The news: Google claimed that its AI summaries do not impact referral traffic from search after a Pew Research report showed that AI Overviews cut the number of users who clicked on links from overall search results by nearly half. Our take: Despite Google’s objections, AI Overviews inevitably harm sites that rely on search results and SEO for visibility. But with AI summaries showing no signs of going away, what matters is how brands adapt. Traditional keyword strategies are no longer sufficient in the age of AI.

The news: Small and medium-sized business (SMB) owners are preparing for a recession—and marketing is first on the chopping block, per a report from Clarify Capital. 28% of SMB owners say cutting marketing or ad spending is the first action they’ll take in the event of a recession—higher than any other category. Our take: Preparing for a recession is a necessity for SMBs that will be hit the hardest, but for those that deem reduced marketing budgets as a core strategy, it’s critical to take an approach that will save costs without sacrificing reach.

The trend: Global visits to the top 100 web domains fell nearly 7% from March 2022 to March 2025, per Semrush, with Google’s own traffic down 6.4%, according to Similarweb as cited by DataReportal. Our take: Search is no longer a neutral traffic driver. Marketers need to plan for a world where clicks don’t come easy and genAI responses, not blue links, dictate traffic and visibility. GEO strategies must ensure brands are surfaced in genAI outputs. Marketers should focus on first-party data, brand-owned channels, and social, especially since platforms like TikTok, Reddit, and YouTube are increasingly becoming primary search paths for younger users.

As Google's search changes continue and consumers increasingly turn to alternative platforms, the SEO playbook defined by link building and keyword optimization is losing relevance.

Last week’s announcements by Google to expand its AI search experiences came with big changes for advertisers. Google will offer more ads in AI Overviews and is also testing ads in its fully chat-based AI Mode.

GenAI search is gaining traction, but not all consumers are seeking out the conversational experiences that will eventually disrupt the search ad market.

Marketing technology and direct marketing were two of the top investment priorities for US B2B marketers in 2024, while SEO and market research were two of the bottom, according to July 2024 data from Sagefrog Marketing Group.

Claude’s new tool offers developers a way to skip the browser and run real-time, cited searches—threatening ad models and SEO strategies alike.

OpenAI introduced product recommendations into ChatGPT on Monday, creating a potential opportunity for advertising—and a threat to affiliate marketing sites.

YouTube tests new AI features: The updates, including video carousels in search results and AI video summaries, promise innovation but require adaptation.

AI is transforming B2B content marketing, but trust and differentiation remain critical. Buyers seek authenticity from peers, influencers, and industry experts. Marketers must balance AI, human expertise, and bold strategies to drive engagement and growth in 2025.

Tech giants are restructuring to pour resources into AI, signaling leaner ad budgets and a growing reliance on automation-driven customer engagement

GenAI is taking the search market by storm, but market dynamics will stay largely the same this year.

While Google faces mounting pressure from Bing’s ChatGPT integration and other generative AI (genAI) search platforms, degradation of its own search results, including those shown in its AI Overviews, could be exacerbating migration away from Google.

Organizations will prioritize governance in 2025 as they ramp up genAI investments in pursuit of business transformation.

CMOs are often the first people facing pressure to cut spend in a challenging economy. Marketers need to be able to trim budgets in a way that doesn’t thin out the brand. “A common approach we see during these economic downturns is to cut those upper-funnel tactics…but I really believe this is very shortsighted,” said Laura Brooks, fractional CMO at Made by Nacho, during our recent EMARKETER Summit.

B2B marketers are embracing genAI-powered tools to enhance the effectiveness of their marketing initiatives. Marketing teams can use this technology in six valuable ways to drive better outcomes.

Reddit was the fifth highest-visibility domain in Google’s organic search results in July 2024, up from No. 68 in July 2023, according to Sistrix. And since going public in March 2024, the company has introduced new ad products and search improvements.