AI Overviews: what they mean for UK businesses

AI Overviews are the AI generated summaries Google shows above the normal results for many searches, with links to the pages it drew on. For UK businesses they mean fewer clicks on informational searches, and a new goal alongside ranking: being one of the sources Google cites.

They have been live in the UK since August 2024. Google's AI Mode, a full conversational search tab built on the same technology, followed in 2025. Both now shape how people find suppliers, compare options and decide who to contact.

How AI Overviews choose their sources

AI Overviews are not a separate index. Google's documentation says they use the same core ranking and quality systems as normal search, and that a page must be "indexed and eligible to be shown in Google Search with a snippet" to appear as a supporting link (Google Search Central). There are no extra technical requirements.

The difference is a technique Google calls query fan-out. Rather than running one search, AI Overviews and AI Mode may issue "multiple related searches across subtopics and data sources" and pull supporting pages from each. A page that answers one specific part of a bigger question clearly can be cited, even if it does not rank first for the main search.

What AI Overviews do to traffic

When an AI Overview appears, fewer people click the results below it. Ahrefs compared 300,000 keywords between December 2023 and December 2025 and found that the presence of an AI Overview correlated with a 58% lower click-through rate for the page in position one (Ahrefs, February 2026).

The effect is not even across search types:

Search type	Example	Likely effect
Simple definitions and facts	"what is a CRM"	Many searchers get the answer without clicking
Comparisons and how-to research	"HubSpot vs Zoho for a small business"	Fewer clicks, but the ones that arrive are further along
Local and service searches	"accountant near me"	The local pack and Business Profiles still carry the decision
Branded searches	"[your company] reviews"	The Overview summarises what other sites say about you

The practical result for most businesses is lower traffic to blog content and steadier traffic to service and location pages. A fall in sessions does not automatically mean a fall in enquiries, which is why reporting needs to track leads, not only visits.

How to get cited in AI Overviews

Google's guide to optimising for generative AI features, published in May 2026, says plainly that this is still SEO. The same fundamentals apply, with a sharper focus on a few of them.

Answer the question in the first two sentences

Pages that state the answer clearly near the top are easier to quote. Lead with the direct answer, then give the detail, the exceptions and the evidence underneath.

Add something that is not already on page one

Google asks site owners to offer "a unique viewpoint or first-hand experience rather than restating what is already available." Original data, real prices, worked examples and named experts are what separate a cited page from one of fifty similar ones.

Show who wrote it

A named author with a profile page, relevant experience and a real published and updated date supports the trust signals Google's systems look for. This is the reason Atomic's own posts carry author profiles.

Cover the follow-up questions

Because of query fan-out, the questions people ask next matter. A page on choosing an accountant that also covers fees, switching and what to ask in a first meeting gives Google more reasons to cite it. Group related pages into clusters with clear internal links so the whole topic is covered, not just one keyword.

Keep your Business Profile and product data current

Google's guide names Google Business Profile and Merchant Center feeds as sources for local and product answers. Opening hours, services, categories and reviews on your Business Profile feed directly into what AI Mode says about you. Local SEO work now affects AI answers as well as the map pack.

Keep the technical basics clean

Crawlable pages, fast loading, no duplicate versions of the same content and a site verified in Search Console. A page Google cannot index cannot be cited.

What you do not need to do

Google's guidance also rules several popular tactics out:

• llms.txt files. Google Search does not use them, so adding one neither helps nor harms visibility in Search.
• Rewriting content "for AI". Google says its systems understand synonyms and meaning, so there is no need for special phrasing or long lists of keyword variations.
• Splitting pages into small chunks. Google states there is no ideal page length and its systems handle several topics on one page.
• Chasing mentions. Seeking inauthentic mentions is not helpful, and spam systems work against them.

Structured data is not required for AI features either, although it is still useful for rich results.

How to measure AI Overview traffic

Clicks from AI Overviews and AI Mode are counted in the Search Console Performance report under the Web search type. Google has also added a generative AI performance report in Search Console for content shown in AI features.

Treat third party "AI visibility" scores with care. Google's guide states that "no third-party tool has access to our internal ranking or AI systems." Tools that track whether your brand appears for a fixed set of prompts are useful for spotting trends, but they are samples, not a full count.

The measures that matter most:

• Search Console clicks and impressions for your key pages, compared year on year
• enquiries and sales from organic search in GA4
• how often your brand is cited for the prompts your customers actually use
• branded search volume, which tends to rise when AI answers mention you

Can you opt out of AI Overviews?

You can limit what Google shows from your pages using the nosnippet, data-nosnippet, max-snippet and noindex controls (Google Search Central). These also restrict normal search snippets, so opting out of AI Overviews usually means less visibility in standard results too. For most businesses, being cited is worth more than being absent.

What has changed recently

In October 2026 Google said it had substantially increased the number of inline links in AI Overviews and AI Mode, began testing a section at the top of some answers for official websites and added thumbnails to the related articles shown at the end of responses (Google, 15 October 2026). Preferred Sources, which lets people choose the sites they want to see more of, now also applies to AI Overviews and AI Mode.

Each of these changes rewards brands people already know and trust. That makes consistent publishing, a recognisable name and a clear official website more valuable, not less.

Where to start

1. Pull your top 20 informational pages from Search Console and check which now trigger an AI Overview.
2. Rewrite their openings so the answer is in the first two sentences.
3. Add a named author, a real updated date and at least one original element to each.
4. Check your Google Business Profile is complete and accurate for every location.
5. Report on enquiries from organic search, not sessions alone.

For more on how AI is reshaping search, read how AI is changing SEO, or talk to the SEO team about an AI search review of your site.