AI, Search & the Future of Visibility
I spent time today exploring AI’s impact on Search (massive thanks to Brightedge); 5 key takeaways:
Strong foundations still win. The workhorse of SEO remains unchanged: technical excellence, site health and high quality content. These are the same fundamentals that will power visibility in an AI enabled future.
Organic product grids are the battleground today. They are fast becoming one of the biggest drivers of visibility and revenue in search. Think of them as a competitor in their own right; one that ranks consistently near the top. Optimising feeds, imagery, pricing, etc are now micro levers to enable the bigger AI picture.
AI’s influence is real but uneven. For ecommerce, AI Overviews are less disruptive (just 6% impact vs much higher in other sectors). Yet Google’s rollout of global AI Mode and fast paced testing, means change is coming quickly. Measurement will evolve beyond clicks, toward share of voice in AI answers and citations for example.
Testing and experimentation will separate winners from laggards. Rigorous SEO A/B frameworks are essential to understand what truly moves the needle; whether in product feed optimisation or content designed for LLM discovery.
A new mindset is required. Bots aren’t just crawling; they are shaping tomorrow’s customer journeys. Site speed, accessibility for AI agents and a consistent, authoritative brand voice across all channels will decide who gets cited and who gets overlooked.
Summary: Today’s task is to dominate the product grid; tomorrow’s is to win in AI-driven search.