20 Aug How AI is Changing the Way We Search the Internet

Let’s explore a provocative idea for a minute: generative AI could eventually replace traditional search engines like Google and Bing.

The idea seems absurd, but AI is quickly rewriting the rules of how customers find and consume information. This shift has implications for the user journey, which has always been an integral part of digital marketing.

Here’s how it usually looks: Every customer’s journey begins with awareness, that moment a need or problem arises. The second stage of this journey is consideration. This is where users weigh their options, and brands have the opportunity to convince them with valuable content or free resources.

With generative AI offering quick, confident answers upfront, users are now bypassing the comparison and evaluation stage and jumping straight to conversion.

Visibility is not only won on the first page of Google, but through AI platforms like Gemini, Perplexity, CoPilot and ChatGPT.

The Shift from Search Engines to AI Assistants

For the past two decades, Google has dominated internet searches and has held the crown for establishing online visibility for many brands. It’s been the undisputed king of search, but the monumental shift in user behaviour and how users search for products, services and answers, seems to be posing a threat to the search giant’s dominance.

As SOMS Digital director Glynn puts it, “These days, it’s not just about organic search and it’s not just about the big search engine dogs like Google and Bing.”

In late 2024, Google’s market share fell below 90% for the first time in a decade.

While there are a number of factors prompting this change, there’s no denying that AI platforms like ChatGPT and Perplexity have played a major role in this drop. Users no longer want to sift through ten links in the hopes of finding what they’re searching for, especially when AI so easily offers them quick answers to their questions. As Glynn explains, “AI platforms like ChatGPT are becoming new, major competitors to existing search engines.”

Ask AI what the best running shoes for women in South Africa are and it will deliver a personalised conclusion upfront – turning a multi-click journey into a single reply.

So, could generative search completely replace search engines like Google?

The evolution in user behaviour marks a serious challenge for search engines trying to retain user engagement, especially ones such as Google who rely on link-based results and advertising slots.
According to Gartner, the rise of generative search is expected to reduce traditional search engine traffic by 25% by 2026. As more people turn to instant, AI-powered answers instead of scrolling through Google results, it’s clear that the company’s long-standing monopoly is under growing threat.

AI and the Changing Search Funnel

Google isn’t going anywhere, but its influence over consumer behaviour is starting to slip. The digital landscape is evolving, blending traditional search with AI assistance. This has disrupted the traditional multi-stage funnel (awareness → consideration → decision), and rather than moving linearly, the brand awareness aspect of the funnel is starting to look more like a plate sitting on a spin top, says Glynn.

AI now plays an essential role in how users move from finding your brand to making a decision. For example, a trip to Plettenberg Bay might start with a quick search on Google for “weekend getaway spots in Plettenberg Bay.” But instead of clicking through travel blogs and hotel links, users may move to ChatGPT to ask it to help create a “weekend itinerary for Plettenberg Bay.” This sees users skip the traditional comparison phase altogether as AI delivers personalised recommendations that help to better guide users.

What makes AI-generated answers so unique isn’t just that they feel personal and conversational. It’s that they often draw from user-generated content like Reddit, which makes these answers feel more trustworthy, and that trust changes how users choose to search.

Generative AI isn’t replacing the funnel, it’s expanding it. To stay relevant, brands will need to adapt. Right now, it’s not about choosing between old or new, but about creating a clear strategy that evolves with the changing landscape.

Impressions Are Rising, Clicks Are Dropping

While Google still dominates search, it’s not handing over the reins to AI just yet. With tools like Gemini and AI Overviews, Google is actively shaping how AI integrates into the search experience. In particular, Google’s AI Overviews aim to offer instant, comprehensive answers to search queries without users having to scroll any further.

The impact? Many brands are noticing a drop in click-through rates on their Google search results. According to Adobe, 75% of users prefer to use Google’s AI Overview to find what they’re looking for before leaving, resulting in a 32% drop in organic CTR for even top-ranking results.

But according to Glynn, there’s no need to panic.

