How does traditional SEO match-up in the age of AI?
Traditional or classical SEO has now evolved into an answer-first and search-everywhere environment with the advent of generative search engines and AI tools. The SEO vocabulary now involves terms such as AEO (answer engine optimization), GEO (generative engine optimization) and AIO (artificial intelligence optimization), an umbrella term for optimizing your brand’s entire digital footprint for discovery with AI.
So how relevant is traditional SEO in today’s search landscape?
In this blog we attempt to analyze the impact of AI – as we know it now – on the SEO universe. We analyze what’s good, what’s not quite there yet, and the way ahead.
Overview
Search engines have lately been increasingly showing up AI generated output for search terms. One is likely to be shown AI overviews before organic or even local search listings. This AI-first disruption has further pushed down traditional blue link listings, thereby intensifying competition for visibility.
A high page rank does not necessarily guarantee visibility with AI tools. AI, with its focus on user intent, has shifted the paradigm from traditional keyword-based search rankings to achieving brand mentions & topical authority. Enter AEO & GEO – disciplines that focus on acquiring citations and brand mentions for AI searches.
What's Good about AI in search?
- AI search retains the fundamentals of good, traditional SEO signals
AI-driven search prioritizes and rewards high quality, authoritative and structured content. Powerful AI algorithms can analyze humungous datasets that are now capable of deep insights into user behavior.
This essentially demands paying more attention to E-E-A-T (experience, expertise, authority and trustworthiness) signals now more than ever before. GEO essentially shares the same value system as SEO.
- AI has created a new marketing channel for discovery and engagement.
AI overviews on search engines or other AI-based platforms have opened up a new channel for discovery in addition to traditional search. AEO & GEO now necessitate finding and fixing content gaps to ensure visibility in AI answers.
This implies providing AI engines with quick, straightforward and clear answers to prompts that are usually more conversational than traditional keywords. Prompts are to GEO what keywords are to SEO.
- AI offers a vast array of tools to automate and speed up SEO tasks.
When it comes to SEO and GEO, a plethora of AI tools are now available to marketers to conduct keyword analyses and devise more precise, technical on-site and off-site audits.
AI tools can be handy in crafting tailored and personalized content strategies. AI brings speed and efficiency with SEO workflows.
What's not so good?
- AI search can cause a potential decrease in CTR (click-through rates).
With AI overviews being served up above everything else, traditional blue links have been pushed down even further than before. This could mean lesser website visits and a drop in click-through rates.
- AI-based search can be susceptible to the introduction of bias.
AI, while efficient, is still evolving at this stage. AI models depend on training. Therein lies the risk of exposure to biased, motivated, inaccurate data and privacy issues.
Recent studies have shown that AI bots have a tendency to ‘hallucinate’ or concoct responses even when they clearly don’t know the answer. Also, the risks of data exploitation and opaque algorithms bring their own set of challenges to relying solely on AI.
- AI cannot substitute human experience and oversight.
We still have a long way to go before AI can completely replace a human, if that is at all possible.
Artificial intelligence can generate summaries from gathered information, but can’t substantiate it with lived experience, nuance, empathy and critical thinking which only a human is capable of.
- AI search gravitates towards passive suggestion rather than active seeking.
AI-based search is likely to serve up a summarized and curated, fixed answer. Take it or leave it. With this instant gratification, are we dumbing down the search experience? Traditional search is more like a buffet, leaving the choice to question, seek and discover information in the hands of the user.
The way ahead
So where does this leave traditional SEO in the age of AI? The essence of ranking and visibility on search engines, such as context, relevance, nuance, accuracy, trustworthiness and authoritativeness still remain the same for AEO/GEO as well as SEO. Read more in detail about AEO, GEO & AIO.
While AI in search is steadily evolving, it cannot replace human discernment and oversight. People are more likely to rely on traditional links than just AI overviews and summaries. For a deep dive into specific topics, people are still going to use traditional search.
If anything, AI has made adhering to SEO best-practices all the more important. This includes creating quality and fresh content, using structured data, and using long-tail keywords that are more in a natural conversational style for AI engines to pick up. That being said, marketers are still figuring out AI search’s impact on revenue and making sense of it all. A lot of it is still experimental, as is the case with any new disruption.
In conclusion, the principles and nuts and bolts of traditional SEO have become even more relevant today with the advent of AI. Earning brand mentions and citations in AI overviews requires adhering to SEO best practices now more than ever before.
AI can augment and empower traditional SEO. AI can help separate the grain from the chaff and further distil search results with a focus on delivering greater accuracy based on user intent, but it cannot replace traditional search altogether. Lastly, AI is to be seen as yet another channel for discovery, yet another tool to be embraced rather than feared. For now, this is where we would like to rest the case for SEO in the age of AI.
In summary
- AI search disciplines such as AEO, GEO & AIO retain the fundamentals of traditional SEO
- AI tools can help speed-up and automate SEO tasks
- AI search focuses on delivering accuracy based on user intent
- AI search can gravitate towards passive suggestion rather than active seeking
- AI cannot substitute human experience, discernment & oversight
- AI presents brands with a new channel for discovery