You still rank first. Impressions are flat or up. Clicks are down. Nothing broke — Google started answering the question above your result, and a large share of searchers never scroll.

What changed structurally

For two decades search returned a list of places to go find an answer. AI Overviews return the answer, synthesized from several sources, with citations. For a lot of informational queries, the result page is now the destination.

This hits informational content hardest. “How much does X cost” or “how long does Y take” gets summarized. Transactional searches — someone ready to hire or buy — are far less affected.

Being the cited source is the new position one

Overviews name their sources. Being one of them puts your brand in front of the searcher even without a click, and the citations do get clicked by people who want detail.

What tends to get cited:

  • Direct answers stated plainly and early — a clear sentence or two right under a question-shaped heading.
  • Specific, checkable facts. Numbers, ranges, timeframes, conditions. Vague marketing prose is unquotable.
  • Clean structure. Question headings, short paragraphs, lists and tables where they fit.
  • Corroboration. Claims that agree with other credible sources are safer to cite.

Restructure what you already have

You don't need new content. Take your best pages and move the answer to the top. If a section is headed “How long does a Shopify migration take?”, the next sentence should answer it — not introduce the topic for three paragraphs.

Keep the depth below. Readers who want it will scroll; extraction systems will take the top.

Lean into what can't be summarized

An Overview can summarize a definition. It cannot replace your pricing, your availability, your portfolio, your reviews, or a conversation with you. Content tied to your business specifically retains its click value.

Practically: shift effort away from generic explainers you'd never win anyway, toward pages about your actual work, your market, and your process.

Measure it properly

Watch impressions and clicks separately in Search Console. Stable impressions with falling CTR on informational pages is the signature. If it's happening across a set of pages, that's the pattern — not a ranking loss.