …

Google is testing placing special and very clickable links in its AI Overviwws, but not to publishers or your own website, but rather back to its own search results. You got that right, Google is testing linking the AI Overviews back to new search queries on Google.com. What it looks like. I posted a screenshot and video from Sachin Patel who spotted this change on the Search Engine Roundtable – here they are: Clicking on those underlined links in the text of the AI Overview, both at the top and in the middle section, will take you back to a new Google Search. The smaller link icons take you to the side panel links, those go to publishers and external website…

Most of the health advice summarized in Google’s AI Overviews relies on non-medical sources, a new analysis shows. This follows fresh concerns about users receiving misleading or unsafe guidance on sensitive health topics. What’s happening. The Guardian recently reported that Google’s AI Overviews sometimes surface incorrect or dangerous health advice. The reporting drew on reviews by medical charities and experts. Examples included flawed guidance on pancreatic cancer diets and misleading explanations of liver blood test results. Google disputed the findings. The company said the examples were taken out of context and argued that most AI Overviews are accurat…

After bottoming out at 1.3% in December 2025, the click-through rate (CTR) on Google’s AI Overviews climbed to 2.4% in February 2026. That’s an 85% jump in two months, according to new data from Seer Interactive. What moves CTR. When an AI Overview appears, pages cited in it get more clicks than pages on that same results page that aren’t cited. But both still get fewer clicks than searches with no AI Overview: No AI Overview: ~3.3% CTR AI Overview with citation: ~2.1% CTR AI Overview without citation: ~0.9% CTR Where clicks are shifting. Searches without AI Overviews are getting more valuable. CTR on those queries increased from 2.8% in early 2025 …

Google’s AI Overviews may be reducing traditional search clicks, but publishers still have meaningful growth opportunities in breaking news and Google Discover, according to new data from Define Media Group. Organic search clicks have fallen 42% since AI Overviews began expanding in Google Search, according to Define Media Group’s analysis of Google Search Console data across its portfolio of 64 sites. Why we care. AI-generated answers are reshaping search traffic. Evergreen content is losing clicks, while real-time news coverage and Discover distribution are emerging as stronger traffic channels for publishers. By the numbers. Across Google Search, Discover,…

Organic click-through rates (CTR) for informational queries featuring Google AI Overviews fell 61% since mid-2024, while paid CTRs on those same queries plunged 68%, according to the latest study by marketing agency Seer Interactive. Even on queries without AI Overviews, organic CTRs fell 41%. This suggests users are simply clicking less, everywhere. Why we care. Even when AI Overviews aren’t visible, clicks are falling, likely due to ChatGPT/AI platforms and social search. That lost traffic isn’t coming back. This is why, as Seer pointed out, success metrics are shifting from clicks and traffic to visibility and share of voice. (This aligns with what Aja Frost …

Google AI Overviews are now available in more countries and regions and in more languages. Google announced today at Google I/O that AI Overviews are now available in over 200 countries and territories and more than 40 different languages. AI Overviews for more Google searchers. Google said they have expanded access to AI Overviews within Google Search to more searchers. In October, Google released them in over 100 countries and regions, now they are available in over 200 countries and regions. Google added more support for languages including support for for Arabic, Chinese, Malay, Urdu and more. You can see the full list of countries and territories that Go…

Google will now jump you directly into AI Mode when you do a follow-up question from AI Overviews within Google Search. This makes the “transition to a conversation even more seamless,” Robby Stein, VP of Product, Google Search wrote. Plus, Google AI Overviews are powered by Gemini 3 by default, globally. AI Overviews jumping to AI Mode. We covered when Google was officially testing this back in December and also before Google confirmed the test in October 2025. The ask a follow-up question within the Google Search AI Overviews will jump you into a conversation directly in AI Mode. Google said this is about “making the transition to a conversation even more se…

Google’s AI Overviews are for research, not buying. A new BrightEdge analysis of thousands of ecommerce keywords (Sept. 1-Oct. 15) found that AI results appear for research and evaluation, while bottom-funnel queries still belong to traditional search. Why we care. Google’s AI Overviews appear to shape discovery, while traditional search continues to drive sales. So ecommerce brands can set themselves up for success by being visible, helping users learn, and guiding them to buy during these key moments. By the numbers. AI Overview coverage spiked to 26% in September before retreating to 9% in October. 30% of keywords were retained after the pullback. Ther…

