Would you recommend clients opt out of Google AI Search?

[NiceNIC]

Google now lets websites stay in regular Search while opting out of AI Overviews and AI Mode through Search Console.

For a hosting or agency client, would you leave the default on, test the opt-out on content-heavy sites, or simply let the client decide?

 

[bigredseo]

I strongly recommend that all our clients NOT opt out of the AI Overviews. Heck, I had two phone calls this morning that found us one via Google's Overviews and one via ChatGPT AI.

I think Cloudflare is also doing its clients an injustice by automatically opting them out of the various AI tools and blocking them from scanning the websites.

I understand that there are some types of sites, especially news sites, potentially even this forum, and others with proprietary info that they would not want to show on AI Overviews - but for most businesses, if they provide enough info for the AI Overviews that people read, those clients WILL click to get more info and then follow through with a phone call or email.

For us, we will not be opting out of any AI scanners. I do have two clients that we have advised opting out based on their business model, but most businesses should not. Our blog posts and info on our site are there to attract users and prove we know what we're talking about. Those users then take the next steps. If they get the info they need and they don't need our help, that's good too.

Where this all gets tricky is in the case of blog posts or forums etc, where you depend on the advertising and the eyeballs reading that content in order to make money from the ads. That's a totally different mentality than a traditional business operating in a B2B or B2C world.

 

[NiceNIC]

I strongly recommend that all our clients NOT opt out of the AI Overviews. Heck, I had two phone calls this morning that found us one via Google's Overviews and one via ChatGPT AI.

I think Cloudflare is also doing its clients an injustice by automatically opting them out of the various AI tools and blocking them from scanning the websites.

I understand that there are some types of sites, especially news sites, potentially even this forum, and others with proprietary info that they would not want to show on AI Overviews - but for most businesses, if they provide enough info for the AI Overviews that people read, those clients WILL click to get more info and then follow through with a phone call or email.

For us, we will not be opting out of any AI scanners. I do have two clients that we have advised opting out based on their business model, but most businesses should not. Our blog posts and info on our site are there to attract users and prove we know what we're talking about. Those users then take the next steps. If they get the info they need and they don't need our help, that's good too.

Where this all gets tricky is in the case of blog posts or forums etc, where you depend on the advertising and the eyeballs reading that content in order to make money from the ads. That's a totally different mentality than a traditional business operating in a B2B or B2C world.

Thanks. The Cloudflare bit is the part that got me. Feels like that should be the client’s call, not something decided for them by default.🤔