{"id":113383,"date":"2025-01-13T14:19:37","date_gmt":"2025-01-13T21:19:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.act.com\/?p=113383"},"modified":"2025-01-16T04:19:31","modified_gmt":"2025-01-16T11:19:31","slug":"ai-and-seo-why-smbs-should-care-about-the-new-era-of-search-engines","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.act.com\/en-gb\/blog\/ai-and-seo-why-smbs-should-care-about-the-new-era-of-search-engines\/","title":{"rendered":"AI and SEO: Why SMBs Should Care About the New Era of Search Engines"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"illustration<\/p>\n

Is AI <\/span>the future of search engine optimisation<\/span>? This has been a topic of hot debate among marketers and <\/span>business owners<\/span> alike.<\/span><\/p>\n

OpenAI<\/span> released <\/span>ChatGPT<\/span> in November 2022, and SEO has never been the same again. The <\/span>generative AI-driven<\/span> chatbot<\/span> attracted <\/span>100 million monthly active users<\/span><\/a> within two months of its release and became the fastest-growing consumer application.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Just <\/span>two years later<\/span><\/a>, <\/span>ChatGPT<\/span> boasts 200 million monthly active users\u2014a testament to the prevalence of <\/span>artificial intelligence<\/span>. Tech powerhouses, including Google and Microsoft, have launched their <\/span>AI-powered tools<\/span> to tap into the growing popularity of genAI.<\/span><\/p>\n

But how has <\/span>artificial intelligence<\/span> affected <\/span>search engine<\/span> algorithms<\/span>? More importantly, how can <\/span>small businesses<\/span> adapt their <\/span>SEO strategies<\/span> to keep up with these changes? <\/span>Will AI tools<\/span> like <\/span>ChatGPT<\/span> and Google Gemini permanently alter consumers\u2019 search preferences and make SEO obsolete?<\/span><\/p>\n

Let\u2019s explore the answers to these questions and more.<\/span><\/p>\n

AI and SEO: A look back<\/b><\/h2>\n

First things first\u2014<\/span>AI technologies<\/span> and <\/span>search engines<\/span> aren\u2019t new to each other. Google has been using <\/span>machine learning<\/span> (ML) models to optimise <\/span>search engine<\/span> algorithms<\/span> for years.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

For instance, in 2015, Google introduced RankBrain to better understand <\/span>search queries<\/span> and improve the quality of search results. RankBrain uses ML to understand what users want and helps Google deliver more meaningful search results, even for queries it hasn\u2019t encountered before.<\/span><\/p>\n

Then there was BERT in 2019, which uses <\/span>natural language processing<\/span> (NLP) to help Google\u2019s <\/span>search algorithm<\/span> understand the nuances of human language. With it, Google can understand the context of words and their relationship to each other in a <\/span>search query<\/span>. That, in turn, helps make <\/span>search engine results pages<\/span> (<\/span>SERPs<\/span>) more relevant to a user\u2019s needs.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

More recently, Google released MUM (Multitask Unified Model) in 2021 as a significant improvement over BERT.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

AI <\/b>chatbots<\/b>, SGE, and <\/b>the future of search<\/b><\/h2>\n

The concept of using AI to enhance the <\/span>user experience<\/span> of searches isn\u2019t new. However, the launch of <\/span>ChatGPT<\/span> triggered a shift in the fundamental way people search. The <\/span>generative AI<\/span> platform provides users with detailed answers to their queries, eliminating the need to scroll through <\/span>SERPs<\/span> and visit multiple websites.<\/span><\/p>\n

The launch of <\/b>ChatGPT<\/b> Search<\/b><\/h3>\n

Today, <\/span>ChatGPT<\/span> also has a \u201cSearch the web\u201d feature, which allows users to ask the <\/span>chatbot<\/span> to scour the internet for relevant links. The answer includes a summary of the information and relevant citations. It also helps users get information about recent events. That\u2019s a massive improvement over GPT-4, which is trained on a dataset of up to 2023. Similar features exist on Google\u2019s Gemini and Meta AI.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

As of this writing, <\/span>OpenAI<\/span> has <\/span>rolled out <\/span>ChatGPT<\/span> Search<\/span><\/a> to all users, regardless of whether they have a paid subscription.<\/span><\/p>\n

That raises the question\u2014can <\/span>generative AI tools<\/span> impact Google\u2019s dominance in the <\/span>digital landscape<\/span>? For instance, Gartner predicts a <\/span>25 percent decline<\/span><\/a> in traditional <\/span>search engine<\/span> volume by 2026.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Google\u2019s genAI endeavors<\/b><\/h3>\n

Google has been taking active measures to compete with <\/span>ChatGPT<\/span> and other AI <\/span>chatbots<\/span>. Besides launching its conversational AI model (Gemini), the <\/span>search engine<\/span> giant has also integrated AI capabilities into <\/span>SERPs<\/span>.<\/span><\/p>\n

With SGE (Search Generative Experience), Google aims to add <\/span>ChatGPT<\/span>-like features to traditional <\/span>search engine<\/span> results. It curates structured, to-the-point answers to <\/span>search queries<\/span> and displays them at the top of <\/span>SERPs<\/span> in a <\/span>snippet<\/span>. Each paragraph\/point in the answer is also annotated with links to the source of the information. That, in turn, helps users check for inaccuracies and learn more about the topic.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"screenshot<\/p>\n

Where is search headed?<\/b><\/h3>\n

Given the recent developments, will <\/span>ChatGPT<\/span> and SGE replace traditional search? Not exactly.<\/span><\/p>\n

AI tools<\/span> are notorious for hallucinating information, resulting in inaccurate, misleading, and often biased answers. In other words, users still have to visit relevant web pages to verify the information generated by these tools.<\/span><\/p>\n

Also, models like GPT-4 are trained on pre-existing datasets. Even the most advanced AI models depend on well-researched and optimised content to respond to users\u2019 queries. Plus, these tools don\u2019t have access to <\/span>real-time<\/span> data, meaning they can\u2019t be a complete replacement for traditional search results.<\/span><\/p>\n

It isn\u2019t surprising, then, that Google still receives <\/span>3.5 billion <\/span>search queries<\/span><\/a> daily.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

How to adapt <\/b>SEO strategies<\/b> to the changing search landscape<\/b><\/h2>\n

\"an<\/p>\n

Generative AI-powered<\/span> models won\u2019t replace good-old <\/span>SERPs<\/span> anytime soon. However, these tools are shaping new user expectations. <\/span>Small businesses<\/span> must integrate AI and <\/span>SEO strategies<\/span> to boost their <\/span>rankings<\/span> and <\/span>online presence<\/span>.<\/span><\/p>\n

Here are a few tips to help you get started:<\/span><\/p>\n

Prioritise E-E-A-T<\/b><\/h3>\n

E-E-A-T stands for:<\/span><\/p>\n