“With AI now thrown into the mix you’ll get more brand awareness and lower click through rates, but users will likely search for you by name which will see an increase in more direct brand based conversions.”

While organic traffic may be dropping, the upside is that impressions (and visibility) is on the rise. This matters for long-term branding, even if CTR dips. With more brand information shown directly with AI summaries, users don’t need to click through to learn about you. Brand awareness is the new starting point, and generative search is the gatekeeper shaping what users see next.

As generative search reduces the number of traditional search results and ad slots, digital advertising opportunities on search engines may shrink. As a result, more marketers appear to be shifting their budgets toward traditional “above-the-line” advertising (like TV, radio, outdoor, print), or other broader brand awareness channels, to maintain visibility.

What This Means for Marketers and Brands

The AI boom poses new challenges for brands wanting to stay ahead of their competition, and according to Glynn, there are a few factors to get your foot in the door.

Optimise for AI Discovery

Most AI results are questions, so a good thing to do is ask questions in headlines. Think about what users would ask AI if they were hoping to find your brand.

Write for Humans and Machines

Because AI is not just crawling for information, but summarising and extracting, it’s important that your content starts with the answer first before you provide users with additional information. Again, think about the questions that users may be typing into AI.

Use Schema and Structured Data

Schema based content is becoming more relevant as it helps AI understand your content better. For example, instead of just seeing “4.5 stars,” schema tells Google: “This is a review rating for a product.” Well-crafted FAQs and schema marked content are likely to improve your chances of being featured via AI.

Don’t Forget To E-E-A-T

Despite Google’s changing search algorithms and generative search entering the picture, there’s one acronym that remains the cornerstone of getting your brand noticed, and that’s Google’s E-E-A-T. As generative AI becomes more selective about what it includes, brands that align with E-E-A-T are far more likely to be featured. Here’s how each aspect can give your brand an edge:

Experience: Generative AI is more likely to feature content that provides first-hand knowledge. Case studies and original research are just a few ways your brand can get cited by AI.

Expertise: AI wants to provide users with accurate answers, and that requires content that showcases deep knowledge and understanding. Author bylines, credentials and expert contributions are good ways to get noticed.

Authoritativeness: AI platforms want to ensure it’s pulling information from trusted and well-established sources. Brands need to ensure they have a strong online presence (social media, website, etc.) in which other websites link to or mention your brand. For example, if tons of health blogs reference the Mayo Clinic, it boosts Mayo’s authoritativeness in AI-generated health answers.

Trustworthiness: Trust is the foundation for Google’s AI Overviews and other AI models. Therefore, brands must provide factually accurate and verifiable content. Genuine user reviews, reliable citations, and transparent sourcing are encouraged.

What can you do to come up in Generative AI, and AI Search?

Although it’s still a work in progress, and the details to ranking and appearing are still being determined, you can increase the likelihood of your brand appearing by doing the following:

• Continue with traditional SEO on-page tactics
• Continue with off-site link building and citations
• Focus on user questions in titles, headings and meta data
• Work on your Schema markup
• Provide unique insights into your content, that may not exist on the web
• Link to reputable sources that are relevant to your content
• Gain reviews
• Create unique content and don’t rely on web generated information
• Include images and video
• Include your brand

AI Is Reshaping the Digital Landscape

Despite all of this, there’s still value in ranking first on Google. While success in this new AI-driven world is not guaranteed, brands will need to ensure their content is human written and authentic, includes rich content, offers real-world expertise and credible sources, but above all, offers users authenticity.

The bottomline is that AI platforms like Perplexity and ChatGPT can no longer be viewed as a novelty, but needs to be seen as an investment for every brand’s future. According to Semrush, AI will become a major revenue and traffic driver for websites by 2027, but here at SOMS Digital, we’re already seeing early signs of this shift with some of our own clients.

As tools like ChatGPT and Google’s AI Overviews continue to evolve, brands that prioritise AI discovery will likely begin to capture meaningful traffic and engagement from these new search experiences.