How marketers should approach ads in Google’s AI search experiences

Last week’s announcements by Google to expand its AI search experiences came with big changes for advertisers. Google will offer more ads in AI Overviews and is also testing ads in its fully chat-based AI Mode.

“We’re moving from ‘surfaces’ to ‘interfaces,’” said Simon Poulton, executive vice president of innovation and growth at Tinuiti.

• Paid search ads are no longer limited to static links on relevant queries. They will now be served within a conversation context, with potential follow-up questions.
• That’s an excellent opportunity for advertisers—and a major paradigm shift.

The challenge: Advertisers using Performance Max, Shopping, and Search campaigns with broad match will automatically qualify for AI search placements. While more visibility is good news for brands, these placements come with new concerns.

“The challenge so far has been that Google isn’t providing transparency around when ads serve in AIOs (AI Overviews), or controls for opting into/out of this inventory,” added Michelle Merklin, vice president of paid search innovation and growth at Tinuiti. “We know there are still occasional issues with the accuracy of AIO results, which can be concerning for advertisers from a brand safety perspective.”

It’s also not yet clear how users will engage with these placements, Poulton said.

• Search users have gotten used to snippets and summaries at the top of results.
• As personalization and agent-led conversations alter the search experience, users may engage with paid ads via conversation in AI Mode.

Paid search priorities: Paid search advertisers shouldn’t scramble to reconfigure their business for AI Overview ads, since paid search ads excel in commercial-intent search queries, said Merklin. But advertisers should focus on how LLMs interpret and communicate about their brand to assure brand compatibility with AI search.

“For brands that haven’t invested in building their topical authority and brand perception for AI platforms, their paid placements might fall flat,” added Poulton. “Conversely, brands that have established this authority will find paid search incredibly valuable for connecting with truly informed consumers, not just window shoppers.”

Impact on SEO: Google’s AI Overviews are limiting website traffic, making SEO more important for surfacing results in those snippets and capturing a smaller share of clicks.

“The role of SEO is not diminished, but fundamentally altered in a world of AI-generated summaries,” Poulton said. “The imperative is to ensure LLMs possess a deep, accurate, and positively-toned understanding of a brand across all relevant topics.”

• Industry experts call this shift "AI SEO," "GEO" (generative engine optimization), "AIO" (artificial intelligence optimization), "LLMO" (large language model optimization), or "AEO" (answer engine optimization).
• No matter the name, the imperative for brands now extends beyond showing up first in search engines to showing up positively in AI chats.

“AI SEO will dictate how AI Overviews and AI Mode guide consumers through their decision-making journeys,” Poulton said. “It’s about influencing the very ‘weights and biases’ that shape product recommendations in agentic interfaces. This is the battleground for brand influence, and it must be approached in tandem with paid search strategies.”

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