Introduction: From Clicks to Clickless Searches
For decades, success in search was measured by clicks. Search engines served as gateways, leading users from a query on Google or Bing to an organic result – ideally your website – where engagement and conversions happened. Marketers optimized for impressions → clicks → on-site engagement → conversions. But today, we are entering a major shift in search behavior. Thanks to AI-driven results, people often get the information they need without ever clicking through to a website. In this emerging “clickless search society,” engagement can occur before a click happens – directly on the search results page. The traditional funnel is being upended, with clicks now pushed further down the path. In short, appearing in search is still vital, but the way users interact with search results has fundamentally changed.
The Rise of Zero-Click Searches
“Zero-click search” refers to a query where the user’s question is answered directly on the search engine results page (SERP) – no additional click to a website is needed. Search engines now display rich results like featured snippets, knowledge panels, People Also Ask boxes, local packs, and, increasingly, AI-generated answer summaries. These features present instant answers, recommendations, and content previews that satisfy the user’s intent immediately on the SERP.
Figure: Example Google results page for “what is digital marketing,” showing an AI-generated overview at the top (blue box), a People Also Ask section (purple box), and a knowledge panel (right). These SERP features deliver information and answers directly on Google – illustrating how users can get what they need without clicking through to any single website.
Zero-click searches have quietly become the new normal. Recent studies show that in 2024 nearly 60% of all Google searches – both in the US and Europe – ended without a click to any external site. In other words, over half of searchers now find what they need on Google itself. They either get their answer and end the session (about 37% of searches), or they refine their query and continue searching without clicking a result (~22%). Only the minority of searches result in a click on an organic result, and even those are often split between clicks to ads, Google’s own properties, or the open web. In the U.S., for example, an analysis found that for every 1,000 Google searches, only about 360 result in a click to a non-Google website – meaning roughly two-thirds of searches stay on Google either via no-click or clicks to Google-owned platforms. This zero-click phenomenon has been growing: a few years ago it was observed around 50% of searches; now it’s closer to 60% and rising.
How AI Is Changing Search Behavior
What’s driving this surge in zero-click searches? A major factor is the arrival of AI-powered search features that have compressed the path from question to answer. In the past, a user’s journey looked like “search → click a result → scan for info → find answer.” Now, especially with generative AI in the mix, it’s often “search → get answer.” Google’s new AI Overviews (part of its Search Generative Experience) and Bing’s AI chat results illustrate this shift. These AI summaries synthesize information from multiple sources into a concise answer right at the top of the results. The user can get a comprehensive answer or step-by-step solution without needing to click through for more details. For example, a query like “how to fix a flat tire” might yield an AI-generated step-by-step snippet immediately, satisfying the query on the spot.
Crucially, when an AI summary is present, users interact with search results very differently. A recent study by Pew Research (March 2025) found that when Google displayed an AI-generated summary, users clicked on traditional search results only 8% of the time, roughly half as often as when no AI summary was shown (15% click-through). Users also rarely click the links within the AI summary itself – only about 1% of such searches. In fact, people are more likely to consider their query answered and end their session on the search page: 26% of searches with an AI answer resulted in the user not clicking anything and not continuing – effectively concluding their research then and there (versus 16% on a standard results page). All of this means fewer opportunities for websites to get that precious click. The AI is doing the job of aggregating and delivering information, which historically would have required the user to navigate into one or several webpages.
Even apart from AI summaries, Google’s results pages have been increasingly enriched with information. Knowledge panels (with facts pulled from sources like Wikipedia), direct answer boxes (definitions, calculators, weather, etc.), People Also Ask expansions, maps, shopping carousels – all of these give users what they want immediately. Search engines are aiming to be one-stop information providers, not just referral services. This keeps users on the platform longer, and in Google’s case, often steers them toward Google’s own services (e.g. YouTube, Maps, Google Shopping) when relevant. Nearly 30% of all clicks from Google searches now go to Google-owned properties like YouTube, Maps, News, etc. – reinforcing that Google often captures the engagement that used to flow out to external sites.
Real Metrics: More Impressions, Fewer Clicks
One clear sign of the clickless search trend is the decoupling of impressions and clicks in search performance data. Many businesses are finding that their content is visible to more searchers than ever, but drawing fewer visits to their site. In other words, you might see your search impressions (the number of times your site appears in results) climbing, even as the click-through rate (CTR) on those results falls.
