SEO is dead.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Again.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
It died when social media became popular.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Then featured snippets killed it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Then TikTok killed it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Then ChatGPT arrived and apparently finished the job.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Google AI Overviews came along just to make absolutely certain.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
At this point, SEO has attended so many of its own funerals that it probably knows the catering staff by name.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
But I am not going to spend the next 2,000 words trying to convince you that SEO is alive.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
That sounds exhausting.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Instead, let me ask you a few questions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
You can decide for yourself.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
This seems like a reasonable place to start.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
If SEO is dead, presumably people stopped searching.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Except they didn’t.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Google said in May 2026 that Search queries had reached an all-time high. AI Mode had already passed one billion monthly users, with queries more than doubling every quarter since launch. Google also reported more than 2.5 billion monthly active users for AI Overviews.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
So people are not searching less.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
They are searching differently.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
That distinction matters.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Ten years ago, you might have typed:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\nbest accounting software small business<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n
Today, you might ask:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\nI run a 15-person SaaS company with customers in the US and Europe. What accounting software would work well for us without becoming painful as we grow?<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n
Different interface.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Different query.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Same human problem:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I need something. Help me find it.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n
Search has expanded beyond typing three awkward words into a white box.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
People search Google.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
They ask ChatGPT.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
They use Gemini.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
They search Reddit.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
They watch YouTube.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
They ask AI tools to compare products, explain options and recommend companies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The behaviour didn’t disappear.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The places where that behaviour happens multiplied.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
So let me ask you:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
If people are still looking for answers, products and companies…<\/p>\n\n\n\n
what exactly died?<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Do Your Customers Still Search Before They Buy?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Forget SEO for a moment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Imagine you sell project management software.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
A potential customer searches:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\nbest project management software for agencies<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n
Then:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\nAsana alternatives<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n
Then:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\nClickUp vs Monday<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n
Then:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\nMonday pricing<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n
Then:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\nMonday reviews<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n
They might also ask ChatGPT:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\nWhich project management tool is better for a 30-person marketing agency, Monday or ClickUp?<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n
This person is not casually browsing the internet while waiting for lunch.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
They are evaluating software.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
There is commercial intent behind those searches.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
And if your company sells a relevant product, you have two possible positions in that journey:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Present.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n
Or:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Not present.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n
That’s really the conversation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
If a keyword gets 200 searches per month but some of those people are actively evaluating a $20,000-a-year SaaS product, I care about that keyword.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
If another keyword gets 20,000 searches but almost nobody searching it will ever buy the product, I am considerably less excited.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Traffic is useful.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Revenue tends to pay better.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Now ask yourself:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Does your customer still do any of this?<\/p>\n\n\n\n
If yes, we can continue.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Would You Rather Rank, or Let Your Competitor Rank?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Suppose someone searches:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\nbest payroll software for remote teams<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n
Your competitor appears.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
You don’t.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Someone searches:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\nDeel alternatives<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n
Your competitor appears.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
You don’t.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Someone asks ChatGPT:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\nWhat are the best payroll platforms for a global remote company?<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n
Your competitor gets mentioned.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
You don’t.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
You can certainly announce that SEO is dead.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Your competitor will probably respect your decision.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Possibly even encourage it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
This is why I find the \u201cIs SEO dead?\u201d debate slightly strange.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The better question is:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\nAre people looking for what you sell, and are you visible when they do?<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n
If the answer is yes, the channel has value.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
If the answer is no, then we can discuss funerals.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
What Exactly Died?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Now we get to the part where the \u201cSEO is dead\u201d crowd does have a point.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Some forms of SEO are having a fairly unpleasant time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
If your entire strategy was:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Find high-volume keyword.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Ask AI to write 2,500 words.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Add \u201cWhat is X?\u201d to the title.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Publish.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Repeat 150 times.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Then yes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Please accept my condolences.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The internet does not desperately need another article explaining \u201cWhat Is CRM?\u201d using 17 headings.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
AI can answer many simple informational questions instantly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Google can answer many of them directly in the search results.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Users don’t always need to visit your website to discover what an acronym means.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
And frankly, they never owed us that click.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
What is becoming weaker?<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\n
- Generic informational content with no original value<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Articles written purely to hit a word count<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Publishing huge quantities of near-identical content<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Chasing traffic without considering buying intent<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Treating rankings as the business result<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Reporting sessions while nobody asks where the revenue went<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n
That is not quite the same thing as saying search visibility has no value.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
There is an important difference between:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThis SEO tactic doesn’t work like it used to.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n
and<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cNobody searches before buying anymore.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n
Those are very different statements.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
What Happens When Google Answers Without a Click?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Now we reach the uncomfortable part.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
AI Overviews are taking clicks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
There is no point pretending otherwise.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Ahrefs studied the impact in 2025 and initially found a 34.5% reduction in average click-through rate for the top-ranking page when an AI Overview appeared.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
They reran the study using December 2025 data.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The updated finding was worse:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
AI Overviews correlated with a 58% lower average click-through rate for the top-ranking result.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n
That is not a rounding error.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
So yes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Some clicks are disappearing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
But now ask the next question:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Which clicks?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n
A large portion of AI Overview exposure happens around informational searches.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Consider these two searches:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\nWhat is payroll software?<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n
and<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\nbest payroll software for companies hiring internationally<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n
Would I value both?<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Sure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Would I value them equally?<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Absolutely not.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
One person may simply want a definition.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The other may be shopping.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
If AI answers the definition without sending me the click, I am not going to hold a candlelight vigil for that pageview.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The job now is not simply:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Get more organic clicks.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n
