Embracing the AI Revolution: Search Engines & Your SEO Program

Last Updated on March 24, 2026 by Aimee Jurenka

There are wild changes happening in the online world these days & this means reassessing SEO efforts to keep up. Artificial Intelligence (AI) is causing a total makeover in how we use search engines and who will get that SEO “earned marketing”. Let’s dive right into this tech revolution and see what it means for us SEOs.

Our Smart Search Assistants

Say hello to Google’s Search Generative Experience (SGE) –  AI Overviews –  and Bing’s AI-powered search engine (Copilot), users’ new digital buddies! SGE & Copliot use algorithms to gather info from different sources and create a complete answer in the “new” position zero. They are like chatty geniuses! That talks to users in natural language and gets what they’re asking for, making their search experience way more convenient & possibly eliminating the need to click through to our websites.

The User Experience Upgrade

Thanks to AI, the whole experience on the internet is getting a significant upgrade. We’re talking about quick, accurate answers to our questions. No more typing robotic queries; we can talk to our devices like chatting with friends. And guess what? These AI buddies know us so well; they personalize the results, showing us stuff we’ll love. It’s like having a private online genie.

SEO Shakeup: The New Rules

So, what are we seeing in these new results? First, they are still from the top SERP listings. Now it is more like the top 3-5 instead of the old top 10. Second, they are citing sources. Meaning your URL is still clickable to the user so quality content with added value to the user will still be a solid SEO marketing tactic. Third, clickable follow-up questions are being displayed. So targeting Peaople Also Ask questions will be even more valuable. Fourth, Bing is incorporating sponsored (PPC) results without telling the user. This means we SEOs might be working with PPC a lot more than we used to. The cross-marketing efforts will have increased benefits for both channels. 

Moves for SEO Success with AI

Wanna keep up with the AI gang? Here are some of my tips for SEO success in the AI era:

• Rock Your Content Game: Ditch the boring stuff and give people content they’ll gobble up like candy. Helpful, engaging, and fun. That will give the algorithms what they want, to provide added benefit for users. Now more than ever we have to start thinking of search engines like humans first & bots second.
• Speak Like the People: AI search is all about asking complete questions, so get in on the action! Use natural language and long phrases, long-tail keywords & questions, that real people use when they talk to their gadgets that will catch the AI bots NLPs’ attention.
• Data Is Your BFF: The bots behind the algorithms love structured data – it helps them understand your site better. So, give ’em what they want and use structured data markup. You’ll impress the AI gods! Okay, maybe not the gods, but it will help your site get indexed correctly.
• Be a People Watcher: User metrics will be more critical in the coming future. Keep an eye on user behavior to see what they love on your site and what they don’t. Then re-optimize your content.
• Start Testing Now: Nothing is better than first-hand experience, start utilizing the tools as they grow so you can keep up with the latest trends. You can sign up for SGE at https://labs.google/ & Copilot at https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/bing.

AI is turning the online world upside down. SGE and AI-powered search are changing the internet landscape with personalized and lightning-fast results. And for all of us SEO peeps out there, don’t freak out! Go forth & embrace AI, you’ll rock this tech revolution like a pro.

P.S. I was all jazzed up about ChatGPT & used it to create this article. Looking back, I made many mistakes, but it was my first time using a new tool, so I like to keep this to remind myself how far I have come. Like almost full circle to simply drafting my work to keep the authenticity even though I am not a natural writer & using AI tools to help with spelling & grammar cause (that is intentional) I am not a good speller or grammarer (not a real word). 🙂