Industry-wide data backs this up. For instance, BrightEdge (an SEO data provider) reported that in the year since Google launched AI Overviews, search impressions increased by 49%, yet click-through rates dropped by 30% on average. In essence, far more people are seeing content from websites in search results, but a smaller proportion are clicking through to visit those websites. Google’s AI summary is absorbing a lot of those clicks – doing the “last mile” of delivering answers that users used to rely on websites for.
This pattern has been observed firsthand by many SEO professionals. In one case, a website’s Google Search Console data from mid-2024 (when AI Overviews rolled out) to late 2025 showed its impressions more than doubled, while its organic CTR plummeted from about 1.5% to under 0.5%. The site was appearing frequently in the new AI-driven result blocks, but users weren’t clicking as often because they got their answers directly on Google. Another SEO expert described the trend succinctly: “Impressions kept increasing, but CTR dropped sharply… Google now shows your content inside AI answers. So impressions go up (more people see your content), but clicks go down (because users get their answer right there)”. This anecdote encapsulates what many brands are experiencing in the AI search era.
Figure: Example search performance data (one website’s Google Search Console metrics) showing impressions (purple line) rising sharply after AI Overviews launched in May 2024, while click-through rate (CTR, green line) steadily declines over time. This reflects a common trend: your content may be getting in front of more eyes on the SERP, but fewer of those impressions convert into clicks as users find what they need directly on Google.
Our own clients have seen similar shifts. Across a broad sample of e-commerce sites, recent Google updates yielded an average +20% spike in search impressions alongside a 5–10% decline in clicks. In traditional terms, it might appear puzzling – more exposure but less traffic – but it aligns perfectly with the clickless search paradigm. Engagement is happening off-site. The top of the funnel (awareness and information gathering) is increasingly occurring on the search results page itself, with the click now happening further down the funnel when a user is truly ready to take action (like making a purchase or deeper research).
It’s important to note that zero-click doesn’t mean zero impact for businesses. Even without a click, an impression can still deliver value if your brand or content features prominently in the answer. As one marketing expert put it, zero-click searches might not drive direct traffic, but they can still help your business grow by boosting visibility and brand awareness. If your brand is the one providing a key fact in a featured snippet or is cited in an AI overview, you’ve made an impression on the user’s mind. The challenge is measuring and capitalizing on that new kind of exposure.
Impact on Ecommerce: The New Customer Journey
These changes in search behavior have profound implications for ecommerce, especially in retail and consumer goods. In the past, a shopper might search for a product, click through to a brand or retailer site, and browse from there. Now, product discovery and consideration can happen entirely on third-party platforms and search results. Google’s results page itself increasingly functions as a product discovery hub – featuring Google Shopping carousels, images, reviews snippets, and even AI-curated recommendations – all before a user ever clicks a store’s link.
For example, a user might search “best moisturizer for dry skin in winter”. Instead of going to a blog or a brand’s product page, they could be greeted with an AI Overview summarizing top ingredients or products (sourced from various sites), a few highlighted products in a Shopping carousel, and a People Also Ask section addressing related questions (“Is glycerin good for dry skin?” etc.). By the time this user scrolls, they may already have a specific product in mind – all without directly visiting any one brand’s website during that discovery process.
In this environment, ranking on page one of Google doesn’t guarantee traffic the way it used to. A content marketing manager described the situation bluntly: “Nearly 60% of searches now end without a single click. That’s the reality of zero-click search, where answers, product recommendations, and media appear directly on the results page…”. In other words, even if your site is listed as a top organic result, the user might already have their answer or product choice from the SERP features above it.
The customer journey is being compressed. Shoppers are asking more conversational, natural-language questions (e.g. “what’s a good concealer for sensitive skin?” rather than just “concealer sensitive skin”) and they expect instant, curated answer. Google’s AI will happily list a few suitable product names or tips right on the SERP. This means as a retailer or brand, you’re no longer just competing to have the best webpage that the customer might eventually click – you’re competing to be included in the answer itself. If the AI Overview names three brands or sites as the sources for “best concealers,” you want to be one of them. If a knowledge panel shows specifications for a product, you want that data (ideally provided by you) to be accurate and prominent.
