For nearly two decades, SEO followed a fairly predictable playbook.
You picked a set of keywords, created helpful content around them, optimized your titles and headings, built some links, and (if you did it well) you earned steady organic traffic from Google. That traffic then turned into leads and customers. Simple enough.
That model is rapidly disappearing.AI-powered search (Google AI Overviews, ChatGPT, Claude, Perplexity, etc.) and massive shifts in user behavior are rewriting the rules of how people discover brands, evaluate options, and make buying decisions. Traditional “publish a blog and wait for Google to send traffic” SEO is slowly dying—not because content doesn’t matter, but because the way people find and consume that content has fundamentally changed.
If you’re a business owner or marketing leader, this isn’t a theoretical problem. It impacts your traffic, your leads, and your revenue.
In this article, we’ll unpack:
- What’s actually changing in SEO because of AI
- Why organic traffic is harder to win (even when you rank)
- How user behavior has shifted beyond Google
- The new SEO “north stars” you should focus on
- Practical steps you can take right now to adapt
Traditional SEO vs. Today’s Reality
For years, the SEO formula looked like this:
- Publish lots of SEO-friendly content on your website
- Rank in Google for relevant keywords
- Capture organic traffic
- Convert a portion of that traffic into leads and customers
Google was the catalyst. Your website (usually your blog) was the destination. If you owned a keyword, you could count on a steady stream of new visitors at the top of the funnel.
That’s not how it works anymore.
AI Overviews and Zero-Click Search
Google’s AI Overviews and other “zero-click” features now answer many queries directly on the search results page. Users get the summary, comparison, or step-by-step answer they need without clicking through to any website.
Even when you “win” a keyword and show up at the top, your result may be:
- Outshined by an AI block that answers the question faster
- Pushed below the fold by ads and other SERP features
- Competing with media sites, review sites, and Reddit threads
Result: you can be ranking but not receiving meaningful traffic.
At the same time, Google has tightened its algorithm around E-E-A-T (Experience, Expertise, Authority, Trustworthiness). Sites that used to get huge traffic numbers from broad, top-of-funnel content are seeing steep declines if that content isn’t tightly aligned with their core expertise.
The rules changed—but nobody asked brands for permission. That’s a bigger problem we’ll have to address in another blog.
The Bigger Shift: How People Actually Search Now
The biggest change in SEO isn’t a tool or an algorithm. It’s people.
Today, search behavior looks very different:
- People still use Google—more than ever, in fact—but they don’t rely on it alone.
- They ask ChatGPT or Claude complex questions to compare options or plan strategies.
- They treat TikTok, YouTube, and Reddit as search engines.
- They get recommendations inside Slack groups, Discord communities, and private newsletters.
In other words: discovery is no longer a simple path that starts with
It looks more like a pinball machine:
- Someone sees a LinkedIn post.
- Then they search a question in Google.
- Then they read a Reddit thread.
- Then they ask ChatGPT to summarize options.
- Then they click a comparison article from a media site.
- Finally, they might land on your website, provided your brand has surfaced enough positive signals along the way.
There is no single “front door” anymore. Your website is one part of a much larger content ecosystem.
Where AI and Search Engines Are Getting Their Answers
Here’s the crucial piece: AI tools and AI Overviews don’t just pull from your blog or landing pages when they answer questions.
They pull from:
- High-authority media sites (Forbes, NBC, niche trade publications)
- Review and comparison sites
- Wikipedia and similar reference sources
- YouTube videos
- Reddit threads and other community platforms
- Third-party rankings, ratings, and case studies
They care a lot less about what you say about yourself and a lot more about:
- What others say about you
- Where your brand is mentioned and linked
- Whether those sources have authority and trust
That means your “SEO” results increasingly depend on your entire digital footprint, not just your on-site content.
Is SEO Dead?
Short answer: no. But “traditional SEO” seems to be on the way out.
Brands that are:
- Creating original, high-quality content
- Closely tying that content to their true expertise or product
- Earning mentions and coverage beyond their own website
…are still seeing strong results. Think of organizations like Cleveland Clinic in the medical space: they produce deeply researched, medically reviewed content that closely matches what they actually do. That type of content still performs.
The difference now is:
- You can no longer treat “traffic” from broad informational keywords as your primary SEO KPI.
- You can no longer rely on a single blog or content hub as the entirety of your search strategy.
- You have to think in terms of trust, influence, and brand presence, not just “rankings.”
The New SEO North Stars: Branded Search and Direct Traffic
If AI and zero-click features are eating top-of-funnel organic traffic, what should you be measuring instead?
Two metrics are becoming far more important:
1. Branded Search
This is when someone searches for your name or your name plus a modifier:
- YourBrand [service]
- YourBrand pricing
- YourBrand reviews
- YourBrand vs competitor
Branded queries are powerful signals. They mean the person:
- Has already heard of you
- Has some level of trust or familiarity
- Is closer to a decision (mid/bottom of funnel)
If your branding, content, and ecosystem are working, you should see branded search volume grow—even if top-of-funnel generic keywords shrink.
2. Direct Traffic
Direct traffic is when someone types in your URL, clicks a bookmark, or comes from an untracked source (like some email clients, apps, or dark social).
