AI Overviews: Are They Killing Your Clicks?

⬇️ Prefer to listen instead? ⬇️

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• AI Overviews can cut the clickthrough rate of the top organic search result by up to 34.5%.
• Only 15% of U.S. desktop search queries currently show AI Overviews—but that number is growing.
• Informational-heavy industries like health, finance, and real estate are hit hardest by traffic losses.
• Ads may see increased visibility as AI pushes organic links lower on the SERP.
• Structured data and semantic SEO can help your content get featured or cited in AI Overviews.

Google’s AI Overviews have started to really change how people use search in just a few months. And if you work in SEO or digital marketing, it might not be a good change. These AI summaries now show up before the usual search results. They give answers right there on Google. This change means fewer clicks, less user interest, and more competition for people's attention for website owners and marketers. Let's see what AI Overviews are, how they are reducing your visibility, and most importantly, how to get back your advantage.

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What Are AI Overviews and How Do They Work?

AI Overviews, which used to be called “Search Generative Experience” (SGE), are summaries made by computer programs. They show up at the top of Google search results pages (SERPs). These summaries use Google’s AI to make short, easy-to-read answers. They use information collected from websites all over the internet. Think of them as quick answer boxes, but much smarter and more detailed.

These overviews often appear when you search for information, like:

• “What is a reverse mortgage?”
• “How to lower cholesterol naturally?”
• “Pros and cons of remote work?”

For these kinds of searches, AI Overviews try to give a full answer. This means people often get what they need without clicking to another website.

How They’re Made

Google’s computer programs use current website information and good websites from across the internet to create these summaries. They show where the information comes from with links or reference cards, but these are often not as easy to see as normal blue links.

These AI summaries usually:

• Show up before all normal search results, and sometimes even before ads.
• Include sources, but often as small links or in menus you have to click.
• Change as Google gets new information.

This makes AI Overviews both helpful and a problem. They're great for people who want quick answers, but they are a direct problem for businesses that need clicks to get customers, ad money, or sales.

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The Surprising Clickthrough Rate Change from AI Overviews

Let's be clear: AI Overviews can really hurt your website traffic.

📉 According to a 2024 study by Sparktoro, when AI Overviews are in search results, the average clickthrough rate (CTR) for the top normal result goes down from 24% to 15.9%. That’s a big drop of 34.5%.

That number should worry anyone who plans their website content to target popular search words. You might still be on the first page of results—maybe even in the top spot—but your content is now below an AI-made competitor that Google created.

What Does a 34.5% Drop Mean?

Let's say your blog post usually gets 10,000 website visits a month from search results. A 34.5% clickthrough rate drop means losing 3,450 of those visits. This is without any changes to your website ranking or the quality of your content.

You’re not losing traffic to a competitor—you’re losing it to Google.

This loss of website traffic basically messes up normal SEO plans. Search words that used to bring lots of traffic might now give much less, just because AI Overviews grab people's attention first.

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How Often Do AI Overviews Appear?

As of May 2024, AI Overviews appear in about 15% of U.S. desktop searches (Sparktoro, 2024). That's about one in every six searches.

This isn't everywhere yet, but Google has said and shown that they are putting a lot of money into AI. This suggests they plan to use it much more. Expect it to spread to phones, different kinds of searches, and voice searches.

It’s Not Just a Desktop Issue

Right now, data is mostly about desktop search, but phone versions are coming soon. Phones are used for most internet searches (often over 60% of traffic in many fields). So, it’s just a matter of time before AI Overviews on phones become even more important.

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Who’s Being Affected the Most?

Simply put: people who create information-focused content.

Some areas are seeing a bigger impact from AI Overview appearances and the drop in clicks that comes with them. The fields most affected are:

• Health and Wellness
• Finance and Banking
• Real Estate
• Legal and Compliance
• Education and eLearning

These fields depend on SEO traffic for people at the start of their buying process. Now, many of these searches result in an AI Overview instead of a click.

Examples of Impacted Search Types

• “What is an FHA loan?” (Finance)
• “What are my rights as a tenant?” (Legal)
• “How many calories in an avocado?” (Health/Nutrition)
• “Market trends in San Diego real estate” (Real Estate)

But, search types for buying things or going to a specific website, like "Buy iPhone 15 online" or "Login to TD Bank," are mostly not affected. These searches show that people want to do something, not just read an answer.

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Behind the Stats: How Clickthrough Rate Loss Was Measured

The study that found the clickthrough rate numbers used a good method. Researchers watched 10,000 general search words that were not about specific brands or Google sites. They used outside tools to track website rankings over a period of time.