Another key shift is in which part of the funnel is happening on which platform. Consider the traditional marketing funnel stages for a retail customer:
- Awareness/Discovery (Top-of-Funnel): Increasingly controlled by platforms and AI. Customers might discover a new product through a Google answer summary, a YouTube review snippet in search results, or a social media recommendation, rather than from your homepage or ad.
- Consideration (Mid-Funnel): Often happening via third-party content. Reviews, forums, influencer content, and Q&A snippets (e.g., “People also ask”) on the SERP shape opinions. The user might compare options without ever visiting the official product pages, by reading aggregated star ratings or community answers.
- Decision/Conversion (Bottom-of-Funnel): Still frequently happens on a brand’s or retailer’s site (or app) – but only if the shopper gets that far. If they’ve already made up their mind from the info gathered on Google or another platform, the actual purchase could even happen through a third-party interface (e.g., Google’s “Buy on Google” options, or emerging chat-based checkout – more on that shortly).
Not all segments are equally affected yet. Visually-driven and fast-moving product categories like fashion, beauty, tech, and wellness tend to feel the zero-click impact sooner, since consumers in these areas rely heavily on quick research and recommendations. Brands that historically got a lot of organic traffic for discovery (including many direct-to-consumer brands and publishers with shopping guides) have been hit hard and fast by these changes. Meanwhile, explicitly transactional searches (“buy X online,” “order Y near me”) are still likely to result in clicks, since the user’s goal is to make a purchase and they must click through to do so. In fact, Google appears to have dialed back AI Overviews on many pure e-commerce queries – one analysis noted that the share of e-commerce-related searches showing an AI summary dropped from 29% to just 4%, as Google refocused those queries toward shopping ads and listings instead. This suggests Google doesn’t want to derail high-intent buyers from clicking into merchant sites (or ads). The good news here is that if someone is clearly looking to buy a specific item, you still have a strong chance of getting that click or conversion. The challenge is that a lot of the influencing and decision-making that lead up to that moment are happening off-site.
Consider an illustrative example of a retail brand adapting to this new reality: Kendra Scott, a jewelry retailer, recognized that to maintain visibility, they needed to feed the answer engines with far more content. Starting in mid-2024, they undertook a large-scale content expansion, adding around 8,000 new pages to their site (many generated or assisted by AI). But these weren’t just product pages – they were informational pages organized around themes, use cases, and natural-language queries (e.g. “gifts under $50”, “how to style hoop earrings for work”). The strategy was to target the kind of long-tail queries that trigger AI summaries and rich results, ensuring the brand appears in those zero-click answer boxes. The results? Within a year, about 27% of those new pages are ranking on page one, contributing to 5% of the company’s total web traffic. That 5% might seem small, but it represents traffic that Kendra Scott would likely have lost to zero-click answers entirely had they not provided content for those questions. It also demonstrates just how much content investment is needed now for a leading brand to capture organic traffic – thousands of pages to grab a few percentage points of traffic.
Importantly, Kendra Scott also focused on meeting customers within these new ecosystems. They invested in an AI-powered chatbot “copilot” on their site, which answers product and style questions in real-time. This tool now resolves 93% of customer inquiries (up 53% from its earlier, non-AI version), and about 6% of the brand’s e-commerce sales are influenced by this on-site AI assistant. In short, they’re preparing for a future where customers expect instant answers at every stage – whether on Google or on the brand’s own platform.
The B2B and Manufacturing Perspective
For B2B companies and manufacturers, the clickless search trend also carries significant weight. These industries often rely on rich informational searches – think of engineers searching for specifications, or procurement managers researching “best materials for X,” or maintenance professionals looking up troubleshooting guides. Traditionally, a manufacturing company might attract prospects by offering whitepapers, spec sheets, or FAQs that rank in Google results. Now, much of that information can be extracted and served up via AI without the prospect ever downloading the PDF or visiting the site.
