Reasons for Declining Traffic: What to Do?

Contents:

• The Degree of Traffic Decline: The Impact of AI as a Cause of Change
• Is It Possible to Recover Lost Traffic?
• The Feasibility of Combating Traffic Decline and Effective Methods for Solving the Problem
• Additional Aspects of Understanding AI Search Results
• Final Analysis of Organic Traffic

Before Google began implementing generative responses, a number of companies expressed concerns that users would be able to obtain the information they needed directly from the search engine and stop visiting their websites. However, the company itself assured that "the overall number of organic clicks has not changed and remains at the same level."

In fact, a number of American publishers have noticed a significant decrease in traffic, in some cases up to 25%. Similar trends are observed in the Russian market.

In this Skillbox Media editorial material dedicated to marketing, we will conduct a detailed analysis of the following aspects:

• How significantly is traffic decreasing and is artificial intelligence really the cause?
• Can we reverse this process;
• Is it worth resisting the decline and what methods should be used for this?
• What else should be considered regarding artificial intelligence search results?

The degree of traffic decrease: the influence of AI as a reason for change

The volume of generative answers in search engines is steadily increasing. AI Overviews, which are AI answers in Google, attracts more than 1.5 billion users monthly. Yandex is also seeing growing use of neural networks: by the summer of 2025, AI search was processing 35% of all queries, and the number of "Search with Alice" users reached 88 million.

We surveyed industry representatives to determine whether they were noticing a decrease in traffic, and also identified which specific queries were affected and the causes.

Answers generated by artificial intelligence are affecting the placement of search results, leading to informational queries that previously ranked 6th or 7th in mobile search results now being pushed almost off-screen in Yandex. This impacts website visibility, which in turn negatively impacts conversion rates. Sergey Sekenov, head of the Rookee support team, notes that one of the training projects saw a 6-7% decrease in traffic.

According to Lyudmila Bulgakova, Head of Content at Ashmanov & Partners, the decline in traffic on individual information pages reaches 10-20%, and in some niches this figure can be even more significant.

"Nevertheless, pages that end up in neural blocks attract more attention, which helps offset some of the losses. In certain situations, we lose clicks, but at the same time increase reach. Therefore, the impact of AI search shouldn't be viewed exclusively in a negative light," notes Lyudmila.

On May 20, 2025, Google introduced AI Overviews. Since then, a decline in traffic from this search engine has been observed, says Anton Moys, Head of Search Engine Optimization at Skillbox. "The decline in traffic is also due to seasonal fluctuations. "However, while last summer this figure decreased by approximately 9%, this year I'm seeing a decline of 15-20%," Anton adds.

Ilya Rusakov, founder of the impulse.guru agency, notes that more than half of projects are experiencing a decline in traffic. "The decline is primarily observed for informational queries, that is, in cases where user intent is not related to conversion. However, there are examples where commercial traffic is also declining, despite an increase in impressions. This is especially evident in the financial sector," Ilya comments.

The decline in traffic is noticeable in areas where users seek concise answers—for example, definitions or numerical data. According to information from projects involving SEO expert and author of the blog "SEO-Aspirant" Viktor Pryadilshchikov, in some clusters the drop can range from 20 to 40 percent. Viktor notes: "This isn't so much a catastrophic decline as a redistribution of user interest between different sites, AI responses, and alternative content formats."

According to Viktor, AI responses aren't the only factor contributing to the traffic decline. This decline is due to a variety of factors:

• With the rise of non-clickable searches, users can now get answers directly in search results.
• Highly recognized brands receive greater attention from search engines, which are more likely to link to such authoritative resources.
• Increased competition is leading to a noticeable increase in carousels, AI reviews, videos, product cards on marketplaces, and other elements in search results.
• Recently, we have seen a shift in user behavior: more and more people are starting their online interactions through platforms such as ChatGPT, TikTok, and YouTube, instead of traditional organic search.

Viktor Pryadilshchikov notes that analytics systems are seeing a deterioration in performance. Queries that previously regularly generated clicks still generate a number of impressions, but click-through rates (CTR) have decreased by 20-40%. This phenomenon is typical for systems based on artificial intelligence, such as AI Overviews.

