Is SEO Dead? Not Quite: Here’s What’s Really Happening

With recent news in the search space, it would be easy to jump to the conclusion that SEO is dead. AI-powered search engines like Google’s Gemini and Microsoft’s Copilot are making waves. Reports of Gen Zers and Millennials ditching search engines for searching on social media instead, you might wonder: Is SEO dead?

So let me put that question to rest right away – no, SEO is not dead. However, it is changing in significant ways. Here’s what’s really happening, and how you can adapt to the new search environment.

The Power of Brand Awareness 
The recent leak of SEO ranking documents from Google sheds light on how crucial brand perception is in determining search rankings. Thanks to the leak, we now have a better understanding of the outsized advantageous position for bigger, well-known brands. It can feel like you are constantly fighting an uphill battle to gain any share of voice when you’re not the 10,000-pound gorilla.

So how do you compete in this space? Many of the old rules of SEO still apply. High-quality content that provides useful insight to your audience is essential. We’ve also learned that Google puts an even bigger premium than we thought on the quality and perceived usefulness of your content.

We used to advise that our clients build strong content around a handful of central content pillars to compete in several search categories. Considering this leak, we will now suggest focusing more effort on one or two highly impactful content pieces, like a quality explainer video, infographic or research, followed-up with supporting content that props that high-value content up. This includes generating buzz on other platforms, like social media and news platforms, that drive interested traffic to your site and prove to Google’s algorithm that your content provides value to users.

Changing Research Habits 
It’s true that Millennials and Gen Zers conduct more searches on social media and use their social networks to discover and vet brands. However, this misses a crucial point. It’s not that younger generations abandoned Google and traditional search, but they are changing the way they use search engines.  What’s changing is they’re more interested in what other customers have to say about your business and using that feedback to inform their decisions.

This change is part of the long-term pivot to a focus on customer experience. Customer feedback, positive reviews, and a strong brand-following are all important components of building your brand experience and ensuring you are discovered by younger audiences seeking your products. This means there’s an increased importance on making your social pages searchable on each platform. Make the most of editable social page sections, like About Us, Services, or Products with SEO keywords and maintain an active profile with regular high-value content and profile updates.

In the meantime, continue to focus on showing up as the expert you are in Google or Bing searches, because customers are still looking there too. You can get in front of someone conducting research who may not know what product or service they need, or they may be verifying that a business they learned about on social media can meet their needs.

The AI Content Challenge 
Mediocre content generated by AI tools is flooding the internet, and it’s only getting worse as search engines integrate their own AI-generated answers to search results pages. This impacts traditional SEO on two fronts. The first is the increased noise of mediocre content from AI-generated sources, which is increasing both the volume of content you are contending with as well as the number of competitors who are publishing related content. The second is an increasingly tight competitive market, where only the top three to four results for a search term will make their way into the conversation.

The good news is that the most important competitive advantage you have is your people. The longstanding advice that higher-quality content will win is increasingly relevant in this age of AI-generated search results. The best way to beat your competitors’ AI-generated content is with a content team that knows how to speak to the humans who make up your audience.

In conclusion – SEO isn’t dead – but it is changing. Focus your efforts on creating the absolute best quality content, adding value to your current and future customers, and making the most of every marketing channel to keep your brand in the forefront of your target customers’ minds.