Your website used to get the click. Now Google often answers the question itself, right at the top of the results page. Here's what the data says, what Google itself recommends, and what to change.
Pew Research found that when Google shows an AI summary, users click a traditional result in 8% of visits, against 15% without one, and click links inside the summary just 1% of the time. Google says there's no special optimisation for AI features: be indexed, write helpful people-first content and keep structured data accurate. Write answer-first, use real questions as headings, cite sources, build brand searches and offer what a summary can't.
- With an AI summary, users clicked a search result in 8% of visits; without one, 15% (Pew Research, 2025).
- Links inside AI summaries were clicked in just 1% of visits.
- Google's AI Mode passed one billion monthly users in 2026 and now works in seven more Indian languages, including Telugu and Kannada.
- Google says no special optimisation is needed for AI features: helpful content, accurate structured data and good page experience.
- Simple 'what is' searches lose the most clicks; decision searches and brand searches hold up best.
What did Pew Research find?
Pew Research Center analysed the browsing data of 900 US adults who agreed to share their online activity in March 2025. About one in five Google searches in the study (18%) produced an AI-generated summary at the top of the results (Pew Research, July 2025).
The difference in behaviour was stark:
- Users who saw an AI summary clicked a traditional search result in 8% of visits.
- Users who didn't see one clicked nearly twice as often, in 15% of visits.
- Links inside the AI summary itself were clicked in just 1% of visits.
- Users were also more likely to end their browsing session entirely after a page with a summary.
Share of Google visits that ended in a click
AI search is growing fast, including in India
Pew's data is from the US in early 2025. Since then, AI search has grown sharply. Google says AI Mode, its conversational search experience, passed one billion monthly users about a year after launch, with queries more than doubling every quarter (Google, May 2026). Overall search queries also hit an all-time high, so people aren't searching less. They're searching differently.
India is part of this shift. In October 2025, Google added seven Indian languages to AI Mode, including Telugu, Kannada, Tamil, Malayalam, Marathi and Bengali, and said India is its largest user base worldwide for both voice and visual search (Google India, Oct 2025). Google also noted that questions asked in AI Mode are nearly three times longer than traditional searches. People are asking full questions and expecting full answers.
In 2024, Gartner predicted traditional search volume would fall 25% by 2026 as people turned to AI chatbots and virtual agents (Gartner, Feb 2024). Whether or not that exact number arrives, the direction is clear: the click is no longer guaranteed. We look at the prediction in detail in Gartner predicted a 25% search drop by 2026. Was it right?
Which searches lose the most clicks?
AI summaries answer simple questions on the results page. So the searches most at risk are the ones where a short answer is enough:
| Type of search | Example | Click risk |
|---|---|---|
| Definitions and "what is" | "What is LASIK?" | High: the summary usually answers it |
| Quick how-to | "How to check RERA registration" | High |
| Rough cost questions | "MBA fees in Hyderabad" | Medium: people still want specific numbers |
| Comparisons and decisions | "Best eye hospital near Kukatpally" | Lower: people check reviews, location and trust signals |
| Brand searches | "[Your clinic name] timings" | Lowest: they're already looking for you |
The pattern for businesses: educational content that only answers a basic question will get fewer visits. Content that helps someone decide, and searches for your own name, hold up much better.
What does Google say you should do?
Google's own guidance for site owners is refreshingly plain. There are no extra requirements and no special optimisation needed to appear in AI Overviews or AI Mode, and no special structured data to add. A page just has to be indexed and eligible to show in Search with a snippet (Google Search Central).
Google's recommended practices are the same ones that have always worked: helpful, reliable, people-first content, structured data that matches what's visible on the page, and a good page experience. Traffic from AI features is counted in your normal Search Console reports, under the "Web" search type.
That means there's no trick. The businesses that win are the ones whose pages are genuinely the best answer.
6 ways to stay visible when clicks fall
1. Write answer-first
Put a clear, direct answer in the first few lines of every page, then the detail. It's what readers want, and it's the easiest content for an AI summary to use and cite.
