How Google’s AI Overviews Are Changing Search and What SEOs Should Do

Google’s new AI overviews are transforming the way users interact with search results and reshaping the world of SEO in the process. If you’re seeing organic clicks fall away, or if your once-top-ranking content is being eclipsed by auto-generated summaries, you’re not alone.

As a leading SEO agency in Hemel Hempstead, Buckinghamshire, and Bedfordshire, and with experience supporting clients through local SEO services in London, we’re helping businesses adjust to this new search landscape. Whether you’re a business collaborating with an SEO company in London or a company analysing a digital transformation, here’s what you need to know and what you should do next.

What Are Google’s AI Overviews?

AI Overviews, previously known as Search Generative Experience (SGE), instead of linking out to websites immediately, Google now provides AI-generated summaries at the top of some search results.

Google AI Overviews, formerly Search Generative Experience (SGE),are Google’s latest innovation using generative AI to answer search queries directly on the results page. Rather than immediately linking out to the full contents of websites, Google now offers AI-generated summaries at the top of many, if not most, search pages.

These overviews:

• Summarise key information based on multiple sources.
  
• Push traditional organic listings further down the page.
  
• Often answer questions users would previously click through to learn.
  

This is helping users but, at the same time, is a massive pain for SEOs and marketers like me who rely on organic traffic.

Why AI Overviews Matter to SEO Professionals

For years, the top spot on Google meant visibility, traffic, and authority. Now there is the AI Overview. Businesses are seeing:

• Reduced click-through rates (CTR) for top-ranking pages.
  
• Increased zero-click searches, where users get answers without leaving Google.
  
• More competition for visibility, especially from AI-generated content.
  

As an SEO consultant in London, we’ve noticed a trend towards these changes, so we believe a strategy needs to be aligned to this way of thinking, where brand authority, content structure, and user intent are key, respectively.

How to Adapt Your SEO Strategy in the Age of AI Overviews

1. Focus on Deep, Authoritative Content

Google’s AI pulls information from authoritative sources. If your content is thin or overly sales-focused, it’s unlikely to be featured in the overview.

Google’s AI draws information from reliable sources. If your content is poor quality, thin in terms of quality or not relevant to the overview, you’re not likely to be featured in the rundown.

Action Step: Create high-quality, deep content that shows that you really know what you’re doing. If you are a local business owner, local SEO services in London will help you achieve this and cover any knowledge of the area and industry that your content does not already.

2. Optimise for Topical Authority

Google favours sites that cover topics comprehensively. Instead of focusing on a single keyword. Build clusters of content around your core services or niche.

Google prefers websites that specialise in depth on specific subjects. Don’t just write about one keyword, Build content clusters around your core services/topics.

For example, an SEO agency in Buckinghamshire could produce a cluster of content around “local SEO strategies”, comprising posts on Google Business Profile optimisation, local backlink development, and review management.

3. Structure Content for AI Visibility

AI Overviews love content that is:

• Easy to scan
  
• Well-organised
  
• Rich in FAQs and subheadings
  

Action Step: Use clear H2/H3 headers, bullet points, and concise answers to common questions. This makes it easier for AI to interpret and potentially cite your content.

4. Strengthen EEAT Signals

Google will count on their EEAT (Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, and Trustworthiness) to decide which sources to include in direct answer summaries. Your website and content should embody these doctrines.

Tips:

• Use author bios that establish credentials.
  
• Link to trusted sources.
  
• Include case studies, testimonials, or first-hand experiences—especially if you’re positioning yourself as an SEO expert in London or similar authority figure.
  

5. Optimise for Branded and Navigational Queries

AI overviews may answer general questions, but branded searches and high-intent navigational queries still fuel clicks. Ensure that your brand sets the focus in search like:

• “Best SEO agency Hemel Hempstead”
  
• “Trusted SEO expert London”
  
• “Affordable local SEO services London”

This is where traditional SEO still shines.

6. Lean Into Local SEO

AI overviews are not as prevalent in hyper-local searches. Where users are looking for location-based services such as “SEO agency Bedfordshire” or “SEO consultant near me”, local packs and map listings are still an extremely high priority.

Action Step: Invest in local SEO:

• Optimise your Google Business Profile
  
• Collect positive reviews
  
• Build local backlinks
  
• Use location-specific content
  

This helps bypass AI overviews and appear in high-visibility local packs.

7. Monitor Clicks, Not Just Rankings

Traditional SEO tools still show your page ranking well, but if it’s AI overviews that are serving the answer first, your CTR could still be decreasing in spite of you being technically first.

Action Step: You can also track real clicks and impressions using Google Search Console. Adapt your tactics according to performance, not just position.

The Future of Search Requires Flexibility

AI Overviews are one aspect of a more general transition in how users discover and engage with information. This can be seen as a challenge but also an opportunity for agile businesses.

Turn AI Challenges Into SEO Opportunities

Google’s AI Overviews aren’t going away. Instead of resisting the change, smart SEOs and business owners should adapt. By focusing on high-quality content, building authority, and doubling down on local SEO services in London and beyond, you can continue to grow your online visibility—regardless of how search evolves.

Need help navigating the new search landscape?
Whether you’re a business in Buckinghamshire, Bedfordshire, or London, our team of SEO experts is here to help you build visibility, drive traffic, and win in the age of AI.

Contact us today to get started.