The search words were grouped by what people wanted:

• Information (like “how does AI learning work?”)
• To buy something (like “buy treadmill online”)
• To find a website (like “YouTube Studio login”)

By dividing the data this way, they could see that AI Overviews mostly affect only certain kinds of searches—mainly information searches.

This means if your SEO plan focuses on blog posts that answer people's questions, you might need to rethink your website traffic predictions and goals.

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SEO Impact Analysis: Big Changes Coming

The SEO world is changing in a big way. For years, being in the #1 spot has been the best thing. But now, AI Overviews are taking that top spot on the page. Being #1 might now be like being #3—or worse.

Rethinking the SEO Plan

Normal SEO works like a sales process:

• People become aware (Beginning of the process)
• People get interested and think about it (Middle of the process)
• People buy (End of the process)

AI Overviews are taking over the beginning part.

To adjust, marketers are now focusing more on:

• Content for the middle part: “Best free CRMs for startups in 2024”
• Content about specific products: “Our CRM vs Salesforce”
• Content based on community or partnerships: "How our startup grew 300% using X tool"

This change helps avoid topics where AI Overviews are common.

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Paid Search: Good News or Just More Money Needed?

When AI Overviews push down normal search results, paid ads often stay in place—or even become more visible. This has made some marketers put more money into pay-per-click ads to make up for lost website traffic.

Based on early feedback in PPC groups:

• Ads above AI Overviews are being seen more.
• Clicks have gone up a little, but not enough to make up for the loss of normal traffic.
• Prices for clicks are going up as it gets harder to get seen.

So, while paid ads are still an option, they are not a perfect answer. Think of them as a short-term fix—not a complete solution.

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What Your Business Can Do: Change Your Plan

If your website traffic is dropping, you need to change direction quickly.

Focus on Search Intent Gaps

Target search types that are less affected by AI Overviews or that need more detailed, personal ideas. Instead of “What is X?”, focus on:

• “Which X is best for [specific use case]?”
• “Why I chose X over Y – real user review”
• “X vs Y comparison for [industry] professionals”

Go Original

Use your own research, data stories, or inside stories to make content that AI can’t easily copy or summarize.

Make Your Brand Known

The more people search for your company name, the less AI Overviews will hurt you. Searches for your brand name cause fewer AI summaries, leading people right to your site.

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Using Content Automation in the AI Age

Content automation tools can be very helpful in this new situation. With less time and traffic, doing more work efficiently is key.

Here’s how content automation helps:

• Change long blog posts into content for Instagram and LinkedIn.
• Automatically create newsletters from SEO articles.
• Turn blog posts into short video plans or podcast ideas.
• Keep FAQs and product pages updated automatically.

The goal is to be everywhere people are, not just on Google Search.

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Structured Data & Semantic SEO: Helping Google Help You

Schema.org markup and semantic SEO are important again. Good structured data makes it easier for AI to know your content is yours. It also makes it more likely that you'll be mentioned in AI Overviews—even if you are not linked.

Things to do:

• Use FAQ, How-To, and Review schema.
• Create groups of content around main search topics.
• Improve internal links around topic ideas.

If AI is summarizing content, it's better if it’s your content, not your competitors'.

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Go Beyond Google: Get Traffic From Other Places

In other words: Don’t depend only on one source.

Other places to focus on:

• Email newsletters
• Podcasts
• Social media activity
• YouTube or TikTok videos
• Community forums or Slack groups

The more different places you market, the safer you are from changes on any one platform—whether it's AI or something else.

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Can Content Made for AI Still Win?

Yes—but it must be smarter, more human, and more unique than before.

Content that works well includes:

• Personal stories and case studies
• Original data and ideas
• Opinions from known experts
• Content with interactive parts or videos

AI can rewrite facts—but it can’t understand feelings, give opinions, or tell personal stories. That’s your special advantage.

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Final Thoughts: SEO Isn’t Dead, It’s Just Different Now

AI Overviews are not ending SEO—but they are making it change. The old plan of just getting a good ranking and seeing results doesn't work as well anymore. Not changing means you'll see your website traffic decrease.

Winning now means:

• Using content automation to do things at scale
• Finding traffic sources other than search
• Making content better quality and more original
• Structuring data so AI can read it

The SEO game has changed. But with the right plan, you can still succeed.

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Citations

• Sparktoro. (2024). AI Overviews reduce click-throughs by 34.5%, fresh data suggests. Data from outside tools tracking rankings for 10,000 search words.
• Sparktoro. (2024). AI Overviews appear in about 15% of U.S. desktop searches as of May 2024.