AI and the Future of Digital Experience: The Codehouse Perspective

AI and the Future of Digital Experience: The Codehouse Perspective

AI and the Future of Digital Experience: The Codehouse Perspective

Why traditional web traffic is declining and where buyers actually make decisions now.
Why traditional web traffic is declining and where buyers actually make decisions now.
Why traditional web traffic is declining and where buyers actually make decisions now.

22 Oct 2025

Technology

3

min read

Sophie Cherry

,

Brand and Marketing Manager

Why traditional web traffic is declining and where buyers actually make decisions now.

AI is fundamentally reshaping how people discover, consume, and act on digital content. It has changed the way audiences find and arrive at websites, adjusted their position in the funnel/journey on arrival, and has evolved expectations in digital experience.

AI search volume grew 87% from September 2024 to September 2025 (3.1B to 5.8B monthly visits), while ChatGPT's market share dropped from 70% to 59.5%. Market fragmentation means brands can no longer optimise for a single platform but consider ChatGPT, Perplexity, Gemini, Claude, and Copilot simultaneously. The fragmentation is accelerating. Brands optimising only for ChatGPT miss 40.5% of AI search volume.

Data compiled from: Views4You (2025), First Page Sage (Oct 2025), Similarweb, DemandSage, http://Planable.io, and Statcounter Global Stats.

 

90% of B2B buyers have adopted genAI and it is among their top sources of self-guided information. Therefore, GEO strategy isn't about getting more website traffic it's about dominating the conversation in ChatGPT, Perplexity, and other AI platforms where buying decisions are now highly influenced. Even in these relatively early days of AI, the top of the funnel has already changed forever with nearly a third of B2B buyers stating that they start research via platforms like ChatGPT more often than Google. 

AI now acts as both connector and arbitrator, owning the direct relationship with users. 

This shift in visitor behaviour will continue, as AI summaries, assistants, and search tools reduce casual browsing traffic. When visitors do reach websites, they will be more intentional, better informed, and likely to be closer to making decisions. For digital experiences, this means the nature of the first point of interaction will change placing more focus on being a place of validation, trust, and conversion. For digital experiences this may mean a change to the nature of the first point of interaction and putting more focus on being the place of validation, trust, and conversion.


Utilising SEO to be visible to AI search

Strong SEO sites have an advantage but success requires a targeted focus on GEO. 

Unsurprisingly research indicates that a high proportion of AI citations come from Google's top 10 results. However, AI citation behaviour cannot be explained by website traffic metrics or backlink profiles.   

Historic SEO strength helps in 3 ways: 
  • Content Quality Signal 

    • Sites that historically rank well tend to have authoritative, well-structured content

    • AI platforms were trained on this highly-ranked content 

  • Google AI Overlap 

    • For Google AI Overviews specifically, your strong SERP performance directly benefits you 

    • Page ranking #1 has 2x chances of being featured in AI Overviews 

  • Foundation Infrastructure 

    • Technical SEO hygiene (site speed, mobile optimisation, structured data) benefits both traditional and AI search 

    • BUT historic SEO doesn't guarantee AI dominance: 

There are critical differences including that sites with effectively zero traffic can receive 900+ AI citations, and sites with fewer backlinks often receive significantly more AI citations than better-linked competitors. 

What actually drives AI citations: 
  1. Content Format: Comparative listicles dominate AI citations (32.5% of all citations) 

  2. Semantic Clarity: Clear URLs, headings, structured data 

  3. Meta Descriptions: Placing key information directly in meta descriptions increases the likelihood of citation 

  4. Recency: ChatGPT is most likely to cite newer content, ordering references newest to oldest  

  5. Accessibility: AI crawlers often cannot execute JavaScript despite downloading JS files


Industry impact

The impact of AI will not be uniform across industries. For example:

  • Ecommerce will remain highly transactional, with AI playing an increasingly important role in product discovery and recommendations, and retailers that deliver these experiences can see revenue increase by up to 40%. Chat GPT’s ‘Instant Checkout’ capabilities will rapidly evolve and similar functionality will quickly be introduced by competitors.

  • Legal, healthcare, and professional services are likely to see greater disruption, as AI can provide quick, high-level answers to information-seeking queries, shifting the role of websites toward depth, expertise, credibility, and reassurance.

