Keywords Assist Publishers in Understanding the Impact of Google’s AI Overviews
Understanding the Impact of Google’s AI Overviews on Publisher Traffic
Overview of AI Overviews Growth
Measuring the effect of Google’s AI Overviews on publishers’ search referral traffic has proven to be complex, especially through click-through data. However, keyword data is offering clearer insights. According to Semrush, nearly 19 million keywords now trigger AI Overviews, which represents a significant 91% increase over the past six months. The proportion of searches leading to AI Overviews has also increased, rising from 6% in September 2024 to 11.4% in March 2025. This suggests that Google is summarizing more and more content through its AI tools.
Gains for Some Publishers
Certain publishers have experienced substantial increases in their keyword shares that engage AI Overviews in recent months. Notable examples include:
- ProPublica.org: +204%
- BuzzFeed.com: +172%
- Rolling Stone: +164%
- Vanity Fair: +164%
- NewRepublic.com: +156%
These statistics underline the varied responses among publishers as they adapt to the new landscape created by AI Overviews.
Search Traffic Analysis
Despite fluctuations in overall search traffic across different sites, current data does not indicate that AI Overviews are decreasing referral traffic for publishers. Instead, statistics provided by Semrush suggest that AI Overviews yield approximately the same level of traffic as traditional search results.
For instance, between the launch of AI Overviews in May 2024 and February 2025, the organic global traffic saw increases and decreases across various publishers:
- ProPublica: Up by 51.4%
- BuzzFeed: Up by 8.2%
- Rolling Stone: Down by 11.8%
- Vanity Fair: Down by 19.7%
- NewRepublic.com: Up by 59.6%
Mixed Reports from the Industry
While some sources offer positive insights into how AI Overviews might impact traffic, other reports, such as one from Tollbit, suggest a more concerning trend. This report highlighted that AI-driven search bots are delivering an average of 95.7% less referral traffic than traditional Google search. Tollbit collected data from 140 sites, including both national and local newspapers, but it did not factor in the specific influence of AI Overviews or the Gemini AI model.
Industry Perspectives
Many publishers and analytics firms note they lack detailed visibility into how AI Overviews affect their traffic since Google only provides overall referral traffic data rather than specifics on AI-generated outcomes. Some publishing executives mention that their search referral traffic appears stable, making it challenging to assess if AI Overviews negatively affect them.
Paul Bannister, Chief Strategy Officer at Raptive, summed up the situation, saying, "All we can do is look at the aggregate and be like, ‘I don’t think it’s a negative, but I don’t know for sure.’”
Implications of AI Overviews
The introduction of AI Overviews means that the traffic dynamics for various publishers could alter based on their previous performance in Google searches. Eugene Levin from Semrush explained that if a publisher’s link was once the main feature in Google’s “featured snippet,” they might lose some traffic due to the AI Overview showcasing multiple sources at once.
For example, if a publisher previously occupied a featured snippet, they could expect decreased traffic visibility as AI Overviews also display summaries from additional sources.
Variations in Publisher Experience
Different publishers are actively assessing the changes brought about by AI Overviews. Ziff Davis, led by CEO Vivek Shah, reported comparing click-through rates from a year ago to data under the new system. Their findings revealed that AI Overviews appeared in only 12% of their top queries without affecting click-through rates.
In comments to shareholders, IAC CEO Joey Levin noted minimal overall traffic impact, with AI Overviews appearing in around 20% of searches but producing negligible effects.
Limitations and Future Considerations
The inspection of keywords provides some insight, yet publishers acknowledge this method has its limitations, particularly due to Google’s transparency issues and the varied nature of the search environment. As one anonymous publishing executive remarked, “The reliability of measuring Google’s AI Overviews’ impact on publishers’ sites by looking only at search keywords is absolutely questionable.”
Recently, Google introduced an AI Mode feature within AI Overviews that allows users to interact with AI characters, which may alter the search traffic landscape further.
Paul Hood, an AI media consultant and former executive at News UK, remarked that the future lies not in expecting AI to generate traffic but in developing partnerships between publishers and AI entities—a move that could turn this challenge into a growth opportunity.
