Remember the days when search engine optimisation (SEO) was all about keywords, backlinks, and page titles. Those were much simpler days.

If you have been keeping up with recent news, you will see that Google’s Search Generative Experience, also known as SGE, is changing the rules of SEO dramatically.

This is not another Google update like Panda or Penguin. SGE represents an entirely new way that Google will think about search.

It is not simply updating its algorithms, but rather completely rethinking how we find, interpret and present information in our searches.

Therefore, what does this mean for business owners who are looking to rank their website in 2026?

How will this impact your current SEO strategies if you are working with a digital marketing company like SEO Perth Experts? We will go over each of these points in detail.

What Is Google’s Search Generative Experience (SGE)?

First off, let us look at what SGE is. SGE is a new way for Google to use Artificial Intelligence (AI) in its search experience to provide answers to searchers directly above the search results list.

Rather than providing 10 blue links and allowing searchers to navigate through to find the answer they are looking for, SGE uses AI to summarise the information into one easy-to-understand piece and pull quotes from many other websites.

Let’s say you searched for “Best Time to Plant Roses in Perth”. You’ll see a coloured box at the top of the search results page with a nice summary and several references to other websites. That is SGE in action!

For searchers, SGE sounds very convenient. For businesses that rely on organic traffic, however, it is…complicated.

In the past, your website could potentially show up in the top 3-4 positions of the search results page. With SGE, your website may show up in the AI-generated summary at the top of the page, and therefore never even allow someone to visit your site.

The Major Shift in Strategy: From Rankings to References

As mentioned earlier, traditional SEO was based on rankings. The idea was that you wanted to be ranked #1 because that is typically where most people would click.

However, with SGE, the focus is switching from being ranked to being a trusted reference that Google’s AI can draw from.

To illustrate this point, consider the following analogy: In the old days, Google rewarded websites that met all of the correct criteria. Now, Google rewards websites that teach the AI enough so that it will quote them.

This is a different mindset.

The type of content that works best with SGE is content that teaches the user something rather than being stuffed with keywords.

Authority matters more than ever in SGE.

Context, which is the relationship between topics, is critical to whether your website is referenced by SGE.

Therefore, instead of having an SEO agency optimise your website for the specific search terms you want to be found under, you need to have them optimise for understanding.

As a business owner, that is where SEO Perth Experts’ technical SEO expertise is helpful to you – they are already aligning your content with Google’s natural language processing and entity-based search patterns.

Your Site – What’s Next?

So let’s face it. If your site is out of date, disorganised or lacking in value-added content, Google’s new SGE will give you no love.

Google’s new generative system won’t take information from weak or subpar pages. Rather, it seeks out content that demonstrates what Google calls E-E-A-T (Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness and Trust).

In other words, in 2026, your site is going to have to meet the following standards in order to be noticed:

On-site optimisation is important, but not in the checklist-style way. Instead, optimising your metadata, schema and technical SEO will make it easier for Google’s AI to figure out what your site is about.

A higher-quality content offering will drive results. Poorly written thin-content articles and blog posts stuffed with keywords, as well as recycled content, will cause your site to be invisible.

Google’s AI also evaluates the user experience of your site, how long visitors stay on your site, if they bounce, and if they’re able to find what they’re looking for.

This is really just another version of how good marketing works – and SGE just makes it difficult to fudge the numbers.

Why SEO Agencies Have Earned Their Way Back

There was a time when DIY SEO tool kits made it appear as though anyone could “optimise” their site simply by using a few keywords, changing a couple of headers and voila! Instant ranking. The days of easy ranking are over.

The new SGE requires a combination of strategic, technical and creative thinking. You’ve got to speak both Google’s language and your customers’ language at the same time.

Therefore, a good agency is worth its weight in gold. An agency is not just trying to rank your site high in the search engines; an agency is trying to keep your company visible within Google’s AI model.

In addition to providing SEO services, an agency may provide the following:

• Structure data in a manner that is easy to read for Google’s AI.
• Write content that answers search intent rather than writing content based on arbitrary keywords.
• Keep your site technically sound so that it loads quickly, is mobile-friendly and is crawlable.
• Build topical authority, not through spammy backlinks, but through your expertise.

SEO has evolved. Running a newsroom, tech lab, and marketing agency is similar to doing SEO in 2026.

The SGE “Click Problem”

There is growing concern among marketers that SGE will result in something called “zero-click searches”. This occurs when a user receives their answer from Google directly and does not visit the site that contains the original content.

Yes, zero-click searches are a valid concern. If Google’s AI can summarise your content effectively… then why would any visitor ever click on your link?

