How AI Overviews Are Changing Organic CTR and Forcing Content Creators to Adapt new SEO strategy for Google’s Future Rankings

AI Overviews are definitely shaking things up in the world of Google ranking. It’s not just about getting to the top of the search results anymore; it’s about how people (users) are actually interacting with those results, or not interacting, as the case of zero search clicks may be. Content is the king is back again.

ctr zero search clicks ai overview — Illustration of CTR with ai overview table

The Basics: CTR and AI Overviews

First off, let’s quickly go over what we’re talking about.

CTR

CTR stands for Click-Through Rate. It’s basically the percentage of people who see your link (website) on Google and then actually click on it to visit your website. So, if your link shows up 100 times and 5 people click, your CTR is 5%. Simple as that.

AI Overviews

Now, AI Overviews ( SGE, or Search Generative Experience) are those AI-generated summaries that pop up right at the top of Google’s search results which you can not turn off. Google uses artificial intelligence to pull information from different websites and give you a quick, direct answer.
The idea of Google is to save you time by giving you the info you need without having to click around. They’re especially handy for questions where you just need a straightforward answer, like “how-to” guides or general info. Still products are safe 🙂

How AI Overviews Are Changing Things

These AI Overviews are really changing how people use Google. Instead of scrolling through a list of links and clicking on a few to find what they’re looking for, users can often get their answer instantly from the AI Overview.

zero-click search, what is and AI Overview

This leads to something called a “zero-click search.” That’s when someone types something into Google, gets their answer from the AI Overview (or a featured snippet, or a knowledge panel), and never actually clicks on any of the website links. This is happening a lot more now, especially for those quick informational queries.

Noticeable drop in your website's organic CTR — AI illustration of CTR going zero

Global AI Overview: If an AI Overview combined results from Google, Bing, and Yandex, it would create a “Global AI Overview” – a much richer, yet potentially more complex, summary.

What it Would Look Like

Core Consensus & Diverse Views: The overview would start with information all three search engines agree on. Then, it would add unique insights from each: Google’s general authority, Bing’s strong visuals and shopping focus, and Yandex’s deep dive into Russian-language content or technical specifics.
Expanded Sources: The list of sources would be longer, clearly showing links from all three engines.
Visual & Multilingual: Expect more integrated images and videos, and potentially multilingual summaries, leveraging each engine’s strengths.

How it Might Work

User Controls: You might get options to filter the overview to see results from just one search engine, or even see why certain pieces of information were included.

Pros & Cons

Cons: It could be overwhelming, present conflicting information, and would be incredibly challenging to build and manage technically. There would also be significant issues around how to attribute sources and manage monetization across different platforms.

Pros: A more comprehensive and less biased understanding of topics, plus discovery of niche content.

Global AI Overview would likely not work for tech companies like Google primarily due to a conflict with their fundamental business models, competitive strategies, and technical realities.
So back again in reality, Google would not love to see their results if they are not paid on other websites and SE.
Be real! Yes there is a free or a low price Programmable Search Engine.

I had an idea to combine this in my project Reel the Wheel https://reelthewheel.com where you insert a topic and website would show you all about the search topics. Search texts, images, videos, social media posts, events… But still going on 🙂

back on the track again.

Noticeable drop in your website’s organic CTR

So, what does this mean for your website’s CTR? Well, if people are getting their answers directly from Google, they’re not clicking on your link. This can lead to a noticeable drop in your website’s organic CTR, even if you’re ranking high. It’s like being first in line, but the store gives everyone what they want at the door, so fewer people come inside.

Is CTR Still Important for Ranking?

Google has always been a bit cagey about whether CTR is a direct ranking factor. They usually say it’s more about relevance and quality. But, let’s be real, if a search result consistently gets clicked more than others, it probably signals to Google that it’s a good, relevant answer.

AI Overviews in the picture, impact the role of CTR is definitely shifting

However, with AI Overviews in the picture, the role of CTR is definitely shifting. It’s not going to become irrelevant, but its influence on traditional ranking might change.

Think of it this way:

If an AI Overview appears, and people still skip it to click on your organic listing, that’s a strong signal to Google that your content is super valuable for that specific query.
Google might also start looking more at what happens after a click – like how long someone stays on your site, if they bounce right away, or if they convert into a customer. These “post-click” metrics might become more important than just the initial click itself.
For some searches, like when you’re looking to buy something specific or find a particular website, AI Overviews might not be as helpful. In those cases, traditional organic clicks and CTR will still be very important for getting traffic.

zero click searches meaning and what does It mean for SEO?

practical example:

I have a blog post describing the topics on the picture. Google crawl my blog post, gather information’s from it, publishes answer in ai overview with few more answers together and my website gets few impressions, ZERO clicks and ZERO CTR.

ai overviews gives answer and people don't click to visit the website

When you ask something in search, AI overviews gives you answer and here print screen example shows a image from my website is shown since is obvious answer written on the subject.

then I get in Search console zero clicks

queries in search get no clicks because of ai overview

Images in Ai overview?

As you have seen above image was shown in search and…

… what most interesting is: image search type in GSC on this search term and there is ZERO clicks and impressions . That means even showed in search image is not counted in impressions bar. Interesting. Maybe is related with desktop vs mobile versions or personalized results. 🙂
So basically AI overview is just a scraped text and published as “AI” to get out of the trouble when copyright comes in town. That’s why AI overview is “free” “personalized” and on the top of the search.

ai overview is killing websites and content creators

Adapting Your SEO Strategy

Given all these changes, how should you adjust your SEO efforts?

