Is Your Website Ready for the AI Era?
Generative search is changing how people find and engage with content — favoring clear, structured, trustworthy answers over traditional keywords. Here are the signs your site is falling short, and how to get ready for AI-powered results.
By Tina Kelly
The way people discover information is shifting and fast. With Google’s Search Generative Experience (SGE), ChatGPT and other AI-powered tools, users are increasingly served zero-click summaries instead of traditional search results. This is more than an SEO update. It’s a shift in how content is surfaced and valued.
A Semrush-Datos study found Google’s AI Overviews in 13% of all U.S. search queries in March 2025, doubling from just 6.5% just two months earlier.
Translation? As more search traffic will be influenced by AI, websites need to compete for being included in the answer — not just on a search results page. Here are some signs your current site needs help and what to do.
1. Your content is shallow or outdated.
Generative tools favor clear, authoritative answers. Pages without depth or which cite outdated facts aren’t likely to be selected for summary inclusion.
AI models rely on metadata, internal links and headings to understand context. Poor architecture means less visibility for your site. Generative search responds to intent, not just keywords. Generic pages are less likely to surface in AI-generated responses. Generative AI references authority and expertise. Vague or templated content is easy to overlook and harder for models to trust. While AI Overviews grow, trust and accuracy remain top concerns. A Columbia Journalism Review/Tow Center study showed more than 60% of AI responses cite incorrect sources, raising questions about reliability The unifying thread: Your website has to work harder than ever to be seen, trusted and chosen. It’s no longer just a place to house information. It’s an ever-changing, strategic asset that shapes how your brand appears in AI-generated results, search engines and the tools people use every day to make decisions. If your site is hard to update, unclear, underperforming or out of sync with how people actually search, it may not just need a refresh. It may be time to rethink how your website fits into your broader digital strategy.2. Your site isn’t structured for machines (or people).
3. You’re just targeting keywords.
4. Your brand authority isn’t coming through.
5. You haven’t addressed zero-click searches.
Time for a Smarter Website
We help organizations do exactly that, combining smart content, intuitive design and future-ready structure to turn underperforming websites into powerful platforms.
Tina brings more than 10 years of experience to C/A, where she partners with companies to develop digital marketing campaigns that leverage content, encouraging audiences to consume, engage, share and convert. Tina’s experience spans industries, having led digital marketing strategy development and execution for several global and national brands, including The Children’s Place, Nationwide Insurance, Delta Faucet and many more.
Tina has presented at a number of industry conferences and events, including SXSW Interactive and Content Marketing World. Outside of work, Tina and her husband can usually be found on a sports field somewhere, cheering on their two kids.