Key Takeaways
- Local and commercial pages are largely safe. AI Overviews appear on only 7.9% of local searches and 3.2% of shopping searches.
- Informational blog content is not safe. Question-based and educational content is where AI Overviews dominate. If a significant portion of your traffic comes from "what is" and "how does" queries, you have a real rebalancing project ahead of you.
- Brand demand is your most durable asset. Branded searches are nearly twice as unlikely to trigger an AI Overview. Every referral, review, and reputation-building effort you make is generating a category of search traffic that AI cannot intercept.
A large-scale study from Ahrefs found that 21% of all searches now trigger an AI Overview. That means roughly one in five searches is answered by Google’s AI summary before users ever see traditional organic results.
For small business owners, that sounds alarming.
But the reality is more nuanced and more manageable than most headlines suggest.
Over the past year, we’ve audited dozens of small business SEO accounts across industries including roofing, dental, HVAC, and legal services. The pattern we keep seeing: local and buying-intent searches remain largely unaffected. Informational content is where the disruption is happening.
Here’s what the data and our direct experience shows about what this means for your business.
What AI Overviews Are Replacing
According to the Ahrefs study, AI Overviews are most likely to appear when someone is:
- Asking a question
- Submitting a long, detailed query (7+ words)
- Looking for definitions or explanations
- Researching health, science, or educational topics
They rarely appear when someone is:
- Searching “near me”
- Looking for a specific company
- Trying to book or buy something
- Comparing local providers
- Searching breaking news
That distinction is critical. AI Overviews are replacing informational blog content far more than commercial service searches.
Local Businesses Are Largely Protected
The Ahrefs data is reassuring here: only 7.9% of local searches trigger AI Overviews.
If someone searches:
- “roof repair near me”
- “electrician in Vancouver WA”
- “best dentist in Fort Collins”
Google still prioritizes the Map Pack, reviews, local listings, and business websites.
We see this consistently with our own clients. A roofing company we work with in the Pacific Northwest generates the majority of its inbound calls from Google Business Profile and local landing pages neither of which has been materially affected by AI Overviews since they rolled out broadly in 2024.
If you are a local service provider, your highest-converting keywords are still operating under traditional SEO rules. Your risk is lower than the headlines suggest.
The Real Exposure: Informational Content
The Ahrefs study found AI Overviews appear on:
- 58% of question-based searches
- 46% of searches with 7 or more words
- 44% of medical-related searches
If your SEO strategy is built primarily around educational blog posts, explainers, and “what is” content, you are now competing directly with Google’s AI summary which appears above your organic ranking.
This reduces click-through rates for informational traffic. It does not eliminate SEO. It changes how you approach it.
Why This Matters for Revenue
Informational content has traditionally supported brand awareness, email capture, top-of-funnel lead generation, and authority building. But if users get their answer instantly from an AI Overview, fewer will click through to your site.
In practice, that means lower traffic volume, fewer passive leads, and greater pressure on commercial keywords to carry the revenue load.
The businesses that adapt will shift from volume-driven SEO toward intent-driven SEO targeting keywords that signal a readiness to act, not just a desire to learn.
Three Strategic Shifts Small Businesses Should Make
1. Prioritize Buying Intent Over Search Volume
AI Overviews are rare on transactional, local, product, and brand searches. Focus on keywords that signal action:
- “cost” and “pricing”
- “book,” “schedule,” “hire”
- “best [service] in [city]”
These remain high-converting and far less disrupted by AI.
2. Build Brand Demand
The Ahrefs study found AI Overviews are nearly twice as common on non-branded searches compared to branded ones. If someone searches your company name, Google does not replace you with AI.
Brand demand is a moat. That means investing in local visibility, strengthening your Google reviews, maintaining consistent branding, encouraging referrals, and using paid media to build awareness over time.
Brand searches are among the safest forms of search traffic available right now.
3. Structure Content to Be Cited, Not Just Ranked
AI Overviews pull from high-ranking pages. Rather than treating AI as a competitor, aim to be referenced within it.
That requires clear and concise explanations, strong E-E-A-T signals, visible credentials, demonstrated author expertise, and well-structured formatting. If Google’s AI is summarizing your industry, your business should be one of the authoritative sources it draws from.
Industry-Specific Implications
Healthcare businesses face higher exposure. Medical queries trigger AI Overviews at a much higher rate than average, making authority and trust signals credentials, author bios, citations essential for maintaining visibility.
eCommerce businesses are relatively protected. Shopping searches trigger AI Overviews only 3.2% of the time, according to the Ahrefs study. Product-driven SEO remains strong.
Local contractors and service providers are primarily impacted in their blog content, not in the location and service pages that drive actual revenue.
The Bigger Strategic Perspective
Google is not replacing plumbers, electricians, dentists, or clinics. It is replacing Wikipedia-style informational results.
AI Overviews dominate broad research queries. They have limited presence in urgent buying decisions and local intent searches. The opportunity still exists; it has simply shifted toward higher intent and stronger brand signals.
One Diagnostic Question Worth Asking
Review your last 30 days of leads. Did they come from “what is…” informational searches, “best [service] in [city]” searches, or direct brand searches?
If most of your leads come from commercial and local queries, you are in a strong position. If your strategy depends heavily on informational blog traffic, it is time to rebalance.
A Note on Sources and Methodology
The statistics cited in this article are drawn from Ahrefs’ study of 146 million Google search results. You can review the full methodology on the Ahrefs blog. Percentages reflect conditions at the time of publication and may shift as Google continues to update how AI Overviews are triggered and displayed.
At Techna Digital Marketing, we help small businesses adjust their SEO strategy before traffic declines, not after. If you’d like a review of how AI Overviews are affecting your specific keyword landscape, contact us.