Is Google's SGE the Death of SEO?

What the hell is SGE?!

A robot, the possible enemy of every content writer, and most of all, it is an incredible piece of innovation that will redefine the way we search. At the heart of SGE is a commitment to enhance the user experience by providing AI-generated summaries and follow-up suggestions that cater to the user's inherent curiosity. Think of it as getting lost on Wikipedia back in the day. Now it's safe to say that because of these AI answers, people will start clicking less on the search results right below. You may think this would mean that SEO is becoming useless, but the opposite is true.

This is what SGE can look like from a simple question. Now in this case the answers don't need a lot of explanation. So there's a small chance you would click on the little arrow at then end of each answer. These arrows however are linked to webpages that were used as a resource for SGE to find the information.

In the next example we see a real answer to the question asked. On the right you see some articles that link to different websites. These are the ones that SGE has used as a resource to create it's answer. More information can be found on these websites.

Now at the bottom of the SGE field you see the option to ask a follow up, and even some suggestions as to what SGE thinks you want to ask next. Useful and at the same time very unfortunate for any website that was already ranking. SGE needs websites to answer, but the chances of the user actually clicking will be lower.

So how will SGE impact SEO?

Since it currently isn't available in most of Europe, we can't really test it, but we do know what the "lucky" countries are going through. One of the most clear impacts of SGE on SEO is the potential reduction in the visibility of traditional search results. As SGE aims to answer queries directly within the search engine results pages, websites that previously relied on ranking for short-tail keywords may see a decline in organic traffic. This change underlines the importance of adapting content strategies to focus more on providing unique, in-depth content that goes beyond the basic answers SGE might provide.

Is there any way to fix this?

Luckily, there is, and it's not that different from what you were supposed to be doing all along.

With SGE encouraging more detailed and specific queries, long-tail keywords are set to become even more important. Content that is optimised for these detailed phrases is more likely to capture the nuanced intent of users' searches, aligning with the type of queries SGE is designed to enhance. So now is the time to start figuring out who your audience really is and what they need to know. Because, guess what? SGE actually uses your information to answer. Find out what questions your audience is asking and answer them as specifically as possible.

So SGE will be giving answers directly within the search page, so the bar for content quality and authority will be raised. Make sure that the content you produce has been well-researched, is informative, and establishes authority in your niche. Include citations for reputable sources, incorporate expert opinions if you can find any, and ensure factual accuracy. High-quality content is more likely to be recognized by SGE as a valuable resource. And that just might give you that little tab in SGE results.

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In the end there's no reason to panic. SGE isn't a nemesis, but rather a catalyst for growth. Remember to always offer value, listen to you audience's needs, and transform AI into your ally.
SEO isn't dead; bad SEO is

*Read more*

• Google Blog - Generative AI Search