SEO & AI: How to Measure AI Web Traffic

Originally published on 01/29/2025
Updated on 03/24/2025 to include details on AI Search Intent

As online user behavior continues to evolve, digital marketers must constantly adapt to new technologies and methods of measuring marketing data. The rise of AI tools such as ChatGPT, Gemini, Perplexity, and Copilot have disrupted traditional search behaviors, and in doing so, have created a multitude of challenges and opportunities for digital marketers, particularly SEO specialists. With AI-driven search results and chatbots now influencing how users access information, measuring AI web traffic has become a critical component of SEO strategies.

Just within the last few months we’ve seen an exponential lift in web traffic to our clients’ websites from AI chatbots, and we don’t expect the trend to subside in the near future. This blog post provides insights into today’s biggest questions regarding AI web traffic including how to measure AI web traffic, why it is important, and how to adapt your SEO strategy to maximize your chances for appearing in AI-powered platforms. Let’s dive in!

What is AI Web Traffic?

Broadly, AI web traffic is considered to be visits to a website derived from interacting with AI-powered platforms such as chatbots and AI search engines. Online searchers are increasingly utilizing these new Large Language Model (LLM) based AI tools for a more conversational and interactive way to find information. These platforms can provide searchers with quick answers to questions in a natural language format, often with the ability to ask follow-up questions and clarify details within the same conversation, enhancing the search experience. 

Increasingly users are finding the information they need in the Google Search AI Overview, or in traditional featured snippets, without clicking to a website. These are termed “zero-click searches.” The AI-generated search results can include links to the source information, creating a new strategic channel for SEO specialists to incorporate into their marketing mix. As organic search metrics become increasingly impacted by AI-driven searches, we can measure the website traffic these new platforms are generating, and how to maximize brand visibility within the results.

As AI-driven search evolves, understanding the three main types of AI search systems—Training-First, Search-First, and Hybrid—is crucial for SEO teams looking to adapt their strategies and secure citations across these new discovery channels. Each system processes and surfaces information differently and by aligning SEO and content strategies with these models, brands can maximize visibility, secure citations, and remain competitive in the AIO landscape.

Will Seer and Jason Stinnett at Seer Interactive recently broke down the three types of AI search systems:

• Training-first systems such as Claude and Llama “generate responses based solely on their training data — snapshots frozen in time until the next model update.”
• Search-first systems such as Google AI Overviews and Perplexity “rely heavily on real-time indexing of web pages … It’s like SEO on steroids, with a dash of content curation.”
• Hybrid systems such as Gemini and ChatGPT “blur the lines by deciding, often in real time, whether to answer based on their training data or fetch updated information from the web.”

Most Commonly Used AI Chatbots

Some of the most widely used AI chatbots today are ChatGPT, Copilot, Perplexity, and Gemini, with many more rapidly increasing in popularity including Claude.

Source

Here are the top AI chatbots, the benefits of each, and insights into the data powering their LLMs.

ChatGPT

ChatGPT quickly became a household name in business and education circles as AI-powered chatbots began to ascend in usage. Today’s most commonly used platform gained widespread recognition as a result of the ability to generate human-like text in a conversational format. ChatGPT is known for being highly useful for a wide range of tasks including providing quick and comprehensive insights for research, writing creative content, and even generating code for web developers. ChatGPT is developed by OpenAI, a private research company linked to Microsoft. 

Perplexity

Similar to ChatGPT, Perplexity offers an LLM-based conversational search engine that generates human-like responses to user queries by searching the internet. Perplexity features prompts that explore related topics which can foster deeper understanding of topics and exposure to new ideas. Perplexity is also privately-held, backed by founders from OpenAI, Meta, and Google.

Microsoft Copilot

This AI-powered chatbot uses LLMs to understand, summarize, and generate content. Copilot is specifically designed to integrate with commonly used Microsoft 365 applications such as Word, Excel, and PowerPoint, helping employees and students enhance organization for improved productivity. Rooted in Microsoft / Bing data, Copilot is also linked to OpenAI.

Gemini

Formerly called Bing AI and Google Bard, Gemini is another AI-powered LLM that assists in research, writing, planning, and image generation. Gemini is powered by Google, the world’s largest search engine and is a quickly rising challenger to ChatGPT and Copilot.

How do These Tools Impact SEO?

AI tools are reshaping SEO strategies and SEO measurement in several ways:

• Zero-Click Searches: Due to the increase of searchers finding query answers directly in AI tools, versus clicking through to a webpage for deeper information, websites are experiencing decreases in average organic search web visits. With less traffic coming to the site, it is even more critical for websites and pages to adhere to SEO best practices in order to get the most from visitors who do reach the website.
• Citation traffic: Most of the AI results include links to the source information, which can still deliver website traffic, but likely a measurable reduction from accustomed impression and click averages prior to ChatGPT. To adapt, SEO strategists can aim to increase keyword and webpage placement and positioning in AI-search results by developing content well-structured for educational and informational purposes.
• New keyword opportunities: Conversational queries can unveil new opportunities to optimize for long-tail keywords and phrases relevant to target audiences. AI chatbots can assist in discovering long-tail keywords, new terms related to emerging trends, and competitor keyword analysis and opportunities.
  SEO Pro-Tip: Learn how to use ChatGPT for SEO keyword research.