The job is:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Be visible for searches that matter commercially.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n
That is a much healthier conversation for a B2B SaaS company.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
What About ChatGPT and LLMs?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
This is where the story gets more fun.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
If users were leaving Google and disappearing into some mysterious black hole, SEO would have a larger problem.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
But that isn’t what is happening.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Users are asking many of the same commercial questions inside LLMs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Things like:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\nWhat are the best CRM tools for startups?<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n
\nWhat are good alternatives to Salesforce?<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n
\nWhich HR software is best for distributed companies?<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n
\nCompare HubSpot and Pipedrive for a small sales team.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n
And those systems can surface brands, cite sources and send users back to websites.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Semrush analyzed 17 months of clickstream data and found that outbound referral traffic from ChatGPT to websites grew 206% year over year<\/strong>, comparing January 2025 with January 2026.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
That doesn’t mean ChatGPT is about to replace Google traffic.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
It means something much simpler:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
AI discovery can lead people back to the web too.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n
Google has moved in the same direction.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In 2026, Google introduced dedicated Search Console reporting for visibility inside generative AI experiences such as AI Overviews and AI Mode.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Think about what that tells us.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
We used to talk mainly about:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\nCan I rank in Google?<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n
Now the question is becoming:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\nCan my company be discovered when someone asks Google, ChatGPT or another AI system about the problem we solve?<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n
If your ideal customer asks an AI system for three products in your category, I would quite like your company to be one of those three.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
You can call that SEO.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
You can call it AEO.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
You can call it GEO.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
You can invent another acronym before Friday.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The acronym is not terribly important to me.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The visibility is.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Are Rankings Still the Goal?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
No.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
And perhaps this is where SEO deserved some criticism.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
For years, businesses were trained to celebrate things like:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\nWe increased organic traffic by 218%.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n
Lovely.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Did revenue increase?<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Silence.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\nWe now rank for 4,700 keywords.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n
Lovely.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Which ones bring customers?<\/p>\n\n\n\n
More silence.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\nOur impressions increased 600%.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n
Fantastic.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Can we pay salaries with impressions?<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Apparently not.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
A B2B SaaS company should not invest in SEO merely to produce attractive graphs for a monthly report.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The chain should make commercial sense:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Relevant visibility \u2192 qualified traffic \u2192 pipeline \u2192 revenue<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n
And now another path has been added:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Relevant visibility \u2192 LLM mention\/citation \u2192 brand discovery \u2192 evaluation \u2192 revenue<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n
Not every visit will convert.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Not every AI citation will send a click.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Not every ranking deserves champagne.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
What matters is whether you are visible during the searches and questions that can influence a buying decision.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Try This Before You Declare SEO Dead<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
You don’t need an SEO tool for this.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Give yourself ten minutes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Think about how someone might discover or evaluate your SaaS product.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Then search five things.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
1. Your category<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Example:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\ncustomer support software<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n
2. The problem you solve<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Example:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\nsoftware to reduce customer support response time<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n
3. A high-intent \u201cbest\u201d query<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Example:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\nbest customer support software for SaaS companies<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n
4. A competitor alternative query<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Example:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\nIntercom alternatives<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n
5. A comparison query<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Example:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\nIntercom vs Zendesk<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n
Look at the companies appearing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Now open ChatGPT, Gemini or whichever AI tool your buyers are likely to use.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Ask similar questions conversationally.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
For example:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\nWe are a 50-person B2B SaaS company and need customer support software. We currently use Intercom but find it expensive. What alternatives should we consider?<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n
Look at the brands mentioned.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Look at the sources cited.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Look at the websites that keep appearing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Then answer these questions:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\n
- Does your company appear?<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Do your competitors appear?<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Which competitors appear repeatedly?<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Does AI mention your brand?<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Does it cite your website?<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Are the queries commercially relevant?<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Would getting visibility for them help your business?<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n
You now have enough information to decide whether SEO is dead for your business.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
So, Is SEO Dead?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Maybe.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
You tell me.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Are people still searching?<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Yes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Are potential customers still researching software before spending money?<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Yes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Are they still comparing companies?<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Yes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Are your competitors still trying to appear when those searches happen?<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I would imagine so.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Are people now asking ChatGPT and other AI tools many of the questions they once typed into Google?<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Also yes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Has low-value informational traffic become harder to win?<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Definitely.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Have AI Overviews reduced organic clicks?<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The data says they have.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Has the route from question to website changed?<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Very much.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
So maybe the old version of SEO is dying.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Good.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Some of it probably deserves to.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I don’t particularly care whether we call what replaces it SEO, AEO, GEO, AI search optimization, search visibility or whatever term arrives next month.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
If a potential customer is looking for exactly what my company sells, I want my company to appear.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
On Google.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Inside ChatGPT.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Inside AI search results.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Wherever that buying decision begins.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
You can decide whether that’s dead.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
SEO is dead. Again. It died when social media became popular. Then featured snippets killed it. Then TikTok killed it. Then ChatGPT arrived and apparently finished the job. Google AI Overviews came along just to make absolutely certain. At this point, SEO has attended so many of its own funerals that it probably knows the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":102,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"wpai_generated_summary":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-32","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-b2b-saas-seo"],"blocksy_meta":{"styles_descriptor":{"styles":{"desktop":"","tablet":"","mobile":""},"google_fonts":[],"version":8}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/b2bsaasseo.agency\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/32","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/b2bsaasseo.agency\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/b2bsaasseo.agency\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/b2bsaasseo.agency\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/b2bsaasseo.agency\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=32"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/b2bsaasseo.agency\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/32\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":34,"href":"https:\/\/b2bsaasseo.agency\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/32\/revisions\/34"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/b2bsaasseo.agency\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/102"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/b2bsaasseo.agency\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=32"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/b2bsaasseo.agency\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=32"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/b2bsaasseo.agency\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=32"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}