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Welcome to Part 2 of our deep dive into the most revealing SEO and UX research of 2025.
In this episode of the Near Memo podcast, Greg Sterling, Kevin Indig, and Eric Van Buskirk break down how users actually interact with AI Overviews on Google—and what that means for your SEO strategy moving forward.

00:55 – “Trust over Traffic: The SEO Paradigm Shift”
02:10 – “SEO as Traffic Cop, Not Traffic Driver”
03:33 – “Reddit, YouTube & Beyond: Tactical SEO Musts”
07:20 – “Google Killed the Small Guys”
09:05 – “Google’s Fear-Driven Strategy”
11:14 – “Redefining SEO Inside the Org”
12:03 – “Click Recession and the Future of Metrics”
13:31 – “Pitching the New SEO to Leadership”
17:17 – “People Don’t Know LSAs Are Ads”
20:22 – “Gen Z, TikTok, and the Platform Migration”
22:23 – “ChatGPT Is the Train—You’re the Station”



▶️ Missed Part 1? Watch it here → https://youtu.be/pjE3MwOLYcg

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🔥 What’s Inside This Episode:

In this second installment, we focus on the tactical and organizational implications of new user behavior patterns revealed through a qualitative usability study. The study recorded and analyzed nearly 30 hours of real-world search behavior, and the findings are reshaping how smart marketers think about organic search, AI, and branding.

From “click stagflation” to platform diversification, this episode delivers hard truths and actionable insights.

🧠 Top Insights You’ll Take Away:
• SEO isn’t dead—it’s evolved. Traditional traffic metrics are no longer reliable indicators of success.
• Trust is now the first filter. Users skim, scroll, and click based on what (and who) they recognize and believe in.
• Clicks ≠ Conversions. Welcome to the era of “click stagflation”—less traffic, but stable (or growing) business results.
• Google is reacting, not leading. The rise of Reddit, YouTube, and AI Overviews is a defensive move to hold onto users.
• Local trust signals matter more than ever. LSAs win clicks because users don’t realize they’re ads—they just trust the stars.
• Brand awareness is the new SEO moat. If users don’t know or trust you before they search, you likely won’t earn their click.
• SEO must align with social, content, and UX. It’s time for cross-functional “growth teams” that reflect real user journeys.

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🔗 Links & Resources:

📄 Full transcript of Part 2 →
📄 Part 1: Study methodology + foundational insights → https://youtu.be/pjE3MwOLYcg
🧪 Read the study by Kevin Indig and Eric Van Buskirk → https://www.growth-memo.com/p/the-first-ever-ux-study-of-googles?ref=nearmedia.co
🎙️ More from Near Memo →https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLmqwyOgNILWrALQo5FVdB6zlaEJiVyKS_

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💬 What do YOU think?
Are you still measuring SEO success with clicks? Have you updated your strategy for AI Overviews and multi-platform journeys? Drop your thoughts or questions below—let’s talk.

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👍 Like, 💬 Comment, and 🔔 Subscribe to get more straight talk on search, SEO, and local marketing every week.

#SEO #AIOverviews #DigitalMarketing #SearchTrends #ContentStrategy #GoogleSearch #UserExperience #NearMemo #KevinIndig #EricVanBuskirk #GregSterling #UXResearch #ChatGPT #TikTokSearch #TrustEconomy

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🎙️ Trust Before Clicks: What Real Users Do With Google’s AI Overviews

We’ve all seen the headlines: Google’s AI Overviews (AIOs) are changing search forever. But how do real people actually use them?

In this episode of The Near Memo, we dive into the first behavioral UX study of Google’s AIOs, conducted by Kevin Indig and Eric Van Buskirk. The results? Totally eye-opening—and a little humbling for SEOs.

This wasn’t another clickstream analysis. This was watching users scroll, click (or not), skim, and decide across 8 real-world search tasks. Think local searches, health queries, shopping comparisons—all captured through screen recordings, scroll logs, and detailed annotations.

