Michael Epps Utley {kind=image/jpg}
Think search engine optimization (SEO) was challenging in 2024? Check out the challenges and changes our experts see ahead in 2025 and beyond.
Note: Changes in search algorithms aren’t something to be feared or ignored. They must be embraced so your business gets all the online attention it deserves. On to the future!
Focus on All Types of Search
2024 introduced many types of Google search engine results page (SERP) positions and expanded on others, including featured snippets, Artificial Intelligence (AI) powered overviews, structured data (product) carousels, and knowledge panels. More are likely to come.
That means small businesses must reconsider their SEO strategies and move beyond the traditional things they have been doing. It will be critical to raise brand recognition across all the search result types that could be beneficial for your business.
For instance:
A medical practice might want to produce authoritative blog content that could be featured in an AI-powered overview, demonstrating its expertise to new prospective patients.
A gourmet food store will likely want to optimize its product images and descriptions for product carousels to get more people to make purchases.
A contractor may want to produce design trend videos that show off her knowledge and skill to attract new remodeling clients.
A local restaurant should keep its Google Business Profile (GBP) up to date so it shows up in its local three-pack and gets found by diners in the area.
Next steps: As we move into 2025, it's critical to go beyond traditional Google search listings and focus on the types that will most benefit your business. Selecting the right search result features will be essential to staying competitive in a changing landscape.
SERPs Will Prioritize AI Responses Over Featured Snippets
If your firm currently depends on featured snippets for a significant percentage of its search traffic, consider focusing more on being part of AI responses. As AI gets smarter, Google is serving up more of these types of results. The trend is only expected to accelerate in 2025 and beyond.
Keep in mind, however, that Google’s AI Overview feature is far from perfect and often works against the very websites that feed its output. For instance, these overviews don’t always accurately attribute sources. Moreover, many search users have already become frustrated with AI Overview’s potential inaccuracies, causing them to ignore these generative results (this may work in your favor if your content still leads the charge below the AI Overview, of course).
Next steps: Continue to prioritize developing the type of authoritative content that would typically rank high in Google results. However, instead of focusing on including brief answers to common questions in your copy, deliver insights that could be a part of a broader AI-powered narrative. It will keep your firm visible in that zero position in the years ahead (or until Google changes its algorithm again). At the same time, devote a large percentage of your content creation to highly localized, transactional search queries, which aren’t getting eaten as quickly by AI Overviews as broader, top-of-the-funnel searches. Finding the right mix of content will depend on your type of business, your target audience, and what seems to be working as you evaluate organic results over time.
AI Will Force Search Engines to Prioritize Authentic Original Content
As alluded to above, the issue with the current generation of AI-generated content is that it is unable to come up with original insights. It can only serve up what’s already available on the Internet. Add to that the fact that it is often inaccurate and includes many disconnects, and you can see why original, high-quality content is still a top priority in SEO. It will be the material that fuels the AI machine.
Next steps: Search will push businesses to focus on sophisticated original content that blends insights from multiple high-quality sources with unique ones. The content must deliver genuine value and resonate with those who encounter it. Once again, prioritize highly local, transactional content when planning topics to write about.
Social Search Will Become a Priority
In 2025, people will continue to leverage social media as a key source of information, especially ratings, reviews, moderated forums, and influencer opinions, and it’s expected that more will join them. Part of the reason for this is that people trust the insights shared by others like them on social media more than the company-created content typically served up by Google (“reddit” searches are on the rise). That’s why social media search will become a more significant factor for businesses to consider in the year ahead.
Next steps: Small businesses should repurpose their content in different media (including videos, images, and infographics) for social media distribution. Encourage followers to engage with your posts, making it more likely they will show up when people search for information on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, YouTube, and other social media platforms. Finally, ask customers who are happy with your business to leave ratings and reviews on social media to bolster social proof and boost you in social algorithms.
Bonus: As Google becomes a less dependable source of website traffic for small businesses, becoming more active on social media and networking with prospects and customers there could help replace some of the activity lost through Google. Again, many people now run Google searches with “reddit” or “quora” at the tail to see real conversations and insights in a moderated forum setting. Getting active on forums like these can help you reach new audiences and build trust.
Content Must Be Produced in More Diverse Ways
To protect against Google algorithm volatility, businesses should prioritize developing content on a range of topics, in different styles, across various media. This will help protect against unexpected changes—and related biases—in Google’s algorithm. Also, consider distributing content through multiple channels, including email, social media, and forums, to reduce dependence on Google for website traffic and business.
Next steps: The past year has shown how risky it is to rely on Google and a current algorithm for website traffic, as updates to it can devastate a small business’s bottom line. In 2025, resolve to diversify content, distribution, and search strategies to reduce dependency and build resilience. Shift from focusing on traditional search engine optimization to looking for various ways to increase website traffic and business overall. A solid and diversified marketing plan will be more important than SEO alone.
Businesses Will Optimize for Multiple Search Engines
If enough users—and businesses—tire of Google’s changes and related undependable performance, they will increasingly turn to other sources for information and website traffic.
Next steps: Tools like SearchGPT and other LLM-based search engines are gaining traction. Likewise, those seeking to avoid AI-generated responses may turn to search engine alternatives like DuckDuckGo (note that larger players are also leaning into AI, however). All of this means the dominance of Google could wane. It will still be important for businesses to demonstrate experience, expertise, authority, and trust (EEAT) in their content to stand out across diverse search platforms. Companies must identify the “new Googles” and quickly jump on board. Many companies regretted it when they dismissed the original Google when it was launched against significant established competitors like Yahoo and Jeeves.
2025 SEO Trends: The Final Word
If you thought 2024 was a disruptive year for search engine optimization, wait to see what 2025 could bring. What’s key is to take on Google’s algorithm changes in real-time and address them head-on. Leverage the guidance in this article to plan for the year ahead and continue to monitor our blog for updates throughout the year.