Interestingly, business buyers are quickly adopting generative AI tools in their research process, which amplifies this effect. According to a Forrester survey, by 2025 about 28% of business buyers who used generative AI to inform purchases reported spending less time on research as a result. Essentially, AI is streamlining the info-gathering for them. These buyers ask an AI (like ChatGPT or Bing Chat) complex questions – “What are the top-rated industrial 3D printers for prototyping?” – and get a synthesized answer drawing on many sources. They end up more informed in less time, and often with a broader set of options to consider (57% said they actually consider more vendors thanks to genAI, likely because the AI exposes them to brands/content they wouldn’t have found on their own). However, the flip side is they might not visit all those vendors’ sites initially; the AI has done the comparing for them.
For manufacturers, this means your technical content, product data, and expertise need to be visible to AI engines. If you have a detailed spec or a helpful answer on a forum, the buyer might see it quoted by an AI summary rather than on your website. Just as with retail, being the cited source is now as good as – or sometimes better than – being the clicked destination. It also means that when buyers do engage directly, they are further down the decision path. By the time they land on your site or call your sales team, they may already have a wealth of AI-curated information about your products and competitors.
The zero-click trend in B2B search might not manifest as dramatically as in consumer search (since B2B queries can be more niche and often require deeper dives), but it is growing. Google’s AI Overviews for technical queries and the presence of rich results (e.g. code snippets, knowledge panels for chemicals, etc.) are early signs. Additionally, many manufacturers depend on distributor platforms and search engines within marketplaces, meaning buyers might complete a lot of research within Amazon Business, Alibaba, or industry-specific portals – again reducing visits to the manufacturer’s own site.
In summary, whether it’s a retail consumer or a manufacturing procurement officer, the common thread is empowerment by information-at-a-glance. People are getting what they need with fewer traditional click-throughs, and businesses across the board must adjust to that new reality.
Adapting to the Clickless Era: AEO, GEO, and New Strategies
How should businesses respond to the clickless search society? The first step is to broaden what we consider “SEO.” It’s no longer just Search Engine Optimization for ranking and getting clicks – it’s also about Answer Engine Optimization (AEO) and Generative Engine Optimization (GEO). These emerging practices recognize that being the answer is as important as being the link.
- Answer Engine Optimization (AEO): This focuses on structuring your content to directly answer common user questions so that search engines can feature it in snippets, knowledge panels, and other instant-answer formats. In the pre-generative AI days, AEO mostly meant winning featured snippets (“Position 0”), getting into the People Also Ask answers, and providing content for knowledge cards. The philosophy is that users want quick, concise answers, so deliver those answers clearly and you’ll earn a spot on the SERP itself. Effective AEO tactics include: using question-and-answer formats in your content, adding FAQ sections, marking up information with structured schema (FAQPage, HowTo, etc.) so Google understands it, and ensuring the answers are factual and authoritative. The goal is to have the search engine present your content as the answer, even if the user doesn’t click through immediately.
- Generative Engine Optimization (GEO): This extends the concept of AEO into the AI-generated answer era. GEO is about optimizing your brand’s presence and content such that **AI models (like Google’s SGE, Bing Chat, ChatGPT with browsing, etc.) recognize and cite your content in their synthesized answers. It’s a bit like SEO for AI. Key aspects of GEO include:
- Ensuring your content is accessible to AI (not hidden behind logins or heavy scripts) and is formatted in an AI-friendly way (clear headings, structured data, and simple language for easy parsing).
- Building authority and trust – AI tends to pull from sources it deems reputable. This means having strong expertise signals (quality content, backlinks, perhaps even schema that defines your entity and its attributes). It also means optimizing for entities (topics/keywords) so that the AI associates your brand with relevant themes.
- Providing comprehensive answers. An AI summary might draw on a page that thoroughly covers a topic. Thin content won’t cut it – you need depth and clarity.
- Monitoring where you are cited. New tools (and Google’s Search Console itself with an “AI results” report) are emerging to track when your content gets used in AI overviews. This is analogous to tracking rankings, but now you track citations/mentions in AI.
- Ensuring your content is accessible to AI (not hidden behind logins or heavy scripts) and is formatted in an AI-friendly way (clear headings, structured data, and simple language for easy parsing).
In practical terms, adapting to zero-click and AI-driven search means rethinking content and metrics. Here are some strategies and tips:
- Aim to be the Answer: Identify the common questions in your domain (the “who, what, why, how” queries). Create content that directly answers those questions in a concise, factual way. For example, a manufacturing company might have a knowledge base article “What is the difference between 316 and 304 stainless steel?” with a crisp answer at the top – that’s prime for a snippet. A retailer might maintain an FAQ like “How do I determine my ring size?” etc. Start the answer immediately (within the first 40-60 words) and then provide additional detail. This way, Google could lift that quick answer for a snippet or AI summary, but interested users can still click for the deeper context.
