Noticed a shift across several accounts recently. Traffic quality is stable, audience hasn't changed, bids are fine. Yet the conversion rate on landing pages that have been solid for over a year started slipping.
First I blamed seasonality or attribution issues. But honestly, I think the searcher itself has changed. The person landing on your page today isn't the same person who clicked that result 18 months ago. Before they even hit your site, they already got part of the answer from the AI overview. They understand the basics, know the problem, and have compared several options. So when they land on a page that educates them from scratch, it feels slow. Too much setup. Too much 'why this is important.' That page was built for a buyer who arrived earlier in the journey than the one who actually showed up.
Seems like a lot of landing pages are still optimised for pre-AI search behaviour, and no one's adjusted the messaging for this shift.
What we're testing: moving differentiation and decision-stage content higher up the page. Less category explanation, more 'why choose us over the other options you've already shortlisted.' Lead with contrast, not fundamentals.
Another thing worth trying is replacing top-of-page benefit copy with direct comparison content - side-by-side against named alternatives. When visitors arrive with options already in mind, that type of content converts. Social proof needs to shift too; generic logos matter less than specific case studies that mirror the visitor's exact situation.
Anyone else seeing this pattern? Or found other tweaks that work?
