Google is changing the gam again, are we still measuring SEO the same way?

[SEO_COMPANY]

I have been watching the results lately and the biggest change isn't really rankings anymore.

AI Overviews and AI Mode are taking up more space, while Google is also pushing harder on reviewing AI-generated content before it gets published. The September spam update is still rolling out as well.

What I find interesting is that a page can maintain its position but still lose clicks because the SERP itself has changed.

It makes the old "I'm #3, therefore SEO is working" mindset feel a bit outdated.

I'm starting to look more at impressions, actual clicks, branded searches conversions and whether the site is being mentioned across places like Reddit, forums and other communities.

SEO isn't disappearing.

But the definition of visibility is definitely getting bigger.

 

[Topiano]

Yes I totally agree with you on that. I was performing a search yesterday and I figured that they had a small box for you to continue with the AI search (rather than you just going to the search result and clicking on any website that you want). This is really bad for businesses and is going to take more people out of business. If AI solves everything then there is no point or there is no need for you to start improving your website, start optimizing for SEO, and all that stuff.

Why the majority of our activity has moved into the AI recommendation system, I still think SEO is still a big deal. If you understand the current situation, you want to diversify your current traffic approach and probably get on video as well. I've seen Tom getting on video, although it's not for the sole purpose of sales. It's for whatever is going to come up later in the future. Just prepare it

 

[sharifawan]

One thing worth adding to the list is what those answers actually say about you.

They can show hours or a phone number right in the answer, and if those are out of date the customer acts on them without ever reaching your site.

Are you checking what gets shown, or just whether you're mentioned?

 

[MoMarketing]

yeah I think rankings still matter but I wouldnt use them alone anymore. I’d watch clicks, impressions and conversions together, plus where the brand is showing up outside the normal search results.

 

[Starblazer]

Google is trying hard to overpower competitors in SEO game before others grow web index and replace them. The only advantage Google has is their existing search engine, so they are extracting everything they can from rankings, user intents, etc. to replace regular search with AI overviews.

 

[gomami]

I have been watching the results lately and the biggest change isn't really rankings anymore.

AI Overviews and AI Mode are taking up more space, while Google is also pushing harder on reviewing AI-generated content before it gets published. The September spam update is still rolling out as well.

What I find interesting is that a page can maintain its position but still lose clicks because the SERP itself has changed.

It makes the old "I'm #3, therefore SEO is working" mindset feel a bit outdated.

I'm starting to look more at impressions, actual clicks, branded searches conversions and whether the site is being mentioned across places like Reddit, forums and other communities.

SEO isn't disappearing.

But the definition of visibility is definitely getting bigger.

i believe the greater change would be shifting from a measure of where u rank to a meassure of what happens after being seen. a #3 ranking means very little if the answer has been found via the SERP before reaching ur website. i would use rankings as one of the mettrics but give more importance to the others.

 

[GFXWebStudio]

For me, the goal hasn’t changed, but the measurement has. Rankings and traffic are still useful, but I’d put more weight on whether organic visitors become leads or customers and whether the brand is appearing in AI Overviews and AI Mode.

 

[swtraffic]

I'd compare CTR for the same queries, country and device before attributing a drop to AI. A changing traffic mix can distort the site-wide average, so pair that comparison with screenshots of the affected SERPs. Google's filtering guidance: https://support.google.com/webmasters/answer/10268906

 

[DearMe]

I’d compare clicks and conversions for the same queries over time, alongside rankings. If positions hold but CTR drops, check how the SERP changed; if impressions fall, investigate visibility and demand.

 

[mudasir565]

I agree, rankings alone don’t tell the full story anymore. I’ve started paying more attention to clicks, conversions, branded searches and whether the brand is showing up in discussions outside Google. A #3 position means a lot less if the SERP is taking most of the attention.

 

[celsusa]

A #3 position bringing in fewer clicks than it used to isn’t necessarily an SEO failure it can just mean the SERP changed around it.

 

[RyanCrawls]

Rankings alone dont tell the full story anymore i look more at clicks conversions and branded searches now especially with AI features taking up more space in the SERPs

 

[pixoni]

I have been watching the results lately and the biggest change isn't really rankings anymore.

AI Overviews and AI Mode are taking up more space, while Google is also pushing harder on reviewing AI-generated content before it gets published. The September spam update is still rolling out as well.

What I find interesting is that a page can maintain its position but still lose clicks because the SERP itself has changed.

It makes the old "I'm #3, therefore SEO is working" mindset feel a bit outdated.

I'm starting to look more at impressions, actual clicks, branded searches conversions and whether the site is being mentioned across places like Reddit, forums and other communities.

SEO isn't disappearing.

But the definition of visibility is definitely getting bigger.

yeah i believe that the previous ranking tracking screenshots are losing their relevance as a report by themselves. the question is how much the visibilitty of ur site results in something beneficial for ur business. i would track the impressions, the click through rate, the number of conversions nd the branded searches, as well as how often the site is mentioned outside of google.

 

[SOCOM]

What's happening now is that search is becoming personalized. At least for the time being.

Just like with Youtube, Tiktok or Instagram, you're put into an algorithm that you respond well to.

With Google, they're going to present different search results based on your usage to an extent.

But also, the results will start to look different for each user too and these rank trackers won't matter much.

Not now necessarily, but in the future.

Search is going to be drastically different in a few years.

 

[Larry Scott]

This is accurate. Ranking first means little when an AI overview pushes the organic link so far down the page that it goes unseen. The entire metric system has fundamentally shifted, with zero click searches reaching substantial numbers this year.