Google AI Overview rankings – the webpages cited in the AI-generated answers – are more volatile than Google’s “classic” organic search rankings. Also, within two to three months, 70% of AI Overview rankings changed, according to a new analysis by Authoritas, an ecommerce SEO platform. Ranking volatility. Google’s organic search is volatile and has been for a while. However, AI Overviews appear to be even more volatile, based on this research. AI Overview ranking volatility score: 0.68 (8 weeks), 0.73 (13 weeks) Google Search organic ranking volatility score: 0.49 (8 weeks), 0.55 (13 weeks) Dig deeper. How volatile have Google rankings really been? AI…

Google’s AI Overviews now appear on 14% of shopping queries, up 5.6x from 2.1% in November 2025, according to new Visibility Labs analysis. Ecommerce brands have been mostly unaffected by AI-driven click loss in Search. That seems to be changing. Why we care. As Google’s AI Overviews expand across product searches, ecommerce brands face a growing risk of losing visibility and clicks before shoppers reach standard organic or Shopping listings. The details. The analysis targeted product-intent keywords tied to results with a Shopping box, paid or organic — terms like “weighted blanket,” “mushroom coffee,” “protein powder,” and “blue T-shirts.” That produce…

Google’s AI Overviews appeared in 13.14% of all U.S. desktop searches in March, up from 6.49% in January. That’s a 102% surge in just two months, according to a new analysis of more than 10 million keywords by Semrush and Datos. Why we care. Google’s introduction of AI Overviews was the biggest shift since the arrival of featured snippets a decade ago. Google is forever changed and is becoming more of an answer engine than a search engine. That’s because AI Overviews generate answers rather than pointing searchers to websites, which studies have shown is impacting traffic and CTRs for many types of websites. Triggers. AI Overviews tend to appear for low-risk, fact…

Google announced it is expanding AI Overviews to show on more Google Lens results, including more novel or unique images. This is still only showing on a subset of searches, but now more than when Google first added AI Overviews to Google Lens in May of 2024. Plus, Google is also adding to its Chrome app and Google app for iOS a new Lens feature that lets you select and search whatever’s on your screen with just a simple gesture. AI Overviews and Lens. Google wrote, “now, with help from our advanced AI models, Lens can go much further and provide information on the contents of more novel or unique images. For those kinds of queries, AI Overviews will begin to appe…

Google Search is now offering detailed shopping for product queries in the AI Overviews. Google will first give you a summary answer, which you can then expand, which will provide a super long and detailed breakdown comparison between the two products. What it looks like. If you search for [iphone 15 vs iphone 15 pro] Google will first give you this summary box: When you click on “see full comparison,” Google will then break down the very specific details (click to enlarge the image): More examples. I spotted this via Blair MacGregor who shared this example of Google comparing two bike models: Another example of an AI Overview Google's experimen…

Google’s AI Overviews expanded greatly in three sectors – entertainment, restaurants, and travel – during the March 2025 core update. By the numbers. Between March 13 and 27, according to data shared with Search Engine Land by enterprise SEO platform BrightEdge, the presence of AI Overviews grew by: 528% for entertainment queries (e.g., [Julia Roberts movies], [Movies filmed in Chicago]). 387% for restaurant queries (e.g., [date night restaurants], [Thai restaurant near me], [downtown restaurants]). 381% for travel queries (e.g., [things to do in Santa Fe], [things to do in Hawaii], [things to do in Las Vegas]). But. Part of the reason for these high…

Google rapidly expanded AI Overviews in search during 2025, then pulled back as they moved into commercial and navigational queries. These findings are based on a new Semrush analysis of more than 10 million keywords from January to November. AI Overviews surged, then retreated. Google didn’t roll out AI Overviews in a straight line in 2025. A mid-year spike gave way to a pullback, suggesting Google moved fast to test the feature, then eased off based on user data: January: 6.5% of queries triggered an AI Overview July: AI Overview visibility peaked, appearing in just under 25% of queries. November: Coverage fell back to less than 16% of queries. Zero-c…

Google’s AI Overviews answered a standard factual benchmark correctly 91% of the time in February, up from 85% in October, according to a New York Times analysis with AI startup Oumi. However, Google handles more than 5 trillion searches per year, so that means tens of millions of answers every hour may be wrong. Why we care. We’ve watched Google shift from linking to sources to summarizing them for more than two years. This report suggests AI Overviews are improving, but still mix correct answers, weak sourcing, and clear errors in ways that can mislead searchers and reshape which publishers get visibility and clicks. The details. Oumi tested 4,326 Google se…

