Google AI Mode Links Update: What Site Owners Should Do

One of the questions I get asked most by clients at the moment is some version of: "If Google's AI is answering the question, why would anyone click through to my website?" It's a fair worry. So when Google announces changes to how links appear inside its AI answers, it's worth paying attention.

On 15 October 2026, Google published an update on AI Mode and AI Overviews setting out several changes designed to send people from its AI answers out to the web. Below I'll run through what's actually changed, what's still only a test, and the practical things I'd do this month if you run an online shop or a lead generation site.

What Google has changed in AI Mode and AI Overviews

According to Google's announcement, written by Hema Budaraju, VP of Product Management, there are five main changes:

• More inline links, shown higher up. Google says it has made "continued and substantial increases" to inline links in its AI experiences, and is showing them higher in responses more often.
• A dedicated section for official pages (a test). Google is testing a display that surfaces links to official destinations in their own section at the top of a response, with context on why each link is useful.
• News carousels rolling out more widely. Carousels of timely articles are expanding to more locations and languages, and they highlight sites people have chosen as Preferred Sources.
• Better-looking related article links. The links at the end of some AI responses now get image thumbnails and a more clickable design.
• Clickable creator and publisher names on videos (a test). In AI Mode, Google is testing clickable names on video results that lead to their Search profiles.

Two things to keep in mind. First, some of these are tests, so not every searcher will see every format, and Google hasn't given end dates. Second, Google hasn't published any click-through data for these new link formats, so nobody can tell you yet exactly how much traffic they'll send. Anyone promising a number is guessing.

Step 1: Make sure your pages are actually eligible

Before worrying about optimisation, check the basics. Google's own documentation on AI features is clear: to be shown as a supporting link in AI Overviews or AI Mode, "a page must be indexed and eligible to be shown in Google Search with a snippet." It also says there are no additional technical requirements.

That last point matters. You don't need special AI text files, new markup or a particular schema type to appear. What can quietly knock you out is:

• A noindex tag left on a page or template (I still find these on Shopify collection pages surprisingly often).
• nosnippet, data-nosnippet or a very restrictive max-snippet setting, which limit what Google can show from the page.
• robots.txt rules, or a CDN or security layer, blocking Googlebot.
• Important content that only exists inside images or scripts rather than as readable text.

Google also recommends keeping your structured data consistent with the visible text on the page, and keeping Merchant Center and Business Profile information up to date. For ecommerce brands, that Merchant Center point is easy to overlook and worth a quick check.

Step 2: Start using the Generative AI performance report

This is the part I'm most interested in as someone who spends a lot of time in Google Search Console. Google's Generative AI performance report has been available for all websites since 31 August 2026. It sits within the Performance reports and shows how often links to your site appeared in AI Overviews and AI Mode.

What it gives you:

• Impressions in AI Overviews and AI Mode.
• Breakdowns by page, country, date and device.
• A filter separating standard text searches from multimodal searches, such as Google Lens.

Note that the metric is impressions. Google's help page doesn't list clicks for this report, so you'll still need your standard Search performance report and your analytics to judge traffic and sales. The report may also not appear at all if your site doesn't have enough impressions in these features yet.

My suggestion: export the page-level data now and keep a monthly snapshot. As Google rolls out more inline links, you'll want a "before" picture to compare against. If you'd like a hand setting this up properly, it's a core part of my SEO consultancy work.

Step 3: Give people a reason to click

More links in AI answers only helps you if your page is the one worth clicking. Google says the new official-pages section will explain why each link is useful, which tells you something about what it's looking for: pages that clearly do a job.

In practice, that means:

1. Answer the question properly, then go further. An AI summary can cover the basics. Your page should offer what a summary can't: sizing guides, comparison tables, real product photos, pricing, delivery details, original examples.
2. Make the page's purpose obvious. Clear titles, headings and introductions help both people and Google understand what the page is for.
3. Look after the landing experience. If someone clicks from an AI answer and lands on a slow, cluttered page, you've wasted the visit. Speed, clear calls to action and a clean mobile layout all count.

Step 4: Consider Preferred Sources if you publish news or regular content

Google says the number of people using Preferred Sources has grown by more than seven times since the start of the year. Its Preferred Sources documentation explains that when readers choose your site, your content is more likely to appear in Top Stories with a "preferred" badge, and it can also get that badge in AI Mode and AI Overviews.

A few practical details:

• Only domains and subdomains are eligible, not subdirectories, so a blog at yoursite.com/blog doesn't qualify on its own.
• You can add Google's button to your site, or use a simple deep link (https://www.google.com/preferences/source?q=yourdomain) in your newsletter or social posts.
• It's optional. You don't need to do anything to be chosen as a preferred source.

For most small ecommerce brands this is a "nice to have". For publishers, or businesses that put out regular timely content, it's worth adding a link to your email footer. If email is a big channel for you, my email marketing work can help you make the most of it.

What this means for your business

This update doesn't change the fundamentals, but it does shift the odds slightly back towards websites. Google is putting more links into its AI answers and making them more prominent. The sites that benefit will be the ones that are technically eligible, that track their AI visibility in Search Console, and that give people something worth clicking for.

What I'd avoid is panic-buying "AI SEO" tools or adding special markup that Google itself says you don't need. Get the basics right, measure what's happening, and improve the pages that matter most to your revenue.

Want a second pair of eyes on your search visibility?

If you're not sure whether your site is eligible for AI Overviews and AI Mode, or you'd like help reading your Generative AI performance report, I'm happy to take a look. Book a free 30-minute call or a free marketing audit and we'll work out where the quick wins are for your business.