If you run a small business, keeping up with the constant chatter about SEO, algorithms, and AI can feel like a full-time job.
You might be wondering: Is SEO dead? Should I just use ChatGPT to write all my website content? Do I even need a website if my Instagram is doing well?
Recently, I had the privilege of sitting in the front row at Australia’s first-ever Google Search Central Live event. I got to hear directly from some of the brightest minds on the Google Search team, including Cherry Sireetorn Prommawin, Gary Illyes, Daniel Waisberg and Jess Williams.
There was a lot of delicious “brain food” to chew on – I highlighted a number of my favourite pieces of wisdom on LinkedIn here.
If you are feeling overwhelmed by the future of search, here is the reality check you need, straight from the source.
1. SEO is not dead (In fact, AI is growing the pie)
Every time a new technology emerges, someone declares that “SEO is dead.” With the explosion of AI, that rumor has been circulating faster than ever.
Google’s message was clear at the event: people are using Google Search more than ever. AI isn’t replacing the need for search; it is actually expanding the “search pie” and changing how people look for information.
For your small business, this means investing in your website’s visibility is just as critical today as it was five or ten years ago. The fundamentals of SEO remain the beating heart of achieving the best results online.
And if you are wondering about AIO/GEO aka optimising for AI search, Google also in May 2026 released their first official guide to: Optimizing your website for generative AI features on Google Search.
2. Stand out by avoiding “AI Slop”
It is incredibly tempting to use AI tools to churn out dozens of blog posts or product descriptions in a matter of minutes. But Google’s experts emphasised that we need to move away from “commodity content.”
If your content can be generated by a robot in five seconds, it doesn’t offer unique value to your customers.
- The Advice: Use AI responsibly. Use it to brainstorm, outline, or proofread, but don’t add to the growing sea of “AI slop.” Your biggest competitive advantage as a small business is your unique, human experience and expertise. Inject creativity, personal opinions, and real-world examples into your content.
3. Your social media strategy relies on Google search
If you pour all your marketing energy into Instagram, TikTok, or Facebook while neglecting your website, you are losing customers at the finish line.
One of the most striking statistics shared at the event was this: 81% of social media users use Google Search to inform and evaluate products they discover on social media.
When a potential customer sees your reel and gets excited, they don’t always buy/book/enquire/plan immediately. They open Google to search for your brand, look for reviews, or compare your services. If your SEO isn’t up to scratch, they might end up clicking on a competitor instead.
4. A quick technical win: Master your ALT text
Sometimes the smallest tweaks make the biggest difference. If you want a quick, actionable task you can do today to improve your website, look at your images.
Google confirmed that ALT Text is the most important signal they use to help understand your image content.
- The Action Step: Log into your website’s backend today. Make sure every product photo, team picture, and service image has a descriptive, accurate ALT text tag attached to it. Describe exactly what is in the image so Google (and visually impaired users relying on screen readers) understands what it is.
5. Stop panicking over mismatched data
If you have ever looked at your website traffic and noticed that the numbers don’t match up across your different tools, take a deep breath.
Data across Google Trends, Google Search Console, and Google Analytics will almost always differ (and Google Ads too!). They are entirely different tools built to bring a different perspective to your data.
| Data Source | What It Measures | The “Quirk” to Remember |
| Google Search Console | How your site performs in Google Search results. | Data is based on Californian time! (Except for the 24-hour report, which is in your local time zone). |
| Google Analytics (GA4) | How users behave after they click through to your website. | Uses different tracking models and privacy filters than Search Console. |
| Google Trends | Macro-level search interest for specific keywords over time. | Shows relative popularity, not exact search volume numbers. |
Don’t stress over getting the numbers to match perfectly. Instead, use them together to look for overall trends and patterns in your customer’s behaviour.
The Bottom Line
Hearing directly from Google’s team validated everything we practice here at Grand Cru Digital. Search is evolving, but the core mission remains the same: build a technically sound website, write genuinely helpful and creative content, and focus on providing the best possible experience for your customers.
If you need help translating these big-picture Google updates into a concrete strategy for your business, reach out today – we’d love to help you capture your slice of the growing search pie.