By now, we’re all familiar with Google AI Overviews. Many queries you search on Google now surface responses through this quick and prominent search feature. But AI Overview results aren’t always reliable or accurate. Google’s algorithms can promote negative or misleading content, making online reputation management (ORM) difficult. Here’s how to stay on top of AI Overviews and your ORM – by removing, mitigating, or addressing negative content. How AI Overviews source information AI Overviews relies on a mix of data sources across Google and the open web, including: Google’s Knowledge Graph: The Knowledge Graph is Google’s structured database of …

Google has a number of announcements around Al Mode, including dropping the waitlist, adding products and place cards to the answers, a new history panel, and that they are doing a limited test without having to opt in to Al Mode within Search Labs. Testing Al Mode in the wild. Google is now testing Al Mode within Google Search without you having to opt in to Al Mode within Search Labs. That means that you might see the tab for Al Mode without specifically opting into the feature. Soufi Esmailzadeh, Director, Product Management, at Google Search wrote, “Because our power users are finding it so helpful, we’re starting a limited test outside of Labs. In the coming …

UK news site the Sun ended 2024 by losing half of its audience, due in part to “algorithm changes at certain platforms,” according to the latest earnings report from parent company News Corp. On the earnings call, News Corp Chief Financial Officer Lavanya Chandrashekar was more specific, blaming “industry headwinds on search algorithms.” Yes, that means Google search algorithm updates. The drop. Glenn Gabe, SEO consultant at G-Squared Interactive, shared a screenshot showing the massive visibility drop on X: Why we care. Not all websites are losing Google traffic, but many are and have been over the past couple of years following multiple helpful content …

Google launched four official and confirmed algorithmic updates in 2025, three core updates and one spam update. This is in comparison to last year, in 2024, where we had seven confirmed updates, then in 2023, when we had nine confirmed updates and in 2022 and 2021, Google had 10 confirmed algorithmic updates. Fewer updates. Google appears to be confirming fewer updates, even though Google said a year ago, that we should expect more core updates, more often. But that doesn’t mean there were fewer updates. Google did reaffirm that it does not announce all core updates, that the search company only confirms the larger, broader core updates. Plus, I covered dozens o…

Google Analytics is rolling out major updates aimed at sharpening marketing insights – boosting data completeness, adding richer context, and flagging issues before they become problems. Key updates. Google announced these updates to Google Analytics 4: Enhanced data completeness. New aggregate IDs and smart fallback tools keep reports accurate even without traditional tracking, helping you see campaign performance clearly while honoring user consent. Updated data presentation. Labels like “(data not available)” and “(not set)” add clarity, helping you spot gaps and know where to take action. Proactive issue detection. A new data quality indicator and auto-…

Google Analytics added a new AI Assistant channel that tracks traffic from chatbots like ChatGPT, Gemini, and Claude. The update should help you measure visits from AI assistants without using custom filters or workarounds. What’s new. Google Analytics now automatically labels traffic from supported AI assistants with new traffic source values. When someone clicks on your site from a supported AI chatbot, Google Analytics will automatically assign that visit to one of these new channels. Medium: ai-assistant Channel Group: “AI Assistant” Campaign: (ai-assistant) Why we care. This update should help you track AI traffic directly inside standard GA4 repor…

Google Analytics is adding AI-powered Generated insights to the Home page and rolling out cross-channel budgeting (beta), moves designed to help marketers spot performance shifts faster and manage paid spend more strategically. What’s happening. Generated insights now appear directly on the Google Analytics Home screen, summarizing the top three changes since a user’s last visit. That includes notable configuration updates, anomalies in performance and emerging seasonality trends — all without digging into detailed reports. The feature is built for speed. Instead of manually scanning dashboards, marketers get a quick snapshot of what changed and why it may matter.…

Google Analytics now lets advertisers automatically import cost data from Meta and TikTok through new native integrations, streamlining cross-channel performance tracking. Why we care. This update gives marketers a unified view of ad spend and ROI across major platforms – without relying on manual uploads or third-party connectors – helping them better compare efficiency between Google, Meta, and TikTok campaigns. The details. The integrations automatically pull up to 24 months of historical ad cost data from Meta and TikTok. Users must delete any overlapping manual imports to avoid duplicate or inflated data, as Analytics won’t de-duplicate records between m…