Google’s AI Overviews vs. Your Website: How to Protect (and Grow) Your Traffic

If your website relies on Google for traffic (and most businesses do), you’ve probably noticed a major shift: Google is answering more questions directly on the search results page.

AI Overviews (Google’s AI-generated summary box at the top of the results) now takes up more space, answers more queries, and in many cases, removes the need for users to click at all.

This is great for the user, but not so great for your website.

So the big question for business owners is this - if Google is now giving answers itself, how do you still get found?

The good news is you can protect your traffic and even grow it if you know how Google’s new system works and how to position your business in front of it.

Let’s break it down.

What Are Google’s AI Overviews?

AI Overviews are Google’s AI-powered summaries that appear at the top of many search results. Rather than linking you straight to websites, Google uses AI to generate a direct answer and includes links it believes are relevant.

Think of it as:

• Snippets +
  
  
• People Also Ask +
  
  
• AI summary +
  
  
• Product/service suggestions

…all merged into one mega-result.

And because it sits above all organic listings, it gets the first attention, first clicks and first trust.

This is why many websites have seen traffic shifting, not disappearing, but moving to different types of queries.

The Real Risk: “Zero-Click” Search Is Increasing

More searches now end without any clicks at all. Google calls this “satisfying user intent on the results page”.

For businesses, it means:

• fewer clicks for simple informational queries
  
  
• fewer visits to blog posts answering basic questions
  
  
• more competition for traffic that does still click through
  

But here’s the crucial difference: AI Overviews do not replace all search - but they do reshape it.

People will still click through to your website when:

• The query is complex
  
  
• They are evaluating suppliers
  
  
• They want real human examples, testimonials or pricing
  
  
• They’re comparing options or planning a purchase
  
  
• The answer cannot be summarised in one paragraph

So the goal isn’t to “beat” AI Overviews, it’s to position your business where AI needs you.

How to Protect (and Grow) Your Traffic in the AI Overview Era

1. Don’t Compete With AI — Create Content It Wants To Use

AI Overviews pull from trustworthy, clear, authoritative sources.
That means your website needs:

• Simple, structured answers to common industry questions
  
  
• Clearly labelled headings and subheadings
  
  
• Bullet-pointed steps or definitions
  
  
• Expertise-driven insight that AI can reference

The businesses showing up inside the AI Overview box aren’t always the biggest; they’re the clearest.

2. Target The Queries AI Can’t Answer Fully

AI is good at many things, but not good at nuance, experiences, opinions, and specific industry or local context - so these are the traffic opportunities.

Write content such as:

• “X vs Y: Which is Right for Your Business?”
  
  
• “The Real Cost of ___”
  
  
• “We Tried This Strategy for 90 Days – Here’s What Happened”
  
  
• “How to Choose a Supplier for ___”
  
  
• “Mistakes to Avoid When ___”

AI cannot replace your actual experience, so use that to your advantage.

3. Strengthen Your E-E-A-T (Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, Trustworthiness)

Google’s AI models pull content from:

• Experts
  
  
• Brands with authority
  
  
• Businesses with strong reputations
  
  
• Websites with consistent, valuable content

You can strengthen your E-E-A-T by:

• Adding author bios
  
  
• Showcasing case studies
  
  
• Publishing expertise-led content
  
  
• Using real data and examples
  
  
• Keeping your site updated regularly

AI is more likely to feature and trust you when you’ve demonstrated authority.

4. Leverage Branded Search

One thing AI Overviews can’t take away is your brand name.

If people search:

• Your brand
  
  
• Your company
  
  
• Your services by name
  
  
• Your team
  
  
• Your product names

…they will click your website.

This is why brand building is becoming an essential part of SEO.

Social media + content + ads + email all feed into brand search, which feeds into long-term SEO resilience.

5. Optimise For “Action-Based” Search

AI Overviews handle general questions well. But they struggle with intent, especially when a user wants action.

Examples of action searches:

• “Website design agency near me”
  
  
• “HubSpot partner for SMEs UK”
  
  
• “B2B PPC agency Midlands”
  
  
• “how to book a demo for ___”
  
  

These bottom-of-funnel searches still produce strong click-through rates.

This is where your service pages, landing pages, reviews and Google Business Profile matter most.

6. Repurpose Content For Where Search Is Shifting — Social And AI Tools

Search behaviour is changing. People now discover businesses via LinkedIn, YouTube, Instagram, TikTok, and AI chat tools - as well as Google.

If your content only lives on your blog, you’re invisible in these new discovery channels.

Repurpose your expertise into:

• LinkedIn posts
  
  
• Carousels
  
  
• Short videos
  
  
• How-to clips
  
  
• YouTube tutorials

This dramatically increases your discoverability and indirectly boosts your SEO, too.

The Future of SEO Is Smarter Traffic

AI Overviews reduce low-value traffic - but they increase the importance of high-intent traffic.

The traffic that clicks now is:

• More commercial
  
  
• More serious
  
  
• Closer to enquiring
  
  
• Deeper into the buying journey

That means the visitors who do reach your website are more valuable than ever.

Your job is to make sure your brand appears in AI Overviews, in the traditional organic results, in social search results, and through brand recall

That is a multi-channel content strategy, not just old-school SEO.

Want to Protect Your Rankings and Get Found in Every Search Channel?

At JDR Group, we help SMEs adapt to the new search landscape where Google, social platforms and AI tools all work together to influence how buyers discover you.

If you want to protect your organic traffic, improve visibility, and build a future-proof content and SEO strategy, speak to one of our experts today.