The Great Decoupling

There’s a mystery we need to solve. And it is: the Great Decoupling of organic search traffic. But before we don our deerstalkers and start cracking the case, let’s back up a little.

The Search Console is one of the most valuable tools we have for SEO. It’s the account that your organization has with Google to access data associated with organic search performance, and can give you insights into what search terms your site is ranking for on Google, how each page performs, and other useful nuggets of information. We have a whole blog post on how to use it.

Last year, we noticed something odd happening in the data, across multiple clients. For a long time, impressions (when your URL appears on Google) and clicks (when someone actually clicks through to your site) followed the same general pattern. When one went up, the other usually did too. But in February of 2025, this all changed.

This happened for ballet clients, performing arts centers, theaters, you name it. Here are a few examples:

From a Museum

From a Ballet

From a Performing Arts Presenter

And it wasn’t just limited to the arts and culture space. SEO organizations across the country, working on everything from golf clubs to Italian vacations, reported similar findings. Something big has happened in Google over the last year.

What happened LAST February?

Why did clicks and impressions part ways? Well, the timing matters.

Around February 2025, Google significantly expanded AI Overviews, the AI-generated summaries that appear at the top of search results. These overviews are designed to answer questions directly, especially early-stage, informational queries.

This coincides with a broader change in how people search. Many of the questions that used to send people to Google are now also being asked in tools like ChatGPT. Things like “what should I expect when I visit the opera”, “summarize the plot of Macbeth”, or “what is the best way to see the Nutcracker in my city”.

Google is responding by keeping more of those answers on the search results page, and increasing the amount of queries that are being generated with AI Overview. That’s why impressions keep rising while clicks flatten or fall. Your organization is still being discovered, considered, and evaluated, just not always on your website.

People are Getting Information Directly on the SERP

It used to be that people would have to go into the various different links presented by Google on the SERP to find the answer they were looking for. Google has slowly been moving away from this for years, with more links to its internal products and “featured snippets” that give informational and simple answers directly in the search results, saving the patron a click (and denying you one). This is a natural evolution of that, but it changes the game profoundly.

The Great Decoupling is permanent, and we need to make sure that the information that is presented on the SERP about your organization, the events you promote, and the genre your mission is focused on comes from you.

Your Website is Still Vital

All of this might sound a little scary at first. If Google is answering more questions directly on the results page, does that mean your website matters less?

Not at all. In fact, the opposite is true.

AI Overviews, featured snippets, and other SERP features don’t come out of thin air. Google and other AI tools still need reliable, structured, first-party information to generate those answers. And when it comes to your organization, you should be the most authoritative source available. This means your website isn’t just a destination anymore, it’s a source of truth.

Clear, well-written content about your performances, exhibitions, ticket policies, accessibility, educational programs, and organizational mission helps Google understand what you do and who you’re for. When your site is doing its job well, it increases the likelihood that the information surfaced in AI Overviews is accurate, up-to-date, and aligned with how you want to be represented.

In other words: even if a patron doesn’t click through right away, your website may still be shaping their understanding of your organization. That influence still matters. AI Overviews are going to get the information from somewhere, and it really should be from you.

The Traffic You Get is Even More Qualified

Another important shift: while total clicks may be down, the quality of traffic is often higher.

When patrons arrive at your site now, they’re more likely to be further along in their decision-making process. They’ve already read a summary of what to expect. They’ve already learned the basics about the art form, the show, or the experience.

From a marketing perspective, this is a good thing. Users who do click through are more likely to convert, engage deeply, or return. Clicks may be scarcer, but they’re also more valuable.

The Great Decoupling is Permanent

People still want answers, ideas, and reassurance before they make a decision. What’s changing is where and how those answers are delivered. AI Overviews, featured snippets, and tools like ChatGPT are simply new interfaces for the same underlying intent: “help me understand this.” The Great Decoupling is what happens when more of that understanding is delivered before a click ever happens.

Success in search now means making sure the information patrons see first is accurate, compelling, and comes from you, even if the journey doesn’t start with a click.