Why is it Important to Measure AI Web Traffic?

Measuring and understanding AI web traffic is vital because it helps marketers identify which AI platforms and which pieces of content generated visibility and source links in the chatbot results. As more people turn to AI chatbots to answer their research questions, traditional search metrics like impressions and clicks will see some reduction, thus we need to be able to show the growth of this new channel as one of the reasons traditional search traffic is on the decline.

These insights can help us understand content engagement and website user behavior, identifying what’s working well and any potential issues. This allows marketers to adapt their SEO content strategy and web experience to drive more relevant traffic.

AI Search Intent

Query intent becomes even more critical in understanding which keywords and content are most impacted by these new tools and changing behavior. According to a recent SEMrush study, the highest percentage of known search intent on ChatGPT is “informational” (top-of-funnel and educational), rather than “transactional” / “commercial” or B2B SaaS solution-driven. Further, the “unknown” category accounted for 70% of all search intent – meaning people use these tools for things that they would never be using Google or Bing Search for in the first place (brain storming, copywriting, other complex queries).

This means users are turning to AI for advanced tasks, definitions, and general insights, while still relying on traditional search engines for commercial intent queries. As a result, SEO professionals and content teams must adapt by ensuring their educational content—once created solely for SEO—is now optimized for both traditional search (SEO) and AI-driven search (AIO), ensuring visibility across emerging AI platforms and maintaining brand authority in evolving search landscapes.

AIO (AI Optimization)

As search behaviors evolve with the rise of AI chatbots, SEO practitioners now have access to a rapidly growing marketing channel. Similar to traditional search engine ranking strategies, keywords and content remain central to determining which web pages appear in search results. AI chatbots typically scan the internet and generate query results in the form of human-like, conversational answers. To influence these responses, SEOs can create new content and optimize existing web pages to be rich in relevant keywords and content aligned with target queries.

This emerging channel presents significant growth potential, offering forward-thinking SEO strategists a valuable opportunity to secure visibility and out rank competitors in AI search-query responses.

How to Measure AI Web Traffic

Tracking AI web traffic involves a combination of tools and techniques, ranging from basic setups to advanced analytics configurations. Below are two step-by-step approaches in Google Analytics (GA4) tailored for different levels of expertise and data gathering.

Basic – Least Complex, Basic Information

• 1. In GA4, navigate to Reports (on the left-hand menu) > Acquisition > Traffic acquisition
  2. Under the chart, update the primary definition of Channel Group from “Session primary channel group” (the default Channel Group) to “Session source”.
  3. In the query box just above, where it says “Search,” enter “chatgpt.com” and hit enter.
  4. Adjust the reporting dates as desired.

GA4 Reports Traffic Acquisition View

You should now see traffic to the website from ChatGPT. Try updating the Search filter and measure traffic to the website from other AI chatbots by typing in: “Perplexity”, “Gemini”, and “Copilot.”

Advanced – More Complex, Deeper Information

• • In GA4, navigate to Explore > Click Blank or use the Free Form exploration template
  • Set up the Exploration:
    • Dimensions: Add “Page Referrer” (you may need to search for it in the Variables Panel)
    • Metrics: Add relevant metrics such as “Sessions,” “Engaged Sessions”, and “Key Events”
    • Rows: Drag the “Page Referrer” dimension to the rows area
    • Values: Drag your chosen metrics into the values area
  • Under settings scroll down to Filters > Conditions > Select “contains” and enter “https://chatgpt.com/”.
  • Adjust the reporting dates for the time frame desired.

GA4 Explore Report Table View

You can also view a chart of each metric. See an example “Sessions” report below. Swap “https://chatgpt.com/” for “https://gemini.google.com/”, https://copilot.microsoft.com/, or https://www.perplexity.ai/ to see traffic related to these other AI-tools.

GA4 Explore Report Line Chart View of Sessions

How to Adapt Your SEO Strategy to Increase Appearance in AI Results

To capitalize on the growing influence of AI-driven search, digital marketers need to refine SEO strategies. Optimizing for conversational keywords is a crucial first step. Research long-tail, conversational keywords that users are likely to ask AI tools. For example, phrases like “How to check website traffic using ChatGPT” or “Ways to measure website traffic from AI sources” align with common queries.

Creating informative, linked content is another essential strategy. Publish content that answers common questions thoroughly and includes structured data, as AI tools often prioritize well-organized, authoritative sources. Rich snippets and structured data make it easier for AI tools to identify and display your content.

Ensuring your content is highly authoritative and likely to be cited by AI responses can significantly boost your visibility and web traffic.

How to Measure AI Web Traffic Summary

Tracking AI website traffic has become essential for modern digital marketers and SEO strategists. Whether you’re a beginner or an expert, there are tools and techniques available to help you measure and analyze this traffic effectively. By optimizing for conversational queries and leveraging data insights, you can stay ahead in the rapidly evolving landscape of AI-driven search. Start implementing these strategies today to enhance your visibility in ChatGPT, Perplexity, and beyond. Need some help with the heavy lifting? Firebrand’s digital marketing experts are here to help you crush your marketing goals.