Four SEO studies agree AI search sends no traffic — but is attribution the wrong yardstick?
VeryWellVersed · x · 2026-10-23
Studies from Kevin Indig, Marie Haynes, and Ben Foster (seoworks), amplified by Rand Fishkin, all landed on the same conclusion this week: AI search doesn't send referral traffic, so stop worrying. The author agrees on the data but disputes the interpretation: grading AI search on referrals means telling a CMO that a place where a billion people a week ask what to buy is a distraction — nobody ever attributed a billboard. He notes Haynes' own data shows ChatGPT referrals falling while its audience tripled, and points to Fishkin's upcoming book Zero Click Marketing as the shape of the debate.
Related event: Multiple Studies Find AI Search Delivers Almost No Traffic(2 posts)→
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