- Use Structured Data (Schema Markup): Implementing schema markup helps search engines and AI understand and trust your content structure. For instance, adding FAQPage schema around Q&A content can help your answers appear in People Also Ask boxes or even directly in AI overviews. Similarly, HowTo schema can make your step-by-step guides eligible for rich displays (or AI step lists). Structured data essentially labels your content in a way machines love – it’s like putting up a big sign that says “here’s the answer to a specific question.” Many brands have seen success by marking up product information (price, availability), reviews, and FAQs to increase their chances of being featured prominently on SERPs.
- **Focus on Entities and Context: In the AI era, search is moving from keyword matching to understanding context. Ensure your content clearly defines the entities (products, people, technologies, concepts) you want to be known for. For example, if you manufacture a product, have a robust page that defines that product category, its use cases, specs, etc., in plain language. Link it to other relevant pages (creating a semantic network on your site). This helps both traditional search and AI models see you as a go-to source for that topic. It also means having a presence in knowledge repositories: consider contributing to or sponsoring relevant Wikipedia pages, maintaining Google Business profiles, and getting listed in authoritative databases. These all strengthen the signals that an AI might use to consider your brand/info trustworthy.
- Embrace Multi-Platform Visibility: A user’s journey might involve never touching your website until the final purchase – they could discover you on Google, research via YouTube or Reddit, ask questions on LinkedIn or Quora, and so on. So, ensure your content and brand messaging are consistent and present across key channels. For retail, that means your products should be well represented on Google Shopping, Amazon, social media, etc. For B2B, that could mean participating in industry forums or Q&A sites. If the conversation is happening off-site, you need to be there too. This is not to spread yourself thin, but to recognize that AI will pull answers from all over the web – and a lot of user-generated content is part of that. Brands like to control the narrative, but in an AI answer, a snippet from a third-party review could carry as much weight as your official page. By being present and active in those spaces (through content, partnerships, influencer engagement), you increase the likelihood that the right information about your products is what the AI finds and presents.
- Adapt Your KPIs: We need new ways to measure success in a clickless world. Instead of obsessing solely over organic traffic, consider metrics like share of voice in SERP features (e.g. how often do your pages appear in snippets or AI overviews for important queries), brand mentions/citations, and impression-to-click ratio. Google Search Console’s evolving reports can help; for example, Google has introduced ways to see how your content performs in the context of AI results (impressions there vs clicks). It’s also worth tracking engagement on the SERP itself – for instance, if you provide a downloadable or a calculator that surfaces in results (via indexable content), note how often it’s being used (even if not clicked). If 100,000 people got an answer from your snippet, that’s 100,000 micro-engagements with your brand – which may later translate to direct searches or brand trust.
- Leverage On-Site AI and Tools: Since you can’t rely as much on getting every user to your site, make the most of those who do arrive – and even entice them to stay or return. On-site search and AI chatbots can replicate the instant-answer experience on your own properties. As we saw with the Kendra Scott example, a well-implemented AI chatbot or assistant can increase conversion and customer satisfaction. It answers questions immediately, which today’s searchers appreciate. Similarly, ensure your site’s content is easily navigable and searchable internally – if users come looking for something specific (perhaps after an AI recommended you), they should find it with zero friction.
- Prepare for Clickless Transactions: The frontier of clickless behavior isn’t just answers – it’s transactions. Companies like OpenAI (with ChatGPT’s new shopping plugin and “Instant Checkout”) are experimenting with letting users buy products directly from an answer interface. For instance, ChatGPT can now find a product (via an Etsy integration) and let the user purchase it right within the chat window, never going to the Etsy site at all. Google is also testing transactional features in their AI results. While these are early developments, e-commerce players should keep an eye on “agentic commerce” or answer-engine commerce. It may soon be feasible that a customer says, “ChatGPT, order me replacement filters for my air purifier,” and the entire transaction completes via an AI intermediary. To be ready, ensure your products are integrated with these platforms (through merchant center feeds, partnerships, or APIs) and that you have strategies for affiliate or partnership models (since the AI platforms might take a cut or favor certain marketplaces). The key is to not be caught off-guard if shoppers start to “convert” without visiting your store – much like how “Buy Now” buttons on social media created new purchase channels.