Optimize for AI Overviews: Think about how you can structure your content so Google’s AI can easily understand and summarize it. Use clear headings, bullet points, and answer common questions directly. The goal is to be one of the sources that the AI Overview cites.
Focus on High-Intent Searches: Concentrate on content for queries where people are more likely to need to click through to a website – like when they’re ready to buy something, looking for specific reviews, or need really in-depth information.
Build Trust (E-E-A-T): Google’s AI needs to trust your content to use it. So, keep building your expertise, authority, and trustworthiness in your niche.
Diversify Your Traffic: Don’t put all your eggs in the Google organic search basket. Explore other ways to get visitors, like social media, email marketing, or even direct visits from people who already know your brand.
Look Beyond Just Clicks: Start paying attention to other metrics that show how engaged people are with your site, like how long they stay, if they come back, or if they complete a purchase.
Build Your Brand: If people know and trust your brand, they’re more likely to search for you directly or click on your link even if an AI Overview is present.
Key takeaway:
Click-through rates are becoming less relevant for some queries — not all.
Quality, authority, and usefulness are your best defense as AI Overviews expand.
Spot pages that are at risk
Find stronger keyword angles

Why AI Overviews Are Good for Website Content Creators

Increased Visibility for Authority: If your website is a highly authoritative and trustworthy source on a topic, your content is more likely to be cited within an AI Overview. This provides a new, highly prominent form of visibility at the top of the SERP, even if it doesn’t always lead to a click. Being cited establishes your brand as a recognized expert. Basicly if answer provided by AI Overview is that good people will search more of info on your website, IF LINKED in Google.
New Opportunities for Niche and Long-Tail Content: AI Overviews excel at summarizing general information. This could open up opportunities for content creators to focus on more specific, niche, or long-tail queries that require more in-depth answers or unique data. For these queries, a user might still need to click through to your site.
Content Optimization Guidance: The existence of AI Overviews pushes content creators to produce even higher-quality, well-structured, and accurate content. This forces a focus on clarity, direct answers, and strong E-E-A-T, which are good SEO practices regardless.
Brainstorming and Research Assistance: AI tools, including the underlying technology powering AI Overviews, can assist content creators with brainstorming topics, performing research, and generating outlines, making the content creation process more efficient.
Potential for “Branded” Engagement: If your brand is strongly associated with a particular type of information, being cited in an AI Overview for a branded query can reinforce your authority and potentially lead to direct searches for your brand later on.

Why AI Overviews Are Bad for Website Content Creators

google is the king — Illustration of Google vs users 🙂 Hallucinations

“Hallucinations” and Misinformation: While improving, AI models can still “hallucinate” or generate incorrect information. If an AI Overview cites your site for inaccurate information, it could inadvertently harm your brand’s reputation, even if the inaccuracy originated from Google’s AI.

Reduced Organic Click-Through Rates (CTR):
This is the most significant concern. When AI Overviews provide a complete answer on the SERP, users often have no reason to click through to the original website. This leads to a “zero-click search” and a substantial drop in organic traffic for many sites, especially those providing informational content.

Decreased Website Traffic and Revenue: For businesses that rely heavily on organic search traffic for advertising revenue, lead generation, or sales, a drop in CTR can directly translate to a decrease in revenue.

Loss of Control Over Messaging: AI Overviews summarize content, and in doing so, they might strip away nuance, context, or specific brand messaging. This means content creators lose some control over how their information is presented to the end-user.

Increased Competition for Visibility: Being cited in an AI Overview is highly valuable, but only a few sources are typically highlighted. This intensifies the competition to be the authoritative source that Google chooses to feature.

Difficulty for Smaller/Newer Websites: Building the authority and trust signals (E-E-A-T) necessary to be cited in AI Overviews can be challenging for newer or smaller websites, making it harder for them to gain initial visibility.

The bottom line is that the game is changing. It’s no longer just about getting to position one in Google’s organic results. It’s about making sure your content is so good and so well-structured that it either gets picked up by an AI Overview, or it’s so compelling that people have to click through to your site, even if an AI summary is available. It’s about being visible and valuable in this new, AI-driven search world.

The idea of Google’s AI paying for content and creators blocking access if not paid is a complex but increasingly relevant discussion.

The Core Idea of Google paying to crawl your content?

Content creators want fair compensation if Google’s AI Overviews reduce clicks to their sites. They also want more control over how their content is used by AI. This could involve direct payments for AI usage or the ability to block AI crawlers that don’t pay.

Is that why there is no info in GSC over clicks from Ai Overview?

Probably. Once they find out the win-win for both parties is only one side winning.

Why It’s Appealing (Good for Creators)

Compensation: Creates a new revenue stream for content that fuels AI answers.
Sustainability: Helps fund the creation of high-quality content when traffic drops.
Control: Gives creators more power over their intellectual property.

Why It’s Challenging (Complications)

Complexity: Defining and tracking “usage” for payment across billions of pages is incredibly difficult.
Search Quality: If many sites block AI, the quality and comprehensiveness of AI Overviews (and search itself) could suffer.
Scalability: Implementing micropayments for vast amounts of content is a massive technical and administrative hurdle.
Open Web vs. Paywalls: It could lead to a more fragmented internet where valuable content is locked behind payments, limiting access for users.

In short, while it offers a potential solution for content creators to be fairly compensated in the AI era, implementing such a system would fundamentally reshape the internet and presents significant practical and ethical challenges but if you block google crawler your website will be NOT visible in search.
Win WIn for Google.

image depicting a large entity representing Google triumphing over smaller figures symbolizing content creators — AI illustration of Google triumphing over smaller figures symbolizing content creators: