Remember when finding a new supplier or product meant Googling a few options, opening about 15 browser tabs, and spending the next hour trying to work out which option was right for you?
These days, you might just ask ChatGPT.
In seconds, you can get recommendations, compare products or services, and ask follow-up questions. All without visiting a single website.
Which raises a rather uncomfortable question for anyone who’s invested time and money in building one.
If AI can give people the information they need, will businesses actually need websites in future?
Let’s explore…
For years, the process has been pretty familiar. Search Google (or your chosen search engine), browse the results, and hopefully click through to a website. Of course, Google has been answering questions directly for years, through featured snippets, maps, and business listings. But AI is taking things further.
Instead of searching for ‘accountant Milton Keynes’, someone could ask ChatGPT (or your chosen LLM) to recommend accountants who meet their specific needs, compare their services, and suggest which might be the best fit. All that research and shortlisting could happen before they’ve visited a single website.
And this isn’t just happening among the cool kids. According to Ofcom’s April 2026 research, 54% of UK adults use AI tools such as ChatGPT, Copilot, or Gemini. Among 16-24 year olds, that rises to 79%. And usage numbers are rising. IAB UK reported that the fastest growth in AI tool usage over a six-month period was among the 35-54 year olds.
But before we declare Google obsolete, let’s look at the other side. Google search is still used by 82% of UK adults, handling around 3 billion searches a month. And according to Ofcom, around 30% of Google searches display an AI Overview. So AI isn’t necessarily replacing Google, it’s increasingly becoming part of the Google experience too.
This small snapshot of data shows a pretty significant change in behaviour.
Let’s go back to our accountant example. You’ve asked ChatGPT for recommendations. It’s given you a shortlist, compared their services, and saved you a lot of time.
But would you choose an accountant based purely on that recommendation? I know I wouldn’t. Even if ChatGPT gave me a glowing recommendation, I’d still want to check out the business for myself. Who’s behind it? What experience do they have? What do their customers say? Do they seem like people I’d want to work with?
And I imagine I’m not alone.
That’s where websites still currently have an important job to do. AI might help someone discover your business, but your website gives you the chance to show them why they should choose you. It’s where you can bring your brand to life, showcase your expertise, demonstrate results, and build trust.
And, importantly, it’s somewhere customers can take action, whether that’s buying something, requesting a quote, or booking a consultation.
There’s a big difference between having information about a business and feeling confident enough to become its customer. And let’s not forget, AI doesn’t always get things right. Research from Which? Found that more than half of AI search users asked follow-up questions to improve the quality of answers, while 23% often or always cross-checked answers using another AI tool.
So while AI might be a great starting point, there’s still a good reason for customers to check things for themselves.
This is where I think we get to the point. Having worked on a fair few website projects over the years, I’ve seen how easy it is to get caught up in the design, the content, and all the technical bits.
But ultimately, we need to keep coming back to one question: what’s the website actually there to achieve?
Traditionally, websites have been designed to attract visitors, introduce the business, explain its services, build confidence, and encourage people to enquire or buy.
But what if AI has already done some of that early work? Someone arriving on your website might already know what you offer and how you compare with competitors. They’re not necessarily looking for another introduction. They want answers to the questions that will help them make a decision: What makes you different? Can you prove you deliver results? How much will it cost? Who will I be working with? How do I get started?
Your website could become less about introducing your business and more about helping people decide whether to choose you.
Of course, not everyone will arrive at the same stage. Some people will still need the basics, while others will be ready to buy. But it does raise an important question – is your website set up to help people make that decision, or is it simply telling them what you do?
Here’s another interesting challenge. Until now, you’ve had a reasonable amount of control over how you present your business online. You decide what your website says, how your services are described, and what makes you different.
But when someone asks an AI tool about your business, you’re not necessarily the one doing the explaining. AI might pull together information from your website, business listings, reviews, articles, and other online sources to create its own summary.
And that could be someone’s very first impression of your business.
The slightly scary part? You can’t fully control what it says, and there’s no guarantee it’ll get everything right. But you can give it a better chance of understanding your business - clear messaging, consistent information across your online channels, and credible content all help.
And if you’ve ever struggled to explain exactly what your business does in a couple of sentences (haven’t we all?), it’s a useful reminder of why getting your positioning and messaging right matters.