Is it possible to recover lost traffic?

According to most market representatives with whom our editorial team spoke, this process has already become irreversible.

"In the classical sense, organic traffic will most likely not recover to its previous levels, but this does not mean that its significance is diminishing. “Rather, it is being redistributed between search results and AI-based responses, which are beginning to play the role of a new channel of interaction,” notes Lyudmila Bulgakova, Head of Content at Ashmanov & Partners.

“We will no longer be able to return to the time when 10 Blue links were the only sources of traffic. On the other hand, the value of each individual visitor has increased significantly. People who actually visit your site are much more interested and engaged than those simply looking for a quick definition of a term."

Viktor Pryadilshchikov is an expert in search engine optimization and runs a blog called "SEO Graduate Student."

Ilya Rusakov, founder of the impulse.guru agency, is convinced that there is no reason to believe that search engine traffic will recover to its previous levels. "Search habits have already begun to transform; the new generation uses search engines differently. This process is irreversible," Ilya shares his thoughts.

Anton Moys, who heads the search engine optimization department at Skillbox, argues that the decline in organic traffic can be minimized by adapting content to the requirements of artificial intelligence. It's also important to consider website traffic from chatbots and integrate this data with traditional search traffic. More and more users are abandoning traditional search and turning to tools like ChatGPT or Gemini when they need information online.

The Feasibility of Combating Declining Traffic and Effective Methods for Solving the Problem

Action is essential; inaction is unacceptable. "If we leave things as they are, in a year, two, or three companies will simply disappear online," says Ilya Rusakov, founder of impulse.guru.

How to overcome difficulties? If victory is not possible, it is better to embrace the situation, says Sergey Sekenov, head of the support team at Rookee. Artificial intelligence in search is here to stay. The best option is to strive to be among the recommended AI sources to become part of the list from which data is drawn to generate responses.

"To successfully promote both traditional search and neural networks, it's essential to create longreads that contain SEO keywords and delve deeply into the topic. However, users need to receive clear and quick answers to their queries." “It’s optimal for content to satisfy both of these needs: it should include both SEO text and a short summary with key points or a section with frequently asked questions and answers,” notes Sergey.

Anton Moys, head of search engine optimization at Skillbox, claims that traditional SEO still retains its relevance. AI-powered blocks most often display content from websites that rank in the top 5 search results.

According to Anton Moys, artificial intelligence doesn't analyze entire pages, but focuses on their individual parts, called "chunks." For a chunk to be included in AI Overviews, it must meet the following criteria:

• short and independent;
• with a clear title and an unambiguous answer to it;
• rich in information, illustrations, statistics.

Also important:

• reduce mental strain - express yourself clearly, briefly, avoiding metaphors and vague formulations;
• strive for clarity, avoiding unclear formulations, overly colloquial language, unnecessary details and repetitive expressions;
• Avoid combining instructions, views and factual information in one text.
• use internal links;
• The use of micro-markup, such as FAQPage, HowTo and Article, allows you to structure content, highlighting key semantic sections.

Currently, template and unoriginal informational content, as well as an approach with multiple rewrites and a “keyword → article → links” scheme. On the contrary, working with a brand, creating an expert opinion, engaging the audience, using insights, practical examples and expressing an individual point of view remain successful, says Anton Moys.

Each subheading serves as a kind of input for artificial intelligence. For example, if we consider the title "What projects are included in the Python course?" the answer might sound like this: "You'll create a Telegram bot, develop a web application in Flask, and automate Excel reports using Pandas." This option is highly likely to appear in the neural network's responses. Therefore, the more such potential entry points we create, the higher the chance of them being mentioned.

Anton Moys is the Head of Search Engine Optimization at Skillbox.

Viktor Pryadilshchikov, an SEO specialist and the host of the blog "SEO-Aspirant," offers similar advice. He notes that there are several generally accepted text characteristics that contribute to their high ranking in search engines and neural networks. In addition to the previously mentioned clear structure, a clear author's position, and proper markup, he also emphasizes the importance of up-to-date publication and update dates, as well as the presence of visual components such as screenshots, diagrams, and graphs. Victor is confident that content with these qualities is indexed more effectively, cited more often, and increases the likelihood of appearing in AI responses.