In practice, it usually means:
- They already know who you are
- They’ve encountered you somewhere in that “pinball” journey
- They’re now coming straight to you on purpose
Both branded search and direct traffic are indications that your brand is earning mindshare, not just gaming algorithms.
Content as an Ecosystem, Not a Blog
In 2026 and beyond, your content strategy can’t be “we publish blog posts and hope they rank.”
You need a content ecosystem that spans:
- Owned channels
- Website and blog
- Landing pages
- Email newsletters
- Webinars, resources, and tools
- Earned channels
- PR and media coverage
- Guest articles and podcast appearances
- Reviews and third-party comparisons
- Social and community
- LinkedIn posts and thought leadership
- YouTube and short-form video
- Reddit, Quora, Slack/Discord communities
- Industry forums and niche groups
- Paid
- Google Ads and paid search
- Paid social promotion
- Sponsored content and retargeting campaigns
All of these contribute to the signals AI and search engines use to evaluate your brand and decide whether you’re worth recommending when a user asks a question.
What To Do With the Content You Already Have
Many businesses spent years investing in SEO content. The good news: that work isn’t wasted—but it does need to be updated.
Here’s how to make existing content perform in an AI-driven world:
1. Optimize, Don’t Just Add
Instead of constantly publishing new posts, start by optimizing what you already have:
- Update outdated sections and statistics
- Combine thin, overlapping articles into stronger, more comprehensive ones
- Improve internal linking so related content supports key pages
2. Add Real Experience and Authority
Google and AI tools are looking for E-E-A-T signals: Experience, Expertise, Authority, Trustworthiness. That means your content should include:
- Practical insights from your actual work
- Quotes or perspectives from your team or clients
- Case studies and real examples
- Original data or observations you can’t find elsewhere
This is what separates “generic AI text” from content that feels credible, human, and worth surfacing.
3. Answer Questions the Way AI Does
LLMs like ChatGPT love clearly structured Q&A, and so do people.
Consider:
- Adding FAQ sections to key pages
- Breaking topics into clear, conversational subheadings (“How does X work?”, “Is X worth it?”, “What are the risks?”)
- Writing in the same natural language your customers actually use when they ask questions
The more your page reads like a helpful, structured answer, the more likely it is to be referenced or paraphrased by AI tools.
How AI Fits into Content Creation (Without Ruining It)
AI is a powerful tool—but it’s not your new head of copywriting.
Right now, the best results come from using AI to:
- Research a topic and uncover angles you might miss
- Draft outlines, structures, and content briefs
- Summarize long-form material into shorter formats (social posts, email snippets)
- Generate variants of headlines, intros, or calls-to-action
- Speed up editing and proofreading
Where AI struggles is exactly where your brand needs to shine:
- Thoughtful, specific, opinionated thought leadership
- Nuanced brand voice and storytelling
- Deep, experience-driven how-to content
- Strategic messaging that aligns with your positioning
In other words: use AI to support your writers and strategists, not replace them.
Practical Next Steps for Your Business
If you’re wondering, “Okay, what should we actually do with all this?” here’s a practical starting checklist:
1. Revisit Your Strategy (Not Just Your Tools)
- Re-evaluate your SEO services and content strategy in light of AI, not just “best practices” from 2022.
- Define clear goals around branded search, direct traffic, and qualified leads, not just page views.
- Align your content topics tightly with what your business truly does and sells.
2. Audit Your Website Health
- Check site speed and mobile performance.
- Simplify navigation and ensure key pages are easy to find.
- Make sure your most important pages (services, portfolio, contact) are compelling and conversion-ready.
Search engines increasingly factor in user experience—if visitors bounce because your site is slow or confusing, that hurts everything else.
3. Strengthen Your Content Foundation
- Identify your top 10–20 most important pages or posts.
- Optimize those for depth, clarity, and E-E-A-T.
- Add FAQs and clear, conversational headings to address real questions prospects ask.
4. Think Beyond Your Own Site
- Look for opportunities to appear in media, niche blogs, podcasts, and industry newsletters.
- Encourage and collect reviews on relevant platforms.
- Participate in relevant communities thoughtfully (not spammy self-promotion).
These “off-site” signals matter more than ever.
5. Integrate Paid and Organic
- Use paid search and paid social to support high-value content and key offers.
- Treat paid campaigns as a way to test messaging and topics that can then inform your SEO and content strategy.
In today’s environment, a content strategy without any paid support is often too slow and too fragile.
SEO Isn’t Dead—It’s Growing Up
AI hasn’t killed SEO. It’s forced it to evolve.
The days of chasing vanity traffic with generic blog posts are over. What matters now is:
- Owning your expertise
- Showing up consistently across an ecosystem of channels
- Earning trust signals from real people and reputable platforms
- Creating content that’s genuinely useful—not just keyword-optimized
If you adapt to that reality, SEO can still be one of the most powerful growth engines for your business. It just looks different than it did a few years ago.
If you’d like help reviewing your current SEO and content strategy in light of these changes—or you want a partner to help you build a modern, AI-aware content ecosystem—MAYO can help. We live at the intersection of web design, content, and search, and we’d love to show you what’s possible in this new landscape.
