Google’s AI Mode: What Small Businesses Need to Know

SEO isn’t what it used to be. And that’s a good thing moving forward! You have probably heard the buzz – Google is rolling out something called AI Mode. If you’re not in the loop, then you might be falling behind.  

The truth is that traditional SEO strategies just don’t cut it anymore. If you’re still depending on obsolete strategies, chances are you’re losing out on valuable traffic and visibility.  

If you’re still wondering, ask yourself these questions – 

• Does my website have low traffic?
• Are the clicks dropping off despite the effort?
• Am I doing “everything right” but still getting overlooked?
• Have my best-performing blogs suddenly stopped pulling in traffic?

Finding a YES as an answer for all? Well, SEO is truly changing, and AI is at the center of it all. So, what does this mean for small businesses? A lot! Read this blog till the end to find out how AI Mode may benefit your small business, and how you can optimize for it! 

Don’t wait for your competitors to figure it out first!

What Is Google AI Mode?

At Google I/O on May 20, 2025, CEO Sundar Pichai made it clear that Google is doubling down on AI and said, “move faster with AI.” (Source)

He also stated that since launching last year, AI Overviews have reached over 1.5 billion users across 200+ countries. In major markets, such as India and the US, they’re already driving a 10% increase in search volume. Plus, the number will keep increasing. 

Just three months later, Gemini 2.5 entered the market. It understands images, texts, and content. Plus, it simplifies the most complex searches, and no matter what your question is, Gemini 2.5 provides relevant answers along with some follow-up questions. 

With this comes Google AI Mode. It is – 

• Context-aware
• Built for multi-step reasoning
• Blurring the lines between a chatbot and a traditional search

We can say that it is reshaping the rules of SEO. With AI Mode, users are not limited to one search at a time. They can explore deeper, ask follow-ups, and get answers that might have taken several searches.
It gives rise to another question: let’s find out what!

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Is AI Killing SEO And Trust In Search?

AI Mode does sound futuristic and exciting, but it’s also creating major rumblings across the marketing and SEO industry. And not all of them are good!

Here’s what digital marketers are asking – 

• Are AI-generated results accurate and relevant?
• Are people trusting AI, even if it’s confidently wrong?
• If AI gives all the answers upfront, why would anyone bother to click our links?

All the questions do make sense, but that’s not it. There has been a wave about the zero-click, as well. In 2024, nearly 60% of Google searches ended without a single click. (Source)

Google handles over 5 trillion (Source) searches per year, which is 373x (Source) more than ChatGPT. But even with that traffic, a huge chunk of websites got lost in the no-click zone. So, if you’re not adapting to this change, you may lose a lot more than just your traffic!

How Does Google AI Mode Work?

Now that you’re aware of what the buzz is all about, it is also important to know how Google AI Mode works. Well, for starters, it is changing how users find content on Google. Unlike the old-fashioned approach that just threw a bunch of blue links, AI Mode is making things smarter and way more contextual.

In case you’re wondering, here’s what it does – 

• UnderstandUnderstand the true intent behind your search
• Breaks the search query into subtopics using “Query Fan Out.”
• Runs multiple parallel searches
• Compiles everything into a conversational, cited response

So, now it’s not about crawling the web or ranking number 1 anymore. It is all about surviving and succeeding. And, for that, your content needs to be –

• Relevant
• Well-Structured 
• Entity-Rich (people, places, topics)

To give you the answer you’re looking for, Gemini 2.5 parses hundreds of websites. Then, it turns them into a deep, credible summary, often with citations and follow-up prompts. 

What Does It Mean?

Well, it simply means – 

• You don’t have to work hard to rank #1. Your content might be quoted directly from a blog, video, Reddit thread, or review. 
• The results are fast, fluid, and chat-like, which encourages you to ask more questions.
• Features like Deep Search, voice interactions, and multimodal inputs are turning the search engine into an intuitive, all-in-one discovery engine. 

How Does The AI Mode Affect SEO?

Google AI Mode is shaking up the SEO terrain. 

1. Visibility

On the positive side, appearing in AI-generated summaries or AI Overviews can boost visibility even if your site isn’t #1. Consumers have shown significant interest in brand mentions, even when the click happens on your SERP snippet. 

