AI search & AI Overviews: is SEO being replaced?
Google now shows an AI-generated answer at the very top for more and more searches — ahead of the classic results. Many business owners therefore ask us: is SEO still worth it? The short answer: yes — but the rules are shifting.
What is actually changing
For informational searches (“what does a dental hygiene appointment cost?”) the AI summarises the answer directly. A share of users then never click a result at all. That mainly hits websites living on pure information articles with no offering of their own.
At the same time: those AI answers do not come from nowhere. They lean on sources — and link to them. Whoever counts as a trustworthy source appears in the AI answers and gets exactly the clicks that remain. And those are often the more valuable ones: someone who still clicks after the summary wants more than a quick answer.
What stays the same
Three things do not change:
- Transactional searches remain. Someone searching “dentist Amsterdam appointment” does not want an AI text, they want a practice. Local and commercial searches still lead to websites.
- Quality wins. AI systems favour sources with real expertise, a clear structure and verifiable facts. That was always what good SEO looked like.
- Technology counts. A fast, cleanly structured website is the entry ticket — for classic rankings just as much as for AI citations.
What you should do now
- Review your content strategy: Pure “what is X?” articles are losing value. Content with first-hand experience, data and a point of view wins.
- Strengthen your brand: If people search for you by name, you are independent of any algorithm update.
- Optimize for answers: Clear headings, concise paragraphs, structured data — that is how you become quotable.
- Measure the right numbers: Not just rankings, but enquiries and revenue from organic traffic.
Our conclusion
SEO is not dying — it is becoming more selective. Mediocre content loses, real expertise wins. Investing in substance now pays off twice: in the classic rankings and in the AI answers.
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