AI Overviews Guide
What are AI Overviews (AIO)?
AI Overviews (AIO) are summary responses generated by artificial intelligence in Google search results to help users get information faster and improve the search experience. In the second half of 2023, Google launched a Search Generative Experience (SGE) for test users in the US. During the test phase, many different designs were tried, users' experiences were analyzed, and the aim was to correct incorrect information. In May 2024, the name changed to AI Overviews (AIO) and was opened to general users in the US. It also became active in countries such as the UK, India and Japan. AI Overviews results are encountered in approximately 6.71% of current searches.
The information in AIO is taken from websites and linked to the pages from which it is taken. In this way, users can continue to direct traffic to the relevant pages organically through this section. We know that it will be just below the ad results and above the organic results. For this reason, we can say that it will affect the results in the ad area less than organic results. There will also be ad links inside the AIO responses. These ads include the “Sponsored” tag, which can also affect the CTR (click-through rate) value.
It is very important to be among the sources linked in AIO, as it shifts organic results downwards. According to Google, links in AIO receive more clicks than the same page in organic rankings.
One of the biggest benefits for users is that there will be areas that can be interacted with, making it easier for them to ask a new question, learn the details of a topic in the AIO answer, and make comparisons.
AI Overviews modules
In addition to the text responses that we see most frequently in AIO, visual and list modules are also frequently encountered to enhance the user experience. The most common modules so far:
– Text Modules: Summary information, detailed explanations, graphs, links, related questions
– List Modules: Step-by-step guides, annotated lists, bulleted lists
– Table Modules: Information, price, service comparison tables, scheduling tables
– Product Modules: Product viewers with product images, prices and key features, product carousels, reviews and price comparisons
– Interaction Modules: “Modify” and ‘Add’ buttons to modify or add suggestions, user-expandable sections for additional information
Sectoral Statistics
The sectors with the highest number of AI Overviews responses are health, science and internet, and the lowest are entertainment, food and beverage, and real estate.
AIO responses are seen in 23% of e-commerce queries. This very high rate makes AIO even more important for e-commerce sites. Responses in this sector also include valuable information about product carousels, price comparisons, and product reviews. This will improve the shopping experience of users searching for e-commerce. Since the accuracy of the information users need to manage their investments is a highly sensitive issue, the incidence of AIO responses in the financial sector is low, at only 5%.
AI Overviews Answers to Seen Queries
The query types with the highest occurrence of AI Overviews on Google search result pages:
Knowledge queries: Queries where the user wants to learn about a topic
Example: How are the northern lights formed?
Question queries: What, why, how, when question patterns
Example: Why do plants like the sun?
Planning queries: Queries containing a planning request
Example: The best towns for a summer vacation in Italy
E-commerce queries: Product search or comparison queries
Example: TV stand suitable for 65 screen TV
Education queries: Career and education queries
Example: Professions that industrial engineers can do
Health queries: Queries in the Health sector
Example: Causes of neck pain
Pros and Cons for SEO
AI Overviews have been one of the most exciting developments of 2024 in the SEO world. We know that organic traffic varies a lot depending on the click-through rate of positions. A new field that comes on top of organic rankings on search result pages will also change the click-through rate.
Links to pages that are used as a source for building answers in AIO are expected to see a similar click-through rate to position 1. Perhaps even an increased likelihood of click-through for users who see in the AIO answer that there is information about what they are looking for on that page and trust that source. However, since a significant part of the answer to the user's question is already given in the AIO, likely, these searches will not return traffic to any site. This can lead to a decrease in visibility, especially for small-scale websites. It will be even more important for these sites to invest in content strategy and technical SEO improvements.
You can examine the positive and negative effects of AI Overviews in the SEO world from the table below.
|
|
Pros |
Cons |
|
User Experience |
It provides fast and detailed information, reducing the need for users to conduct a second search. This builds trust in the originating site. |
Users who get their answers in AI Overviews do not need to click on sites (Zero-click search) |
|
Organic Traffic |
It can attract more qualified traffic to the content used as a source and increase brand visibility. |
It can lead to a decrease in organic traffic, especially for sites that remain at the bottom of the rankings. |
|
Sectoral Differences |
Greater visibility in knowledge-driven sectors such as healthcare, education, and e-commerce. |
YMYL requires high standards across categories, which can be a challenge for small-scale content producers. |
|
Optimization |
The chances of ranking can be increased by investing in content quality; long-tail keywords offer the opportunity to reach a wider audience. |
It requires investment in technical details such as visuals, structured data, and schema markup. |
|
Source Selection |
AI Overviews prioritizes trusted sources, giving more chances to authoritative sites. |
Credibility issues may arise if images and content are based on faulty sources. |
The Future of AI Overviews
Wider Fields of Use
For now, it is available in some countries, but it is expected to expand to other countries soon. Although it is not yet on display in Turkey, it is necessary to start working on this issue now. We often see the results of AI Overviews in sectors such as health, education, and e-commerce, so it is a priority issue for websites serving in these sectors. It is expected to be used in other sectors shortly. Regardless of the sector, all websites, especially those that care about organic traffic, should start optimizing for AI Overviews.
Ad Integration
We see that Google has started to include ads in AIO responses. It is also likely that we will see many more ad modules in the future. We can also say that this will affect the user experience. After all, AIO responses created with data from advertiser sites may make some users question the reliability of this response.
Reliable Information
The Gemini language model that Google uses to generate AIO responses will continue to evolve and ultimately become more accurate. So far, we've seen inaccurate answers in the SGE trials, which has led to criticism and a loss of trust. As Gemini is improved, it is expected to be more precise in its source selection. For this reason, Gemini may tend to trust authority websites more when searching for the right source. This means that the authority of your website will become even more important.
User Experience
With the rise of AI Overviews answers, the user's Google search experience will change. Interactive questions will be a big part of this change. In the future, we can expect these questions and answers to be included more in the AI Overview. It is estimated that the modules that users are most productive in (Images, lists, tables, etc.) will also increase.
Evolution in SEO
To replace the organic traffic that AI Overviews responses “steal” from organic results, websites need to pay much more attention to their content strategy and SEO improvements. While producing content that is suitable for organic results and ranking factors, it is very important to optimize to be among the resources linked from AI Overviews. For e-commerce websites, the role of structured data will become even more critical.