But instead of appearing within, alongside, and/or below an AI Overview, AI Mode’s search real estate is constrained to its – 

• Answer
• Sidebar

2. Traffic

Traditional traffic is declining, from 20-60% drops in organic sessions to 23% CTR for AI-Overview queries compared to 36% without. Plus, analytics is also becoming “murky,” as AI queries are lumped under “web” in the Search Console. 

Also, because AI Mode is somewhat similar to AI chatbots, such as Perplexity and ChatGPT, people find it less reliable. Hence, they never visit the cited links. One study says that AI Chatbots send 96% less referral traffic than traditional search. 

AI Mode works in a separate tab, which means users need to change their search habits to use AI Mode effectively. But, Google says that it plans to integrate elements of AI Mode into its traditional search engine. 

3. Strategy

Strategy is impacted by AI Mode, too. While foundational SEO remains important for showing up in AI-driven search, businesses must evolve to meet the next stage. This involves – 

• Aligning more precisely with specific search intent
• Enhancing both the written and visual quality of content
• Rethinking the metrics used to evaluate SEO performance
• Expanding the focus beyond traditional search to include diverse search experiences

But.. the good news is – not all is lost yet! Sites that work on and build their topical authority, optimize structured content, Schema markup, and deeper, entity-rich articles stand a better chance of being cited by AI. 

By early 2028, it is possible that digital marketing and SEO-related topics may begin to drive more visitors from AI search to websites than from traditional search. 

How Should SEO Respond To AI Mode?

Well, proactively, of course! Some other ways are as follows – 

1. Prepare For A Decline In Organic Traffic

But first, marketers need to be prepared for a projected 25% drop in traditional organic traffic by 2026, driven by AI chatbots replacing blue-link results. Businesses relying solely on the blue-link rankings must diversify their strategy now to maintain discoverability. 

However, depending on the strength of your SEO strategy, you should see an increase in qualified traffic. NerdWallet, for example, has seen a whopping 35% increase in revenue in 2024 but lost 20% of its monthly website traffic. This example, which is common across industries, shows how important it is to shift search engine optimization to AI.

2. Shift From SEO To Omni SEO

This means businesses now need to shift from just SEO to search everywhere optimization, most commonly known as OmniSEO, where visibility isn’t limited to your website. Your brand now needs to show up on YouTube videos, Reddit and Quora posts, product listings, Google Business Profiles, and many more. 

People are using more than Google to find what they need, and SEOs must adapt to the changes. This will help them grow businesses online by boosting visibility and turning that into quote requests, in-store visits, or purchases. 

The future of SEO is everywhere your audience searches – not just Google’s front page!

3. Use The Hybrid SEO Model

Winning SEO strategies must combine the traditional tactics – the backlinks and the technical SEO, with formats tailored for AI surfaces (voice searches, snippets, multimodal content). Continue producing optimized content, optimizing local listings, and generating reputable backlinks.  

A website with AI-driven search traffic is expected to convert 4.4 times better by 2027, rewarding brands that adapt early and optimize for how “AI thinks.”

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How Can Small Businesses Benefit From Google AI Mode?

As people are using AI Overviews, they’re getting exactly what they want, and it has also increased the volume of commercial queries. 

Here are a few ways AI Mode will benefit small business owners –

1. Increased Brand Discovery

As people turn more to “Search” to discover new brands and products, it is creating more opportunities for small business owners and advertisers. Hence, small businesses can gain visibility by providing clear, useful content relevant to their users.

2. Your Ads Could Show Up In Smarter Places

Recently, Google has been testing ads inside AI summaries. This means, instead of a basic banner or text ad, your offer could show up in an actual answer. Isn’t that cool? Well, this could be huge for small businesses. 

3. Answering Questions = New Customers

If you’re already answering customer questions on your website or social posts, keep it up! That conversational content is exactly what AI Mode looks for. Start reviewing the questions customers ask you in person or over email – then answer them in blog posts, short videos, or FAQs. 

4. More Entry Points For Local Searches

AI Mode pulls in reviews, photos, and Google Business Profile details. This allows small businesses to show up even for broad or discovery-style queries, such as “great pizza near me.” If you’re a brick-and-mortar business, this is gold for you! 

Note: Make sure your Google Business Profile is up-to-date!