"The main recommendation is to create meaningful content. It's important that the texts truly focus on people, not just a bunch of keywords. Furthermore, you should ensure that the content has a 'block' structure so that neural networks can easily highlight individual fragments," adds Ilya Rusakov, founder of the impulse.guru agency.

Lyudmila Bulgakova, Head of Content at Ashmanov & Partners, notes that a clear structure is essential for successful optimization for neural networks. Information and wording in the text should be easily converted into short quotes and fragments. "The clearer and more concise the idea, the greater the chance of being included in neural blocks. We emphasize expertise, reliable sources, user-friendly page architecture, and microdata." This helps ensure that content remains competitive both in search results and in new formats,” says Lyudmila.

Additional Aspects of Understanding AI-Based Search Results

The evolution of search results based on artificial intelligence has not only reduced the volume of organic traffic but also opened up new horizons.

With the help of neural networks, small companies can successfully compete with large players that dominate search engines. By creating high-quality and meaningful content, it's possible to rank higher in AI search results, even for commercially relevant queries. This avoids the previous difficulties of unsuccessfully trying to break through fierce competition, says Ilya Rusakov, founder of the impulse.guru agency.

According to Viktor Pryadilshchikov, SEO expert and author of the "SEO Graduate Student" blog, the main innovation lies in improving the quality of communication with clients. Artificial intelligence in search engines enhances the "winner-takes-all" effect: if a brand inspires trust and offers truly valuable content, it may receive fewer clicks, but its conversion rate will be higher. Furthermore, AI makes it possible to establish direct communication with users through AI-generated responses.

The development of AI technologies in the field of information delivery is forcing companies to pay greater attention to reputation management. According to Anton Moys, Head of Search Engine Optimization at Skillbox, neural networks favor brands that inspire trust in users. English: Achieving such trust is achieved through the following factors:

• mentions in the media, publications from specialists;
• a strong digital profile based on micro-markup of such entities as EducationalOrganization, Course and Person;
• the presence of open accounts of professionals involved in creating content for your brand on social networks such as LinkedIn, Behance and GitHub;
• the presence of the brand in various information resources, such as Wikidata, Crunchbase, Google Business and other similar platforms;
• reliability and facts - numerical indicators, examples, sources;
• participation on third-party platforms, such as VC, Habr, Behance, GitHub and others.

According to Anton, artificial intelligence is not limited to just remembering information from the official website, but also records the entire digital footprint, including previous conflicts and mentions in the media. For this very reason, it's important to monitor your reputation.

Sergey Sekenov, Head of the Support Team at Rookee, emphasizes that having a budget opens up opportunities to experiment with different customer acquisition channels. However, he notes that increasing spending, for example on contextual advertising, doesn't always guarantee an increase in orders. In some cases, you may face a situation where there is no opportunity to take higher positions in contextual advertising, and additional costs will not lead to significant improvements, warns Sergey.

“I believe that there is no point in waiting for a return to the previous model and missing out on opportunities. It's important to quickly adapt to changes—integrate SEO with GEO, consider new formats, and expand customer acquisition methods. Those who take these steps first will be able to gain a significant competitive advantage."

Lyudmila Bulgakova is the Head of Content at Ashmanov & Partners.

Final Analysis of Organic Traffic

• A decrease in search engine traffic is observed in a number of niches, where indicators have fallen by 10–20%. The greatest reduction concerns informational queries and those that require concise answers from users.
• The changes are permanent—it will not be possible to restore the previous traffic level, since neural networks and artificial intelligence-based results are here to stay.
• The decrease in traffic should be actively combated by striving to make your site the primary source of information for artificial intelligence. To achieve this, it is necessary to develop meaningful content that includes a variety of neural network-friendly elements, such as subheadings, tables, and Q&A sections.
• Neural networks have not only contributed to the reduction of traffic volumes, but also opened up new horizons. Now small businesses have the opportunity to attract attention and get traffic in areas where they could not previously compete with large companies.

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