Some organisations whisper about it; some businesses are outright with it; some companies form entire marketing strategies around its implementation. Whichever way you feel about it, the use of AI for content creation purposes is here to stay; and now that AI-generated content has flooded all corners of the internet, we are finally able to assess the impact of AI on SEO – and also the impact of longstanding SEO principles on AI.  

After all, we have all heard the success stories that laud the time-saving and profit-boosting potential of AI, but we also know that some things can be too good to be true. If you need more clarity on the real impact of AI on SEO, then join us as we explore its exponential usage and the damage that can be done to a website that prioritises AI content over human-written insights.  

Was This Written By AI​?

Two years on from the launch of ChatGPT, we all feel confident in our ability to spot AI content from a mile away. The matter-of-fact phrasing, the lack of nuance, the absence of any discernible tone or intention – even leftover user commands or AI responses that have been missed during the rushed editing process. Just one of these tell-tale signs is enough to make a first-time visitor click away from a website and never return, but even if you haven’t spotted any for weeks, you might still be reading more AI content than you realise.  

Since ChatGPT first became available back in November 2022, there has been a steady and significant growth in the number of AI-generated articles being published online; so much so that, in November of last year, the number of AI articles available online finally surpassed the number of human-written ones.  

However, this growth has since plateaued, even dipped, and is not expected to continue for much longer. This is largely due to the simple fact that AI does not perform well in search results, and that websites which rely solely on AI for content generation risk losing their traffic and forfeiting their visibility in both organic and AI results.

The Risks of Using AI In Websites

Google’s official stance on generative AI is that it has the potential to be a “helpful tool for content creation, but like any tool, it can also be misused.” This means that, like most global search engines, Google does not automatically penalise content for being AI-generated. However, it does take steps to assess whether efforts have been made to adapt it in line with its Quality Rater Guidelines, and any content that does not demonstrate this is categorised as Low-rated.  

The implementation of this policy is already being seen across the top SERPs, and the impact of AI on SEO so far seems to indicate that quantity does not equal quality. Recent research conducted by Graphite revealed that webpages that contain excessive amounts of AI-generated content consistently rank low in Google search results, whilst their human-generated competitors dominate the top positions.  

The study concluded that just 3% of pages found in the first two SERPs contained purely AI-generated content, whilst pages that contained more than 50% of AI content accounted for just 12%. Conversely, URLs that contained minimal to no AI content accounted for 88% of pages used in the study and secured the first 20 positions in the results, whilst content that was created entirely by humans appeared in the first 5 positions 50% of the time.  

AI-generated content that was produced with minimal human editing or input was denigrated to the second SERP 50% of the time, and the results are conclusive – human-produced content widely outranks AI-generated content.  

However, before you rush to delete your favourite AI tools, it is worth asking yourself: does AI-generated content rank badly simply because it is created by AI, or because it is poor quality content that would not rank highly at all – even if it was created by a human?  

Let’s find out together. 

The Impact of AI on SEO 

The general consensus is that using AI content on a website is not technically against any search guidelines, but if you are using AI to churn out spammy, generic content then you are simply not going to see the results that you are hoping for. 

Using generative AI for your website pages may save you a few hours in the short term, but signing over your content marketing efforts takes away your control over the tone, direction, and intent of your content. Any marketeer will be able to tell you how damaging this will be for your SEO efforts, as irrelevant, ineffective, and unimaginative content that presents no value to the reader will prevent meaningful conversions and cost you greatly in search results.  

All content, whether human or AI generated, must be serving a purpose and made with intent, and there are still a few ways to safely and effectively use AI to speed up your content generation process: 

1. Using AI to generate entire pages is clearly a bad strategy, so use it sparingly.  
2. AI content must be edited and optimised for SEO purposes by a human before it is published.  
3. Search engines will penalise content that is not providing useful insights or driving conversions – in short, spammy content that achieves no purpose (again, whether this is human or AI).  
4. Fact-check the content and remove any incorrect statements – or ‘hallucinations’ – that cannot be verified.  
5. Plagiarism is a huge no-no, whether it’s accidental or intentional, so make sure you are producing unique, insightful content that expands upon the original sources of information and correctly cites any sources that are quoted directly.

Looking To The Future  

The impact of AI on SEO is yet to be fully realised.  

We are all still adjusting to this new, AI-driven reality, and delving into all the possibilities – and complications – that it presents for businesses like yours.  

Who knows what future shifts will impact your AI-focused content strategy? Whilst algorithms currently permit the inclusion of AI content on websites this stance can easily shift, and you never know when the next Google core update or change in algorithm will occur. You might one day find yourself in the unenviable position of having to completely rewrite your website before it can be penalised, but if this ever happens, know that our team will be there to talk you through these changes and their implications for your online visibility.  

If you have any questions regarding the information raised in this blog post, or you would like to discuss this topic in more detail, please feel free to contact our team today.