• AI tools like ChatGPT, plus AI Overviews in Google results, increase the prevalence of no-click search results, reducing search traffic to websites.
• The fundamentals of SEO also apply to AI optimisation, particularly the EEAT framework to determine the quality and authority of content and creators.
• Success now depends on new KPIs and strategic visibility: being cited in AI summaries, recognised as an authoritative entity, and trusted enough to shape the answers people see.

AI in search is no longer a glimpse of the future; it’s shaping the present. From Google’s AI Overviews to conversational assistants and generative results, large language models (LLMs) are transforming how people discover, compare, and decide.

For brands with a strong digital presence, this represents both disruption and opportunity. Search isn’t disappearing; it’s being redefined. The foundations that built organic visibility, accessibility, technical quality, and meaningful content, still hold firm. But they now operate within a broader ecosystem of AI-driven discovery, where context, authority, and experience carry new weight.

At UNRVLD, we see 2025 as the year search strategy matures beyond optimisation alone. The brands that win will be those who blend enduring SEO principles with intelligent adaptation: building visibility, trust, and discoverability across both traditional and AI-powered search experiences.

The SEO foundations still matter

Despite the pace of change, SEO’s technical and strategic core remains essential. Clean site architecture, robust internal linking, structured data, and optimised performance still determine how well your content is understood and surfaced.

AI-powered search systems still rely on those signals. What’s changed is how they interpret them; not just ranking based on keywords, but assessing expertise, originality, and the user experience your content delivers.

Search engines and AI models alike continue to reward content that demonstrates E-E-A-T (experience, expertise, authoritativeness, and trustworthiness). Those values are now as crucial for machine comprehension as they are for human engagement.

The impact of AI and LLMs on search

The rise of generative AI has blurred the line between search result and answer.

AI-driven snapshots now sit at the top of search experiences, summarising information instantly and often removing the need to click through to a source.

This new behaviour has a tangible impact: fewer clicks, shorter journeys, and greater reliance on summarised information. Where once a single query could drive multiple page visits, users now find complete answers within the AI layer itself.

That shift doesn’t mean search traffic is vanishing, but its distribution is changing. Clicks are consolidating around brands that are referenced or trusted enough to appear in those summaries. Being cited within an AI answer, even without a direct visit, now carries real visibility value.

For brands, that means traditional metrics like rank and CTR tell only part of the story. What matters now is:

• Whether your content is included in AI-generated responses;
• How clearly your brand is named or cited when AI summarises;
• Whether your content satisfies related queries, signalling depth and authority.

To earn that trust, content must demonstrate precision, originality, and contextual value. Structured data, schema markup, and factual alignment help AI engines interpret and reuse your content correctly, while a strong brand identity ensures your name appears when results are surfaced.

It’s worth remembering that AI Mode isn’t replacing Google, it is Google. This evolution builds on years of AI investment, integrating language models into the same ecosystem that already powers organic search, Shopping, and Knowledge Graphs.

In short, AI isn’t removing opportunity; it’s redistributing it.

Success now depends on making sure your brand is part of the answer, the moment between a question and a click, where trust and relevance decide who gets noticed.

Evolving user behaviour

Search behaviour is fragmenting, not fading. People now move effortlessly between search engines, AI assistants, and social platforms, choosing whichever helps them solve a task the fastest or most confidently.

AI has made discovery more conversational and intent-driven: users expect complete answers, not just results. But they still rely on traditional search as the backbone of that journey. AI Mode has simply become part of Google, not its replacement.

Users trust AI to summarise and speed up research but continue turning to familiar sources for depth and verification. The result is a new hybrid behaviour: AI for context, Google for confidence.

This shift means that the click itself is no longer the only indicator of engagement. Audiences may find value in an AI-generated response that cites your brand without visiting your site - so visibility must be measured more broadly.

The behavioural story is clear:

• People expect speed, accuracy, and reassurance in one interaction;
• They switch platforms seamlessly depending on purpose;
• They’re drawn to brands that sound human even when surfaced by machines.

Reaching your audience in an AI-driven landscape

To reach your audience in 2025, you first must understand how they search, not just what they search for.

Search behaviour today is fluid. People move between traditional search, AI assistants, and social discovery, not because one is replacing the other, but because each satisfies a different kind of need: authority, convenience, or community.

The introduction of Google’s AI Mode, with over 75m active users daily, proves that Google isn’t going anywhere. Instead, it’s evolving, folding AI into the familiar search experience it has spent decades perfecting through sustained investment in artificial intelligence.

For brands, this means visibility is no longer just about “ranking well.” It’s about being understood, trusted, and surfaced across every context where discovery happens. And that comes down to content.

High-performing content in the AI era shares three traits:

1. Structured and credible: built on accurate data, clear language, and semantic markup that machines can interpret confidently.
2. Human and helpful: rooted in lived experience and genuine expertise that demonstrates E-E-A-T.
3. Contextually rich: addressing connected questions and perspectives that AI engines use to build complete, trustworthy answers.

Optimising for this means going beyond keywords. It’s about building topic depth, entity clarity, and brand authority, so your brand isn’t just seen but selected when AI systems summarise information.

Reaching your audience now requires a multi-layered content strategy:

• Evergreen assets that build topical authority;
• Conversational formats that mirror natural-language queries;
• Multi-format storytelling - text, video, audio, and imagery - that performs across search, AI summaries, and social discovery.

Your audience hasn’t gone anywhere, they’re simply discovering content in new ways. The brands that succeed are those whose content is present, credible, and adaptable enough to meet them wherever they look.

The expanding role of SEO: from search to strategy

SEO is no longer a standalone performance channel. It’s a strategic layer underpinning content, data, and digital experience.

In the AI era, SEO success is measured not just by traffic but by how your brand appears, performs, and influences across multiple surfaces:

• Traditional organic listings
• AI-generated summaries
• Knowledge panels and entity graphs
• Voice and visual search environments

New KPIs are emerging:

• AI visibility: Are you cited or featured in generative results?
• Engagement quality: Do users interact meaningfully when they do click?
• Entity presence: Is your brand recognised as an authority within your domain?

These indicators capture the evolving value of SEO as an asset, one that continues to grow in reach and influence.

The challenges ahead

AI brings immense opportunity but also complexity, because:

• Attribution is harder when AI answers replace clicks;
• Accuracy and ownership concerns rise as content is summarised elsewhere;
• Trust and bias must be managed within generative results;
• Constant evolution requires agile, data-informed optimisation.

Success will depend on cross-disciplinary collaboration, aligning SEO, content, UX, and brand strategy around a unified understanding of visibility in an AI-first world.

SEO as a strategic asset

SEO is no longer a set of tactics; it’s a long-term digital asset. The structured, trustworthy foundation that AI systems depend on to answer user needs.

When executed well, SEO compounds in value: strengthening brand presence, improving customer experience, and fuelling every stage of the journey.

In 2025, the goal isn’t simply to “rank.” It’s to ensure your brand is recognised, referenced, and remembered, across every search, every surface, and every conversation

AI is changing the way we search, but the basics haven’t gone anywhere. It’s still about relevance, trust, and experience, just adapted for a new kind of search journey.

UNRVLD’s award-winning SEO team has experience in navigating the moving targets of discovery in search for leading enterprises. Get in touch via our contact page to discuss your content visibility challenges and how a combined AI and SEO strategy can overcome that to deliver the business outcomes you need.