Has Google Search Peaked? Survey Shows Consumer Behavior is Changing

For the last 18 months or so, our agency has noticed a steady decline in Google organic search traffic.

While the declines haven’t been disruptive from a sales standpoint (organic revenue is steady or increasing for most clients), the drop-off in traffic has been startling. For some clients, organic search traffic is down over 30%.

There are a few explanations for this drop-off – the main being A.I. search summaries and more ads on search results pages – but a recent survey suggests that changing consumer behavior might be a factor as well.

Over 50% Of Google Search Users Say They’re Trying Other Platforms

According to a Vox media survey, 52% of Google search users are turning to alternative platforms like ChatGPT, TikTok, and Reddit to find answers. As to why:

• Declining Search Quality: Many users complain that Google’s search results are cluttered with ads, AI-generated content, and that many results are spammy.
• Rise of AI and Social Search: Platforms like ChatGPT provide direct, conversational answers, while TikTok and Reddit offer user-generated insights and real-world experiences.

Reddit has several threads about terrible Google Search performance, and I’ve personally heard (and had) this sentiment myself.

Sidebar: In my humble opinion, Google’s decision to stop being “keyword driven” and instead to be “intent driven” was a strategic mistake. The concept of an “intent engine” implies the user isn’t savvy enough to use Google the “right” way, and a sure-fire formula for irritation….but that’s a dinner discussion, not a blog post.

Google Isn’t Going Out Of Business, But Change Is Gonna Come

Google is an institution. It’s not going to disappear anytime soon, and in all likelihood it will maintain its’ dominant position in the digital marketing world. Still…

1. Traffic from Google search is falling
2. Users are trying other tools like ChatGPT or TikTok to find information
3. There are lots of complaints about Google, anecdotal and otherwise

Now is a good time to start thinking about a world that isn’t dominated by Google search.

How To Prepare For A.I. Search

If consumers start relying upon A.I. tools to answer questions, we’re going to see more branded searches and fewer opportunities to “win” the customer on a Google search results page. At Spork, we’re making several changes to prepare:

1. We’ve taken a “video first” approach to content marketing, as video is a higher quality asset than written content which can drive results on more channels.
2. We’re putting more emphasis on influencer marketing and social network “prospecting” advertising, as both will drive awareness and branded search.
3. We’re more focused on conversion rate and user experience improvements than ever before: As traffic falls, conversion improvements become vital.

These changes don’t make us visionaries – these are fairly obvious responses to the shifts we’re seeing – but that doesn’t make them any less important. As long as Google’s future is unclear, every business should be thinking about video, branding, awareness, and CRO.

NOTE: The term “AIO” (short for A.I. optimization) has started to pop up in marketing circles, and at this point in time AIO and SEO mostly overlap. But things are changing rapidly in this space, and as always we’re keeping an eye on it.