I’ve always thought website traffic can be a bit of a vanity metric.
Don’t get me wrong, it’s lovely to see those numbers going up, especially when you’ve been putting a lot of effort into SEO! But if none of those visitors are turning into enquiries or customers, what’s the point?
As AI changes the way people discover businesses, I think this becomes even more important. You might see fewer visitors from informational searches, but still generate good enquiries from people who arrive further along their buying journey. Or someone might discover you through ChatGPT, then Google your business name or contact you directly. Your analytics won’t necessarily tell you where that journey began.
Does that mean we should stop tracking website traffic? Absolutely not. It just means looking beyond visitor numbers and focusing on what actually matters – qualified enquiries, conversions, and business results.
First things first, don’t panic! A lot of what makes a website effective today will still be important as AI search develops.
In fact, Google’s own guidance confirms that established SEO best practices continue to apply to its AI search features, including creating helpful content, making pages accessible to search engines, and providing a good user experience.
So rather than chasing every new AI optimisation trend, I’d focus on five things:
1. Get your website foundations right
Start with the basics. Can search engines access and understand your pages? Is your website easy to navigate? Does it work properly on mobile?
Technical SEO, page performance, internal linking, and clear page titles might not be the most exciting parts of marketing, but they still matter.
2. Make your business easy to understand
Be clear about what you do, who you help, and why someone should choose you.
Are you using language your customers would recognise? Are your services easy to understand? Does your messaging explain what makes you different, rather than sounding like every competitor?
And once you’ve got that right, make sure your messaging is consistent across your website and other digital channels. Clarity and consistency matter for customers, search engines, and AI tools.
3. Give people a reason to visit your website
If AI can summarise information that’s already available online, what can your website offer that goes further?
Think original insights, real examples, case studies, useful resources, and genuine expertise. Show people how you work, share your experience, demonstrate results, and answer the questions your customers actually ask.
4. Make it easy to take the next step
Don’t focus so heavily on attracting visitors that you forget what happens when they arrive. Can people find the information they need? Are your calls to action clear? Are your contact forms straightforward?
And don’t stop at the website. If someone gets in touch, how quickly do you respond? Does your follow-up match the experience they’ve just had? Are you making it easy for them to move forward?
Your website is only one part of the customer journey. What happens afterwards is just as important.
5. Measure what actually matters
Keep monitoring your search visibility and website traffic, but look beyond those numbers. Are you generating qualified enquiries? Are visitors converting? Is your marketing helping the business achieve its goals?
And ask customers how they found you. A simple question during an enquiry or sales conversation might tell you something your analytics can’t.
Explore how your business appears in AI search results for the questions your potential customers might be asking. Be cautious of tools promising guaranteed rankings, as results can vary depending on the question, competitors, platform, and timing.
The goal isn’t simply to appear in more AI answers. It’s to help the right customers find you, trust you, and take the next step.
I don’t think so. At least, not in the foreseeable future. But I do think we’re going to see a shift in what businesses need their websites to do.
AI is already changing how people find information and research their options. Some of the journeys that previously led to a website visit may increasingly happen elsewhere.
And that brings both challenges and opportunities.
Businesses may have less control over how customers first discover them, but they’ll still need somewhere to demonstrate their value, build trust, and turn interest into action. For many, their website will remain one of the most important places to do that.
The businesses that adapt won’t necessarily be the ones chasing every new AI trend or churning out endless content in the hope of being mentioned in AI search results. They’ll be the ones that understand their customers, communicate clearly, provide genuinely useful information, and make the journey from discovery to enquiry as easy as possible.
So, am I worried that AI is going to make all of the work I do helping businesses improve their websites redundant?
Not just yet! But I do think it’s a reminder that websites need to earn their place in the customer journey. And that means thinking beyond traffic, rankings, and how nice the homepage looks.
Perhaps the question right now isn’t whether we’ll need websites in the future. It’s whether our websites are ready to do a slightly different job.
Want to make sure your website is working as hard as it could be for your business? At Breaker Communications, I help businesses improve their website strategy, messaging, content, search visibility, and customer journeys. Whether you’re looking to make a few improvements or rethink your wider digital approach, I’d be happy to have a chat.
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