In essence, surviving and thriving in the clickless search era means evolving your mindset. SEO isn’t dead, but it’s evolving: “It’s no longer just about ranking – it’s about being recommended and cited” in the places where modern searchers are looking. The new rules of search are about adding to what worked before, not abandoning it. We still want to rank well in traditional terms, but we also want to appear in snippets, be the voice that the AI speaks, and provide value even when the click doesn’t come.
Conclusion: Embracing the New Search Landscape
The rise of the clickless search society marks one of the most significant shifts in digital marketing in recent memory. For businesses in e-commerce – whether B2C retailers or B2B manufacturers – this shift can feel alarming. After all, we’ve spent decades optimizing for clicks and traffic, and now the goalposts are moving. However, with change comes opportunity. Customer behavior is evolving, and marketers must evolve with it.
The impact is clear: users are getting their answers, recommendations, and even purchasing decisions fulfilled in new ways that bypass traditional websites. But your business can still thrive by ensuring it’s part of those answers and decisions. It requires rethinking content strategy (focus on answers and structured data), adjusting success metrics (value impressions and citations, not just clicks), and investing in new touchpoints (like AI-driven tools and multi-platform content). Companies that adapt will find that zero-click doesn’t mean zero engagement or zero conversion – it just means the engagement happens in distributed, fragmented ways. You might not “see” every customer who benefited from your information, but rest assured they see you.
Finally, recall that at the end of every search is a human seeking convenience and trust. AI and rich SERP features are simply tools helping people get what they need faster. By aligning your digital strategy to serve that need – whether through a snippet of advice, a highly-rated product that surfaces in a carousel, or a seamless chat-based purchase – you ensure that your brand remains relevant and visible. The funnel may be changing shape, but the fundamentals of marketing remain: know your audience, meet them where they are, and provide value. In a clickless world, those who provide the most value in the quickest way will win the day.
As we communicate to our clients: This is a major shift, but it’s not the end – it’s an evolution. By embracing AI-driven search and optimizing for this new reality, you can turn zero-click searches into new avenues for brand growth. The search engines may keep more users on their own pages, but your brand can still shine within those pages. Welcome to the clickless search society – it’s time to make it work for us, not against us, moving forward.
Sources:
- Fishkin, R. “2024 Zero-Click Search Study.” SparkToro, 2024. (Analysis of Google search outcomes: ~58.5% of US searches now end without a click) sparktoro.com.
- Chapekis, A. & Lieb, A. “Google users are less likely to click on links when an AI summary appears in the results.” Pew Research Center, July 22, 2025. (Study showing reduced click-through and more session endings on AI-infused search pages) pewresearch.org.
- Goodwin, D. “New Google AI Overviews data: Search clicks fell 30% in last year.” Search Engine Land, May 15, 2025. (BrightEdge data on impressions +49% YoY, CTR –30% YoY, with industry breakdown) searchengineland.com.
- Semrush Blog. “How to Win in a Zero-Click Search Market.” Oct 23, 2025. (Insights on zero-click searches with AI Overviews, example data showing doubled impressions vs CTR drop, and adaptation strategies like AEO) semrush.com.
- Prokopowicz, M. “Zero-click searches and the future of e-commerce product discovery.” Dept Agency Insights, Aug 5, 2025. (Discussion of zero-click impact on e-commerce, example of Kendra Scott’s content strategy, and funnel shifts) deptagency.com.
- Lai, N. “Zero-Click Search Comes For Checkout: Agentic Commerce Automates Retail’s Next Frontier.” Forrester Blog, Oct 2, 2025. (Overview of emerging chat-based shopping and stats on consumer and B2B buyer use of generative AI in purchase journeys) forrester.com.
- Nowspeed Marketing. “AEO vs GEO: Are Answer Engine Optimization and Generative Engine Optimization the Same?” 2023. (Definitions of AEO and GEO, and why both are essential in the AI-driven search era) nowspeed.com.
Additional industry commentary and case examples as cited throughout: semrush.com, searchengineland.com.