Google’s AI Overviews Are Gutting Organic Clicks (Even If You Rank #1). Here’s What to Do.

If your SEO report still celebrates “we’re ranking #1,” but leads feel lighter… you’re not imagining it.

Google’s AI Overviews are changing the deal: the search results page is becoming the destination, not the pathway to your site. And the data is getting worse fast.

The numbers you need to know

Ahrefs re-ran its CTR study using newer data and found that when an AI Overview appears, the top-ranking page sees ~58% lower CTR.

Earlier Ahrefs research (April 2025) put that reduction at ~34.5%, meaning the click loss has accelerated.

Seer Interactive’s research also shows steep declines for queries that trigger AI Overviews (they’ve reported major organic CTR drops in their ongoing analysis).

The takeaway is simple: ranking ≠ clicks anymore.

What’s actually happening: “The great decoupling”

Here’s the new SEO trap:

• Your rankings hold steady

• Impressions stay stable

• Clicks fall off a cliff

Why? Because the user’s question gets answered on Google, inside the AI Overview—often using ideas pulled from the same pages that used to earn the click.

So if leadership is only seeing rank reports, they’re getting a story that doesn’t match reality.

The old playbook is breaking

For the last decade, SEO was a straightforward trade:

You create the best answer → you rank → you get traffic.

AI Overviews break that chain:

You create the best answer → Google summarizes it → the user leaves satisfied → no click.

This hits hardest for informational, question-based content (the exact type many service businesses rely on for “top of funnel” growth).

What “winning” looks like now

The goal isn’t just to rank. It’s to be cited (and remembered).

Because in an AI Overview world:

• If your brand is mentioned/cited, you still exist in the buyer’s journey

• If it isn’t, you’re invisible—even if you rank on page one

Think of AI visibility as brand distribution, not pure traffic acquisition.

Why topical authority matters more than ever

Google’s AI doesn’t just answer one query. It breaks a search into related sub-queries (“fan-out queries”) and pulls from multiple sources across the topic.

A study covered by Search Engine Land found that pages ranking for fan-out queries were 161% more likely to be cited than pages ranking only for the main query.

Translation:One great article isn’t enough. You need to own the topic cluster—the surrounding questions, comparisons, and next-step queries.

What I recommend at Fractional CMO Services

Here’s the practical, do-this-next framework we’re using with clients.

1) Stop measuring SEO success by rankings alone

Add these to your weekly dashboard:

• CTR by query type (informational vs commercial)

• Branded search trend (are more people searching your name?)

• Conversions assisted by organic (not just last-click)

• Share of voice for “money” terms + comparisons

2) Rebalance content toward commercial intent

Informational content still matters—just don’t build your whole growth plan on it.

Increase your mix of:

• “Best [solution] for [industry]”

• “Agency vs fractional CMO”

• “Cost / pricing / retainer” pages

• Case studies, comparison pages, “why us” pages

• Program pages built around outcomes (pipeline, launches, churn reduction)

These are harder for AI Overviews to fully “satisfy” without a click—because the user is choosing, not learning.

3) Build topic clusters (not one-offs)

Instead of one hero post like:

• “What does a fractional CMO do?”

You build a cluster like:

• Fractional CMO vs marketing agency

• Fractional CMO pricing (what affects cost)

• Fractional CMO for SaaS vs services vs ecom

• What to expect in the first 30/60/90 days

• KPI dashboard templates and examples

• Common mistakes when hiring a fractional exec

This increases your chance of being pulled into AI answers across the entire decision journey.

4) Invest in off-site authority (yes, it matters more now)

If you want to show up in AI answers, you can’t live only on your own website.

Prioritize:

• Podcasts / guest articles in your niche

• Partnerships and co-marketing

• YouTube appearances (Google loves YouTube visibility in general)

• Digital PR / mentions on authoritative sites

• Founder/executive LinkedIn content that gets picked up and referenced

5) Create “citation-ready” assets

AI systems love clean, structured, quotable content.

Examples:

• Clear definitions (“A fractional CMO is…”)

• Short frameworks (3–5 steps, not 27)

• Original data, benchmarks, screenshots

• Visuals: charts, matrices, checklists

• Strong internal linking between cluster pages

Make it easy for Google to lift the right passage—with your brand attached.

A simple action checklist

If you want a fast audit, start here:

•  List your top 25 non-branded keywords

•  Check which ones trigger AI Overviews

•  Compare CTR pre/post AI Overview presence (or YoY)

•  Identify where you rank but don’t get clicks

•  Build a topic cluster plan around the 3 highest-value themes

•  Add 3–5 off-site placements per quarter (podcasts, guest posts, PR, collabs)

The bottom line

Google is shifting from a referral engine to a destination. You can’t “SEO harder” your way out of that.

But you can adapt:

• Treat AI visibility as brand distribution

• Build topical authority (fan-out coverage)

• Shift content toward decision-stage intent

• Strengthen off-site credibility