How AI could lead to more searches
Artificial intelligence (AI) is still very new, but it’s already having a dramatic impact on the internet. Search engines are beginning to incorporate the technology, and people are also using dedicated AI apps to run searches. This is changing how people interact with information on the internet, at the same time that AI increases the sheer amount of information that there is.
In some cases, AI is going to decrease the number of searches that people perform. At the same time, though, the total number of searches that are actually being run could go up – specifically because the AI itself is searching the internet on behalf of the user. In fact, while a user may only get their information from one or two different sites, the AI may hit on far more sites while it gathers all of the necessary info for the user who ran the query.
3 different types of searches
One important thing to understand about this process is that searches can be generally sorted into three categories. These are as follows:
1. Transactional searches: These happen when someone wants to make a purchase. An example would be a search for “used cars for sale near me”.
2. Navigational searches: These happen when the user is looking for a website but doesn’t know the address. They’re not sure what address to type in themselves, so they simply run a search for the site name and let the search engine direct them to the proper location. An example of this could be “Blink-182 official website”.
3. Informational searches: Some say that these are the most common searches because they just encompass any time that the user is looking for information. An example of this could be a search for “What are the best used cars to buy?” The user is trying to learn something new.
Navigational searches and transactional searches will likely stay the same, even with the implementation of AI. But informational searches, which already make up the bulk of the queries that are run on any given day, may drop dramatically – at least from a human perspective. If people are using AI to generate information for them, then they don’t have to run those searches themselves.
However, as noted above, that doesn’t mean that the search isn’t being performed. It’s just that the AI is running it robotically, potentially hitting on numerous websites in the process.
The internet is changing
One fundamental thing to remember about the internet is that it is always changing, so it’s important to know as much as possible about these changes. We can help here at Content Customs, and we encourage you to contact us if you have any questions about search engine optimization, web content, online marketing and much more.