5. Better User Intent Matching

The AI customizes the answer based on context. Therefore, if your business optimizes for specific needs, for example, “eco-friendly gifts” or “quick home repairs,” it can attract favorably targeted traffic. This change is sure to favor small businesses that speak directly to their audience’s needs.

How To Optimize For Google AI Mode?

If AI Mode is the future, which seems likely, it is high time that SEOs and digital marketing agencies start to rethink their strategies. Their main goal should be “showing up within the answer,” not just “beside it.”

1. Write Content That AI Wants To Feature

AI prioritizes concise, authoritative, and structured content. This means you must answer your question in the first 1-2 sentences. Then, proceed with the deeper introduction, incorporating explanations, examples, and relevant links.

It also means you have to incorporate tables and listicles. In other words, you have to fight the urge to write long poetic paragraphs. Facetious example, but you get the point. AI opts for easy-to-understand content.

2. Dominate Your Topic With Cross-Platform Content

As you already know, AI Mode pulls content from any relevant source – LinkedIn, Amazon, reviews, etc., which avoids limiting your SEO efforts to your website alone. All you need to do is create content targeting the same core topic across platforms. 

The breadth ensures Google’s AI finds and cites your brand, regardless of the format. For small businesses, this isn’t extra work – it’s repurposing their core content in the best format for each channel. Thus, resulting in multiple citation opportunities. 

3. Optimize For Conversational And Intent-Rich Queries

It’s time to shift from keyword-stuffing to Answer Engine Optimization (AEO), which means structuring your content around natural, conversational questions. For example, “How do I fix my garage door spring?” Plus, use FAQs, How Tos, QAPage schemas. 

While writing, ensure each paragraph can stand alone as a direct answer. This approach aligns with how AI Mode “fanned out” queries, increasing your chance of being cited. 

4. Build Authority Through Earned Signals

As a small business owner, it is mandatory to focus on customer reviews across Google Business Profile and niche review sites. This is because AI Overviews prioritize trust signals, such as reviews, backlinks, and brand mentions. 

Try getting coverage on relevant blogs, industry forums, and local news outlets. Every genuine mention increases your credibility in Google’s Knowledge Graph and makes AI Mode more likely to work in your favor. 

5. Use Technical SEO For AI Readability

Keep your content easy for AI to parse. This means using clean HTML, avoiding heavy JavaScript, and optimizing your site’s crawlability. It is advisable to implement structured data to provide AI with clear signals about your content’s topic, intent, location, and purpose. 

Consider optimizing the website’s load times and making it mobile-friendly, as AI extracts brief, high-quality passages from top-performing content. 

6. Use AI Tools To Scale And Improve Content

Use AI-driven tools, such as Gemini-based optimizers or platforms like Rankability, to 

• Analyze your content
• Extract relevant entities
• Suggest improvements 

This ensures you maintain your brand voice, while AI tools make your content more discoverable in conversational search. 

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How AI Tools Can Help Rank With Google AI Mode?

AI tools are becoming essential for small businesses to rank in Google AI Mode.

Why? 

Because AI Mode is not just about scanning keywords, it focuses on understanding your content. That’s where tools powered by natural language processing, like ChatGPT, Gemini, Rankability, and Replit, come in. 

AI Tools + Your Strategy = AI Mode Visibility

The real trick? Don’t let AI lead! 
You stay the strategist – let AI tools do the work. When you mix smart human ideas with scalable AI execution, you increase your chance of being pulled into AI answers. And… that means visibility, trust, and traffic.

Takeaway

Google AI Mode is changing how small businesses get discovered online. So, AI Mode is here to stay, and for small businesses, it’s a massive opportunity. Focus on helpful content, show up everywhere, and make use of AI tools. 

Read More About:

1. Boost Visibility and Sales: SEO and PPC for Local Businesses
2. Effective CTA Techniques Every Local Business Should Use
3. The Ultimate Local SEO Checklist for Small Business Owners
4. Small Business SEO: Why It’s Essential for Local Success

SEO Is Changing – So Should Your Digital Strategy! Call Velocity Media Lab Now!

Start showing up in Google’s AI Mode with the help of our SEO Services in Sacramento at Velocity Media Lab. With 8+ years of experience and 50+ success stories, we help brands like yours get discovered in the AI-powered search experience. Get in touch with us and learn how our services can grow your AI search visibility across platforms.  Call us at (916) 472-4143 for a free quote and let’s turn your traffic into sales.