2. Use real questions as headings
Match how people actually search, in full sentences: "How much does cataract surgery cost in Hyderabad?" Then answer each question in two or three sentences before going deeper.
3. Add FAQs and structured data, honestly
Mark up FAQs, articles and business details so search engines understand the page. Google is clear that structured data must match the visible text, so don't mark up anything a reader can't see.
4. Cite original sources
Pages that link original data and name who said it are easier to trust, for readers and for AI systems deciding what to show. Every post on this blog links its sources for that reason.
5. Build searches for your name
Someone searching for your brand already knows what they want, and AI summaries don't take that click away. Reviews, a complete Google Business Profile, social presence and word of mouth all drive brand searches. See Google isn't the only review site that matters anymore.
6. Make content worth clicking
Give people something the summary can't: a fee calculator, a short video from your doctor, a downloadable checklist, real photos of your campus or site. Depth and usefulness earn the click that a basic answer no longer gets.
What to measure now
- Impressions, not just clicks, in Search Console. Visibility still matters even when the click doesn't come.
- Brand search volume over time.
- Enquiries from organic search, tracked to the page that brought them.
- Which pages still earn clicks, and what they have in common.
And keep an eye on the AI assistants themselves. More people now ask AI tools which local business to choose, which we cover in 45% of consumers now ask AI to recommend local businesses.
An eye hospital's most-visited blog post used to be "What is a cataract?". Organic visits to it fall by half once AI summaries start answering the question on the results page.
The hospital rewrites it with a direct answer up top, then adds what a summary can't: the surgeon's two-minute explainer video, real cost ranges by lens type, insurance cover, and a "book a free eye check" button. Visits stay lower than before, but enquiries from the page go up, because the people who do click are closer to booking.
This blog is built the same way: a quick answer up top, question headings, FAQs, linked sources and structured data. It's the approach we use when we build content systems with clients, and the playbook goes to their team, not just our files.
How Ad Asthra helps you stay visible in AI search
We build content systems inside your business, so your team keeps producing pages that earn the answer and the click.
Frequently asked questions
Do Google's AI summaries reduce website clicks?
Yes, in the data so far. Pew Research found users clicked a traditional search result in 8% of visits when an AI summary appeared, against 15% when it didn't. Links inside the summary were clicked in about 1% of visits.
How do I get my website into Google AI Overviews?
Google says there are no extra requirements or special optimisations. Your page needs to be indexed and eligible to show with a snippet. Focus on helpful, reliable content, structured data that matches the visible page, and a good page experience.
Is AI Mode available in India?
Yes. Google's AI Mode is available in India in English and Hindi, and in October 2025 Google added seven more Indian languages, including Telugu, Kannada, Tamil, Malayalam, Marathi, Bengali and Urdu.
Is SEO dead because of AI search?
No. Google reports search queries at an all-time high. But simple informational searches send fewer clicks, so content has to answer questions clearly and offer depth, tools or proof that a summary can't.
What is answer engine optimisation (AEO)?
AEO means structuring content so search engines and AI assistants can find and use your answers: a direct answer first, real questions as headings, FAQs, cited sources and accurate structured data.
Which searches are most affected by AI summaries?
Definitions and quick how-to questions are hit hardest, because the summary often answers them. Comparison, decision and brand searches hold up better, because people still want reviews, prices and proof.
How does Ad Asthra help with AI search?
We build content systems inside your business: answer-first pages, FAQs, structured data and video, measured on enquiries rather than clicks. Through BOT, we hand the team and playbook over to you.
Sources
- Google users are less likely to click on links when an AI summary appears in the results, Pew Research Center, 22 July 2025
- AI features and your website, Google Search Central
- Google Search's I/O 2026 updates, Google, 19 May 2026
- Supercharging Search for India: New languages in AI Mode and Search Live debuts, Google India, 8 October 2025
- Gartner Predicts Search Engine Volume Will Drop 25% by 2026, Due to AI Chatbots and Other Virtual Agents, Gartner, 19 February 2024
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