AI has convinced a lot of companies that their website suddenly matters less. Fewer visits, fewer clicks, and we get why it looks that way.
The findings
First, the uncomfortable part. Here’s what’s actually happening out there:
By 2028
$750B
in US revenue will flow through AI-powered search instead of the old kind
5–10%
of what AI says about your brand comes from your own site, the rest is everyone else
50%
of buyers already use AI-powered search to decide what to buy
Sources: McKinsey
It’s tempting to read all of that as “your website matters less.” We read it the opposite way. “Your website used to be the first impression. Now it’s the background check, not the first thing people see, but what they check after they’ve already decided.”
That doesn’t make it less important. It makes it less forgiving. It’s the one moment in the whole journey that’s still completely yours.
So, the only question that matters is: Are you passing it or failing it?
And that question is bigger than it looks, because the ground under it keeps moving.
This isn’t the first time it has happened:
- Mobile web broke the old rules. Social media broke them again. AI’s doing it now.
- SEO budgets are already bleeding into media and experimentation.
- There is no definitive playbook yet, just a lot of trial and error across mobile, social, and Google search.
- A shift this size doesn’t just tweak how you market. It changes it.
That’s the conversation we had.
Not a webinar, not a panel reciting talking points, but a few people who’ve actually done the work taking two real journeys apart in real time.
And if that’s a room you want to be in next time, drop your details and we’ll be in touch.
What Came out of the Conversation
We didn’t debate whether AI changes digital experience. We picked one specific moment: you finish a conversation with an AI, you click, and you land on a company website. Then we looked hard at what happens at that boundary.
Two real journeys, unprepped and unscripted: a family vehicle search that ended on a Toyota Grand Highlander page, and a CRM evaluation for a 500-person company with a 90-person sales org that ended on HubSpot. Five things came out of it:
- The context dies at the door. Nothing you told the AI reaches the site.
- People arrive convinced, not curious. The page just has to avoid creating doubt.
- Fixed pages are the constraint. Content should assemble around each question.
- Personalization isn’t a name in a greeting. It’s recognizing the problem someone came with.
- Visitors want an answer, not a tour. The site has to solve, not display.
Same Team, Recent Wins
This group also picked up a Gold Stevie and a US CX Award for the same kind of website rethink they pick apart in the recording.