However, there is still a need for credible sources. SGE cannot produce effective summaries without credible sources to draw upon.

Additionally, when users require more detailed information, they will click on the reference sites listed in SGE. Therefore, being included in those references is still a significant advantage.

Consider it this way: When you are quoted in a newspaper article, your name may not be the primary focus of the article; however, your name is in the byline, and that means something.

Writing for Google’s Generative Search (SGE)

To successfully create content for Google’s new SGE model, stop worrying about keyword density and other outdated optimisation techniques.

Consider the user first; use artificial intelligence second. Forget keyword density and all the other old-school optimisation techniques.

Content needs to be written to be of value, structured and able to be interpreted easily. Here is how this works in action:

• Provide clear answers to searches, not vague ones. For example, if your search term is “How to Improve Website Speed”, provide direct, step-by-step information about how to do so – do not dance around the topic.
• Create subtopics naturally. When Google’s AI creates a link between different concepts/ideas, this will allow users to see the content more clearly. For example, a blog about website speed may also include content regarding mobile optimisation and core web vitals.
• Provide credible data. Facts, research, examples, and other forms of primary data support credibility and make your content more likely to be viewed as a source of reliable information.
• Write naturally and conversationally. Write your content as though you were speaking to a person, not a robot. Your writing will be written for both the humans viewing it, and the AI that is learning from those humans.

At SEO Perth Experts, our content development team already writes our SEO in a manner that feels organic, conversational, and easy to read while also addressing all the technical aspects of search engine optimisation algorithms.

Technical SEO Will Continue To Exist

One thing people keep ignoring is that AI-generated search results still require a technically correct website. Although SGE may see your content differently, it is still crawling and indexing in a similar manner to traditional search engines.

If your website is disorganised, if your schema markups are broken, or if your website loads slowly, Google’s AI will likely not even consider your website for inclusion.

At SEO Perth Experts, we offer SEO services that address these areas, from optimising your website’s structure and sitemap, to fixing broken redirects and enhancing your website’s load time.

This is the behind-the-scenes work required to ensure your website remains compliant with Google’s requirements while others scramble to determine why they lost their rankings.

Local SEO & SGE – What Is Changing

This shift can be beneficial for local businesses, cafes, tradies, real estate agents, and landscapers, because SGE uses much more data from Google Business Profiles, reviews, and structured data than previously used.

If your business listings are strong and if your content makes it very obvious where you are located, you will have an advantage.

Consider the example of when someone searches for ” Landscaping Company Perth”. The AI summary may list three agencies as being referenced — and if your company’s name appears at the top, then you are sitting in a highly desirable digital position.

The local SEO signals that feed into the AI model are proximity, reviews, and reputation. Your customer and your data are now contributing to what your website says.

AI and SEO Strategy

While SGE uses AI to create Search Engine Results Pages, SEO specialists are also using AI in their strategies, just in a different way.

Our strategy does not use AI as a replacement for creating content.

Instead, we are utilising AI for insights into creating content gaps, tracking the true search intent behind searches and determining how Google will view topics based upon those searches.

In the long run, however, creativity is still with the humans.

While AI can identify trends and patterns, it cannot generate content with emotion, humour, or personal experiences and Google understands this.

Therefore, AI is still secondary to human input in terms of the development of high-quality content.

Isn’t this ironic? With the increased utilisation of AI, the need for authentic, high-quality content written by humans has never been higher.

Is SEO Still Worth It in 2026?

Honestly, many businesses are questioning whether SEO is worth the cost due to the recent introduction of Google’s Summarisation Engine (SGE).

“Is SEO still worth it in 2026 if Google summarises everything?”

Yes, but not in the same form as the SEO from 5 years ago. Modern SEO is far more strategic and far more focused on the quality of content and the performance of the website.

Modern SEO provides value that cannot be replicated through shortcuts:

• Long-term visibility and credibility.
• Organic and consistent traffic (both from users and from AI references).
• A better fit to both voice search and mobile behaviour.
• Data-driven insights to inform your entire marketing strategy.

SEO is no longer simply a marketing strategy, it is the foundation for having any presence at all on the internet.

Additionally, with SGE being rolled out globally, getting your strategy correct now may be the most important decision you will make in 2026.

The Takeaway

Google’s SGE is redefining the rules of search, but it is not killing off SEO.

As such, the agencies that thrive in this new environment are the ones that focus on clarity, credibility and connectivity, three areas that SEO Perth Experts have excelled in for years.

If you’re still thinking of SEO as a one-time task, it is time to reconsider. The future of search is not about manipulating the algorithm, it is about educating AI on the knowledge you have the most expertise in.

This is the way your business gains an opportunity to participate in the conversation.