You’ve probably seen Google AI Overviews already, but honestly with the proliferation of so many new AI tools, updates and features it's hard to keep track of what is what. So let’s get right to it.
What is Google AI Overview?
Google AI Overviews (AIO) are the generated AI responses that appear at the top of Google Search results.
These AI Overviews typically generate an answer for your query, pulling and citing information from different sources and compiling them into one larger answer.
AI Overviews mark a shift away from Google’s flagship 10 result search engine result that has been a global and cultural staple for the world.
Understanding the Parts to AI Overview
Let’s breakdown the different parts of AI Overviews.
- Generative AI Summary: This is the most prominent portion of the AI Overviews, the first section of the AI Overviews will typically respond to the search query. Often the AI Summary will breakdown into further sections that build on the original summary, often answering a question or 2 more
- Sources/Citations: The righthand panel is where you will see the citations used to inform the generative AI responses. Typically 3 are shown and if there are more citations, clicking “Show all” will open the menu to more sources
- Annotations: The annotation is where you can see the exact source used for each portion of the AI Overview response. By clicking on the link icon, which is the blue circle with link graphic, you can see the specific sources used in the right hand panel.
- AI Overview Menu: At the bottom of the AI overview is where you can find buttons to export and/or save the response. Additional buttons include a button that takes you to Google Search Labs where you can learn more about AI Overviews. And finally you can also like or dislike the AI Overview response to provide feedback to Google.
The Different Layout Patterns for AI Overviews
Google is currently testing AI Overviews, so there are many variations that users are reporting. However, because there is so much testing, some of these features are only seen by some users and queries and can often be only an experiment that won’t show up for long after. We’ll walk through the AI Overview layouts that are the most commonly seen:
Standard Bullet Point List:
The most common iteration of the AI Overviews, the standard bullet point list will include bullet points with information answering or related to the searcher’s query.
Typically the bullet points are not displayed in isolation and often accompany the standard paragraph responses.
Image List/Table
Some AI Overview searches will include lists with images to help create a more media rich layout.
This layout in its intent makes a lot of sense, when having images with the text would help the user understand the responses better.
Product Accordion & Carousel
AI Overviews are not yet that prevalent in transactional or shopping oriented searches, however they still do show up. In these searches you will see something similar to the image list, however there is an additional accordion feature where users can click to show more information about a certain row.
When clicking on a row, additional information will display including some additional text and product listings that users can navigate to.
Additionally when expanded, Google’s AI Overview will also include additional searches that are related products to what the user may be looking for.
These suggested products do not automatically trigger searches with AI Overviews themselves. For example, the following is the search for when “water purifiers” is clicked.
How is Search Generative Experience (SGE) Different from AI Overviews?
The Search Generative Experience, which was the initial launch of AI generated responses in Google searches is actually the precursor to AI Overviews. So to put it simply AI Overviews have replaced Search Generative Experience and moving forward SGE is no longer in use.
From a non technical perspective, you can just think of it as the AI response getting a new name.
So don’t worry, SGE and AI Overviews are not two different platforms of features that you have to optimize for, it’s just AI Overview now.
How is Google Gemini Different from AI Overviews?
For those that are just getting caught up with AI, there might be some confusion on how the differences in the AI products, especially just in Google’s suite. There are 2 major branches of AI that are rolled out to users and one is the AI Overview that we are talking about in this article. The other is Google Gemini, which was initially called Google Bard.
The best way to understand Google Gemini, is that it is Google’s version of ChatGPT. It is a generative AI platform where users can chat with Gemini to generate content, ask questions, etc.
Gemini now has included in may Google Workspaces, where users can now use Gemini in their email drafts and workflows. This article is meant to talk about AI Overviews, so we won’t go into too much detail about the inner intricacies and workings of Gemini. And when understanding AI Overview and Gemini from a Google Search perspective, Gemini is not related or featured in Google Search, so for those who are only concerned about how AI affects Google Search, you don’t need to worry about Gemini.
Are AI Overviews Reliable?
Much like any generative AI, AI Overviews are prone to AI hallucinations and inaccuracies. The hallucinations that generative AI has been famous for have been much more prevalent with ChatGPT and platforms that aren’t necessarily meant to be search engines.
In my personal observation, I have found that AI Overviews have been more correct with their responses and my belief is because they are citing sources and using the citations in each portion of their response, it is less likely to go off in an imaginary rabbit hole. However, I have seen people share crazy stories about the wildest thing that Google AI Overviews have suggested, so don’t take my observation as a claim that you can trust Google AI Overview. And I feel like it is worth remembering that Google til this day is still clowned for being the best way to scare yourself into having a lethal condition when googling your symptoms.
I find the general sentiment from those not in the digital marketing spaces see AI Overviews as just another extension of generative AI that makes laughable mistakes, as you can see by this rather short Vice article. And because AI Overviews have been rolled to all users, I find that most users are begrudgingly using it, but also genuinely curious as they get answers a bit faster than they used to.
When Do AI Overviews Show Up?
AI Overviews currently do not show up for all searches and currently appear following certain patterns.
1. Informational Searches
The first and clearest pattern is that AI Overviews are predominantly showing up for informational queries. A study from Ahrefs conducted in October 2024 shows that 99.2% of all searches that have an AI Overview appear are informational searches.
If you’re wondering how the chart can have all the different categories add up to over 100%, Ahrefs categorize searches as multiple intents.
2. Featured Snippets
According to BrightEdge, if a search has a featured snippet it is 195% more likely to trigger an AI Overview in the results.
This one makes a lot of sense, for years search results had been seeing incremental changes to make the search results more media rich and one of the main search features that become a staple of search results are featured snippets.
