Trend 1 - AI is changing our search behaviour
Search engines like Google are very important to businesses as a driver of traffic. But AI will fundamentally change the way we use search engines.
AI tools like ChatGPT already provide answers to questions, without users having to click through to websites where that specific information can be found.
Google and Bing are also trying to use AI to formulate answers to search queries.
As a result, the number of clicks through to websites from search engines will drop significantly.
And that, of course, causes a major shift in traffic from search engines.
Social media - Gen Z's search engine
Google's dominance has been crumbling for some time. Search habits are changing. A lot of search traffic has already shifted to marketplaces like Bol and Amazon, and Gen Z use platforms like TikTok and Instagram as primary search tools.
This means a shift in focus from text-based search results to visual and interactive information delivery.
Of course, this has implications for your media approach because you are more dependent on organic traffic. How do you mitigate this inbound decline? A good part of the answer involves building up your owned media. AI is undoubtedly going to shake up the marketing and communication sector in the media field as well.
More people are turning to AI for their searches, whether simple or complex. Bing, Microsoft's search engine, was the first to integrate ChatGPT into its platform. Clear evidence of how quickly AI is changing the way we search for information.
More and more people are switching to AI for their searches, whether simple or complex.
Bing, Microsoft's search engine, was the first to integrate ChatGPT into its platform. This shows how quickly AI is changing the way we search for information.
Google SGE
Google's Search Generative Experience (SGE) is a new AI-driven feature that helps users find relevant answers. At the time of writing, this feature is only available in the US.
Like Bing, with SGE you will not only see traditional search results, but also get comprehensive, summarised answers thanks to generative AI.
This means that users can access valuable insights at a glance. This makes it easier to answer complex searches with useful information, without having to click endless links.
OpenAI, the company behind ChatGPT, has also announced SearchGPT in summer 2024.
At the moment, no official launch date has been announced, nor is it entirely clear how SearchGPT will differ from Bing integration. But keep it on your radar.