SEO in media: is the format really no longer effective?

Since 2025, webmasters have been recording a significant drop in search traffic. Analytics service statistics demonstrate this trend. The key factor behind these changes has been the introduction of intelligent AI responses in search engines.

Artificial intelligence now analyzes website content and generates ready-made answers directly on the search results page. This reduces the need for users to go to the original resources, which is especially noticeable in the information segment.

The new reality requires a rethinking of approaches to content and SEO. The focus is shifting to expert materials, quality information, and adaptation to generative search algorithms. Web resources need to offer unique value that cannot be replaced by AI responses.

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Media and innovation

Media resources that were mainly focused on SEO were most affected by these changes. Projects without their own community and those that relied on copywriting rather than unique content proved to be particularly vulnerable. There are not many active sites with truly original content in the affiliate marketing niche. At the same time, there is virtually no culture of open exchange of experience in the media sphere, which complicates adaptation to new realities.

As for projects with a permanent audience, the situation is somewhat better here. Thanks to the community, original content, and regular visitors who come to the site directly, the decline is noticeable but not catastrophic. Nevertheless, this does not negate the fact that investments in SEO in recent years have largely been ineffective.

What is an SEO strategy? Useful recommendations for increasing traffic from search engines can be found in this article.

It is interesting to note that AI responses appear much more frequently in mobile search results. This is probably due to the assumption that mobile users are less inclined to explore several websites and prefer to get a ready-made answer right away.

Brief conclusion

Overall, these developments pose serious challenges for webmasters. Search engines essentially use third-party content for their answers, thereby reducing the motivation to create high-quality content. In the future, there may be some kind of compromise, such as an “show AI answer” button that is optional rather than default. But for now, the situation looks worrying for those who have relied heavily on search traffic and have not managed to build a live audience.