And it does make a lot of sense. Featured Snippets can almost be seen as the predecessor to AI Overviews, being the original attempt by Google to have a response in the search result so that users could get an answer without having to navigate to a search result.
When Do AI Overviews Not Appear?
There are clear patterns for when AI Overviews do not appear.
1. Local Searches
This is one of the rules of AI Overviews that seem to be the most absolute. AI Overview searches do not show up for searches that have local intent. What is interesting about this is that for years Google had been pushing more and more of local SEO as they wanted to increasingly help users find solutions and products in their local area quickly.
However it does make a lot of sense that AI Overviews haven’t touched Local searches because at this point in time, Local SEO has taken a life of its own, with its own algorithm and search features, including the local map pack.
So for those businesses that rely heavily on local searches, at this point in time there is no penetration of AI Overviews into Local SEO.
2. Transactional Searches
On the opposite end of the informational queries, searches that are transactional in nature have a negative correlation with AI Overviews showing up. This one isn’t as absolute as local searches, where many users have seen iterations of search results with products in the AI Overview (or at least more so with the Search Generative Experience).
I fully expect that the frequency and reach of AI Overviews will constantly change moving forward, so it is important to not just read this once or really any article and operate from the data in that moment in time.
It is widely believed, including myself, that believe Google is committed to AI Overviews for their future and AI Overviews may very well become the norm for all searches. So I’d recommend that every quarter to check the latest studies and data that comes out so that you’re aware of how AI Overviews are progressing.
Why Are Google’s AI-Powered Overviews Important?
AI Overviews mark a momentous change in Google Search. As I alluded to in the intro, they signal a shift from the traditional 10 search results position to a search engine that is led with an answer to your query.
This changes the nature in which people have been accustomed to searching for decades.
Whereas in the past, search has always been led by responding with search result options that a searcher can read through and look through, AI Overviews introduce a new phase where an answer is given first.
The likely intent is to update the search experience so that those searchers who are looking for an expedited search experience can get their answer immediately instead of having to use Google as an intermediary to other sites.
This also spells a mindset shift for businesses and sites who have for the last 2 decades have always fought for visibility by competing for these search results, even on search engines that predate or rival Google.
This shift calls into question not only SEO strategies but entire business models, the most popular being publishers who have relied on clicks and eyeballs for their ad revenue, what happens when AI Overview is now shortcutting and giving responses. This has not been answered just yet and Google’s AI Overviews are only one part of that puzzle. Our philosophy here at Zupo is rather than answering that question now, what is best is to learn how to best be involved and incorporated in AI Overviews and then determining how to best find success and business dollars.
How Do I Appear in Google AI Overviews
The battle to get in AI Overviews is one that is still full of speculation as AI Overviews have been changing so much since the original rollout of Search Generative Experience and the ongoing changes that Google has been making in trying to improve the AI Overview experience.
However, what we do know about AI Overviews is showing up in these results mixes a combination of traditional SEO and new methodologies to the space.
But I realize that not everyone reading this may be a veteran digital marketer or tenured SEO, I do want to say that if your site shows up in Google then your site can show up for AI Overviews. So you don’t have to worry about any additional settings or implementations to explicitly qualify you.
The game changing factor that sets the tone for how AI Overviews differentiates itself from traditional SEO is that over 50% of sources used in AI Overviews do not appear in the top 100 results for the search query that triggers said AI Overview.
That means that half of the sources that are used in AI Overviews deviate from the SEO strategies we have been using for years.
In Zupo’s own research, what we have found gives the best way to rank for AI Overviews is to understand the next questions that AI Overviews answer. You’ll remember that AI Overviews often will answer the searcher’s query, but then typically the AI response will then also answer a question or two further, based on what the AI believes is the next set of questions.
For a more thorough look into how to Rank for Google AI Overviews, you can jump over to this article which is entirely dedicated to the topic.
How to Prevent Your Site from Appearing in AI Overview
For those sites that may be concerned about their content and information appearing in AI Overviews, there is no explicit way to communicate to Google that you do not want to show up for AI Overviews, and really the same is for traditional Google Searches.
However, we can use traditional SEO methods to help prevent your site from appearing on AI Overviews.
- Robots.txt: You can edit your robots.txt file to direct Google to not crawl your site or sections of your site. This is a pretty sweeping method to tell Google to not crawl the site, however, it is well documented that sometimes Google will still index the site.
- NoIndex Tags: Noindex tags can be implemented in the meta tags of your pages, this also communicates to Google that you do not want the page to be indexed which also means they will not be able to use the page in their AI Overview.
It is important to note though, that these traditional methods help prevent your site from appearing in Google searches AND AI Overviews.
The method that can affect just the AI Overview part of search results is:
- Nosnippet Tags: The nosnippet tag tells Google that you would like the content of your page to not be used for any Featured Snippets. This was created to accommodate site owners who did not want their pages to be in Featured Snippets because this search feature has shown to lower engagement metrics for sites. It is important to note that this strategy is moreso an educated guess, since AI Overviews are seen as an evolution of Featured Snippets and many of the blurbs summarized or used are the same in Featured Snippets, so it would be reasonable to guess that the nosnippet tag should also influence the AI Overview.
It’s important to be methodical and truly understand which round you would like to take with your site’s content. You do not want to try and remove yourself from AI Overviews and subsequently remove yourself from Google searches if Google is a major part of your traffic and business.
In addition, I do anticipate as AI Overviews get more prevalent Google may come out with more direct methods to manipulate or even prevent certain content from being included in AI Overviews. For now, we only have our best assumptions from traditional SEO methods.