The Australian Centre for AI in Marketing (ACAM) is warning marketers that traditional search strategies are rapidly losing effectiveness as artificial intelligence fundamentally reshapes how Australians discover brands, products and information.
By early 2026, more than 70% of Google searches in Australia resulted in zero clicks through to a landing page, meaning only three in ten queries lead to a website visit, according to published data. When AI-generated summaries appear in results, that figure drops further, with just 17% of users clicking through. On mobile, where the majority of searches take place, zero-click behaviour now exceeds 75%.
While many organizations continue to prioritize search engine optimization (SEO), ACAM has warned that few have adapted to emerging disciplines, including answer engine optimization (AEO), generative engine optimization (GEO), and discovery engine optimization (DEO), leaving a significant gap between discovery strategy and consumer reality.
To address this shift, ACAM has launched a new four-week program, “The Future of Search” covering SEO, AEO, GEO and DEO. It will bring together subject matter experts from across the industry to showcase what they are doing and how they are addressing the change, including contributors from The Navigators, Kantar, Genea and ACAM, alongside tech insiders from Microsoft Advertising, Gumshoe and Xpon.
ACAM co-founder, Jodie Sangster, said: “Marketers and agencies are experiencing the same scenario, page views dropping off a cliff or their brands becoming almost invisible in search, and questioning what they’re doing wrong, but the fact is the rules of the game have changed.
“I’m consistently having conversations with marketers who report that their traditional search is down by 30 percent or more, and that’s being driven by AI. The only way to counter it is to know how to show up in AI answers. If marketers don’t get how that works, they just won’t show up. There’s a lot of talk about this, but not enough action. We need to move beyond theory to what to actually do, fix and what to build and where to focus so brands get seen.
“People think you can fix this by restructuring your website or pumping out more content, but that’s not enough. It’s about how the whole brand shows up across the internet and whether AI sees you as worth including.”
Targeted at marketing leaders, digital and content teams, agencies and in-house practitioners, the program provides a practical framework for improving brand discoverability across both traditional and AI-powered search environments. Participants will develop a 90-day action plan to implement from day one.
Adam Goodman, director, AI in advertising APAC, from Microsoft Advertising, said: “As AI transforms how people search, discover, and make decisions, marketers need deeper, real-time insight into how their brands are represented across evolving digital environments. This program brings together practical expertise and leading technology to help organizations move from experimentation to real-world application, building the confidence to embed AI into everyday marketing strategy and execution.”
Louise Cummins, CEO and co-founder from the Australian Centre for AI in Marketing, added: “There’s a lot of conversation about AI and search, but not enough clarity on what marketers should actually do next. We wanted to give teams a structured, practical way to understand what needs to change so they can show up in AI-driven search and not disappear from them.”
“The Future of Search” begins on May 11 and is delivered as a self-paced, four-week online program with a live interactive session with Jodie Sangster and a panel.
Click here for more information.
