As AI Overviews take over search real estate, marketers have to rethink what visibility actually delivers.
Let’s not sugarcoat it. Google’s search results are starting to feel like a walled garden. And the walls? Built by AI.
According to fresh data from Ahrefs, Featured Snippets have nosedived by 64% since January. That’s not a typo. Sixty-four percent. And guess what’s been rising in their place? AI Overviews. Those chunky, generative summaries now show up in over 27% of desktop queries. Just six months ago, they were barely cracking 4%. The numbers are so clean they almost look suspicious; the correlation between the decline of snippets and the rise of AI Overviews clocks in at –0.91. That’s about as close to a direct swap as you can get without someone at Google literally saying, “Yeah, we’re replacing them.”
But snippets aren’t the only thing getting pushed out. Shopping boxes, paid ads, even other visual elements—once the glittery distractions of the SERP—are losing their grip. AI is becoming the default answer machine. It’s fast, it’s confident, and it doesn’t need your website; which means, for marketers, the old playbook of optimizing for visibility is starting to feel like showing up to a knife fight with a brochure.
So where does that leave us? If Google’s going to answer the question before anyone clicks, how do you get anyone to care about your content?
Here’s where it gets interesting.
Ahrefs didn’t stop at pointing out the problem. They also flagged a set of “AI-proof” keywords that are still generating clicks. These queries fall into three buckets: first, utility-based searches like “free invoice generator” that demand interaction; second, keywords where the AI Overview appears below the top organic result, meaning the first link still gets seen; and third, newer keywords that started ranking after March, when AI Overviews were already in play.
What ties them together? They either can’t be easily summarized, or they require the user to do something—download, calculate, interact, whatever. In other words, they escape the AI trap by being useful in a way a paragraph can’t replicate.
That’s the real takeaway here. You’re not just answering questions. You’re helping people take action.
Tools, templates, calculators, interactive
guides—anything that nudges the user beyond passive reading and into action.
Also worth noting: if the AI Overview is buried below the top organic result, that top link still pulls its weight. So before writing off a keyword as a lost cause, check where the AI box actually lands. Sometimes, it’s not the gatekeeper; it’s the afterthought.
Now, let’s zoom out for a second. This shift isn’t just about traffic loss; it’s about control. Google is reshaping the SERP to answer more questions itself, which means marketers have to get smarter about where they show up and why. If you’re doing it right, visibility means being indispensable.
And speaking of mattering, a few quick CRM updates worth skimming before you go:
- HubSpot just dropped its 2025 rankings for roofing CRMs. AI features and mobile-first design are the big winners there.
- Landscaping CRMs are getting scored too, with automation and seasonal campaign tools getting top marks.
- And in mortgage land, HubSpot leads again thanks to solid lead gen, automation, and—yes—scalability.
So, yeah. The SERP’s changing fast. But if you’re paying attention to what can’t be answered in a sentence, you’re already ahead of the game.
That’s it for today, folks.
Catch you in the next post.
Until then, keep building.
– Perfect Sites Blog
