In this episode of SEO 101, Scott Van Achte covers improvements to core web vitals across major CMS platforms, Google removing support for certain structured data types, Apple’s plans for an AI-powered search engine, the latest on Google’s AI Mode, LLM traffic conversion rates, and how ChatGPT compares to Google and Bing as a traffic source.
Show Notes:
- Google Drops Structured Data Types
- Types being removed: CourseInfo, ClaimReview, EstimatedSalary, LearningVideo, SpecialAnnouncement, VehicleListing
- Impact: Removed from Google Search Console, Rich Result Tests, and search appearance filters.
- Reason: Low usage and lack of additional value for users.
- Apple’s AI Search for Siri (2026)
- Internal project known as “World Knowledge Answers.”
- Aims to transform Siri into an “answer engine” similar to Google’s AI features.
AI News
- LLM Traffic Conversion Rates
- Research shows LLM traffic converts similarly to organic search (4.87% vs. 4.6%).
- LLM traffic accounted for less than 1% of total traffic.
- Google Expands AI Mode
- AI Mode now available in 180 countries and new languages including Hindi, Indonesian, Japanese, Korean, Brazilian Portuguese.
- AI Mode as Default Search Experience
- Potential shift to AI Mode becoming the default search experience at Google discussed.
- ChatGPT vs. Google Usage
- 95.3% of ChatGPT users visited Google; only 14.3% of Google users visited ChatGPT.
- ChatGPT’s visits in August: 5.8B vs. Google’s 83.8B.
Sources:
WordPress Versus Everyone: The Top CMS For Core Web Vitals – An analysis of content management systems ranked by their performance on Google’s Core Web Vitals, highlighting improvements and overall standings.
Google Drops Reporting on Several Structured Data Types – Announcement on Google’s removal of support for certain structured data types and the implications for webmasters and SEO practices.
Apple to Launch AI Search for Siri in 2026: Report – Information on Apple’s upcoming AI-powered search engine for Siri, which aims to enhance the assistant’s capabilities by generating summaries and integrating multimedia results.
LLM Traffic Converts About the Same as Organic Search: Research – Research findings indicating that large language model (LLM) traffic has conversion rates comparable to traditional organic search results.
Google Expands AI Mode Beyond English – Update on Google’s expansion of its AI Mode to 180 countries and new language support, enhancing accessibility and functionality.
Google AI Mode May Become the Default Google Search Experience Soon – Discussion on the potential shift of Google’s AI Mode becoming the primary search experience, including insights from Google’s product team.
Nearly All ChatGPT Users Still Rely on Google: Data – Data analysis showing the reliance of ChatGPT users on Google, highlighting usage statistics and the competitive landscape between the two platforms.