  • Media and publishing will face challenges as AI-generated summaries displace traffic, making brand differentiation and unique experiences even more critical. For example, Biz New Orleans uses Rasa.io’s AI to deliver personalised content to each subscriber, creating a more engaging and tailored experience that drives higher open (47%) and click-through rates (10%).

AI will not diminish the need for strong digital experiences, it will raise the bar. Websites and digital platforms must evolve from being information providers to being experience hubs places where personalisation and seamless user journeys create trust.


AI on your website

Beyond influencing user behaviour, AI is transforming what’s possible within websites themselves. Modern digital platforms are increasingly embedding AI features directly into the user experience. This includes:

  • AI-driven personalisation, tailoring content, design, and product recommendations in real time based on user intent and behaviour.

  • Conversational interfaces such as chatbots and virtual assistants, guiding visitors to relevant content or helping them make purchasing or service decisions.

  • AI-enhanced search and navigation, improving accessibility and discoverability by understanding natural language and predicting needs.

  • Predictive analytics that optimise conversion journeys and surface the most relevant next step for each visitor.

Incorporating these tools doesn’t just improve usability it creates a more dynamic, responsive digital experience that adapts to each visitor’s context and goals.


How AI is shaping the future of digital experience design

AI isn’t only changing what users do online it’s changing how digital experiences are designed. From audience insights to content creation and journey mapping, AI is influencing every layer of digital strategy.

Design and experience teams are increasingly using AI to:

  • Identify and anticipate user intent through data analysis and predictive modelling.

  • Create new and evolve existing experiences through tools that reduce or remove the need for development

  • Generate or adapt content dynamically to match audience preferences.

  • Test and refine digital journeys continuously through automated optimisation.

  • Inform accessibility and inclusivity by analysing user interaction data and adapting interfaces in real time.

This shift represents a move from static design thinking to adaptive design systems, where websites are not only designed for users but evolve with them.


What should you do now? Your AI-first action plan:

  • Immediate (This Quarter):

    • Audit your current AI visibility across ChatGPT, Perplexity, and Gemini

    • Implement FAQ and Article schema on your top 20 pages

    • Identify your top 10 buyer research queries and optimise for AI citation

  • Near-Term (Next 6 Months):

    • Create 15-20 comparison/listicle pages (AI platforms prefer this format)

    • Build interactive tools (ROI calculators, assessments) with structured data

    • Establish monthly AI citation tracking vs. competitors

  • Strategic (12 Months):

    • Migrate to composable architecture for rapid iteration capability

    • Implement AI-driven personalisation on-site

    • Build platform-specific content optimisation workflows

Traditional web traffic will continue declining as AI summaries answer questions that once required website visits. But for organisations that adapt those that dominate AI citations, optimise for multiple platforms, and leverage composable architectures for rapid iteration this represents the greatest opportunity in digital marketing since the advent of SEO itself.

The question isn't whether to invest in GEO. It's whether you'll lead or follow.


Ready to reimagine your digital experience for the AI era?

Talk to Codehouse about how we can help you harness AI to create smarter, more personalised, and higher-performing digital experiences. Get in contact today →


GENERATIVE SEO

Want to ensure your website doesn't get left behind in the future of SEO?

GENERATIVE SEO

Want to ensure your website doesn't get left behind in the future of SEO?

GENERATIVE SEO

Want to ensure your website doesn't get left behind in the future of SEO?

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Codehouse acknowledges the Traditional Owners of Country throughout Australia. We pay our respects to Elders past and present.

©

2025

All rights reserved, Codehouse

Talk to us about your challenges, dreams, and ambitions

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Codehouse acknowledges the Traditional Owners of Country throughout Australia. We pay our respects to Elders past and present.

©

2025

All rights reserved, Codehouse

Talk to us about your challenges, dreams, and ambitions

X social media icon

Codehouse acknowledges the Traditional Owners of Country throughout Australia. We pay our respects to Elders past and present.

©

2025

All rights reserved, Codehouse

Talk to us about your challenges, dreams, and ambitions

X social media icon

Codehouse acknowledges the Traditional Owners of Country throughout Australia. We pay our respects to Elders past and present.

©

2025

All rights reserved, Codehouse