📊 Here’s What They Found:

1. Clicks Are Not Conversions
Only about 1 in 5 “final answers” came from AIOs. Most users finished their journey with traditional organic results, Reddit, YouTube, or maps. Clicking doesn’t always mean trusting—or converting.

2. Trust Comes Before Relevance
Users no longer scan the SERP for “the best answer.” They scan for brands they recognize and sources they trust. If they don’t know you, they scroll right past—even if you’re ranked #1.

3. Reviews Are the Ultimate Shortcut
In both local and shopping searches, people hunted for review stars. They scrolled back and forth just to find them. The takeaway? Reviews aren’t just helpful—they’re directional beacons in search.

4. Most People Skim AIOs
A whopping 86% of users skimmed AIOs. Unless the query was high-risk (think: health or finance), they treated the AI summary like a TL;DR intro and kept scrolling.

5. Risk = Depth
The more serious the query, the deeper the engagement. People spent more time reading, clicked more links to fact-check, and acted with more skepticism.

6. AIO Links Are Largely Ignored
Those little citation icons in AIOs? Most users didn’t touch them. Even large panels full of links got barely any engagement. Why? Because people didn’t perceive them as useful or actionable.

7. Users Are Skeptical—But Still Satisfied
Despite checking citations and bouncing around the page, users still reported high satisfaction with AIOs. Trust is sticky. If something “feels” complete, users stop looking—even if it’s flawed.

8. Google Benefits from the Illusion
Kevin and Eric argue that Google has long benefited from the mistaken belief that it’s the whole journey. In reality, search behavior is multi-touch, cross-platform, and often ends somewhere else entirely.

🎯 Final Thought: Trust Is the New CTR

If your brand isn’t already in the user’s mind, your perfect answer won’t matter.
Clicks are a vanity metric. Final answers are what really count.

To win now, SEOs must:

• Build brand trust before the search starts
• Be visible across platforms (Reddit, YouTube, forums)
• Focus on reviews and SERP presence
• Understand how different search intents drive behavior

This is Part One of a two-part conversation. In Part Two, we unpack the strategic takeaways and what marketers should do next.

Because in the era of AI Overviews, it’s not about ranking first—it’s about being the last place users need to go.

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In this thought-provoking episode of the Near Memo podcast, SEO veteran Cindy Krum joins Greg Sterling and Mike Blumenthal to unpack how Google's evolving use of AI, including MUM (Multitask Unified Model), is reshaping the search landscape. Krum explains how Google is moving from keyword- and entity-based indexing to modeling “journeys” that reflect a user’s intent — aligning with Google's long-abandoned concept of “micro-moments” like “I want to know,” “I want to go,” “I want to do,” and “I want to buy.” These journeys are increasingly being monetized across different verticals such as YouTube, Merchant Center, and local results, as Google balances expensive AI integration with ad revenue optimization.

The trio also explores the convergence of Google Discover, AI Overviews, and personalized browsing experiences — warning that this personalization could result in unprecedented data tracking and loss of consumer privacy. Krum emphasizes that marketers and SEOs must adapt quickly: diversify traffic sources, optimize across social and non-Google platforms, and consider how Google's motivations (data consolidation and monetization) are shaping an experience that prioritizes corporate interests over user needs. The message is clear — traditional SEO tactics won’t survive the AI-driven tide unless they evolve dramatically.

Takeaways
Cindy Krum discusses the MUM model and its impact on SEO.
Google's monetization strategies are evolving with AI integration.
Personalization in search is becoming increasingly important.
Marketers need to optimize for user intent and MUM journeys.
Informational queries represent a significant portion of search traffic.
Diversifying traffic sources is crucial for digital marketers.
Branding and social media presence are essential for visibility.
The search landscape is changing rapidly due to AI advancements.
Marketers should be proactive in adapting to these changes.
Understanding user journeys will be key to future SEO strategies.

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