The dust still hasn’t settled.
If you’re a recipe, travel, or lifestyle blogger, chances are the past few weeks have felt like a gut punch.
On March 13, Google rolled out its first core update of 2025 – a sweeping algorithmic change that lasted 13 days and left many independent creators reeling.
Some saw their traffic drop by half, and others fell completely out of the rankings for posts that had been steady performers for years.
The volatility didn’t just shake the search results; it shook people’s confidence in the entire system.
Just eight days earlier, on March 5, Google launched its much-anticipated AI Mode, officially opening the floodgates for AI Overviews to appear in even more queries across mobile and desktop.
The company also quietly expanded features like Things to Know and Search Suggestions, all of which use generative AI to reshape how (and whether) users click through to actual websites.
This combination of human-reviewed updates and machine-generated content delivery is creating a new search ecosystem in which bloggers and content creators are no longer competing against each other but also against Google’s AI.
While this may feel discouraging (and let’s be honest, it is discouraging), it’s not the end. It is a turning point.
The bloggers who survive this moment will be the ones who adapt strategically and intentionally to what Google is looking for.
At the recent Search Central Live event in New York City, Google’s Search Liaison, Danny Sullivan, directly addressed the elephant in the room:
Google does want to show high-quality independent sites in search results, but those sites need to prove their value.
That means leaning into content that’s deeply helpful, structured for discovery, and ready to be surfaced by AI-powered features.
In this article, we’ll unpack what all of this means for niche bloggers.
How the AI-powered SERP is evolving.
The implications of Google’s March updates.
Most importantly, what you can do right now to position your content for visibility, relevance, and long-term resilience.
Understanding AI-powered SERP features
If you’ve searched for just about anything on Google lately, you’ve likely noticed that the results don’t look as familiar.
Instead of a traditional list of blue links, users are increasingly being greeted by AI Overviews.
These are summary-style boxes at the top of the page that attempt to answer queries directly using a blend of web content, Google’s own models, and structured data.
AI Overviews expanded significantly with the full rollout of AI Mode, a search setting now available to all signed-in users in the U.S. and gradually expanding internationally.
In this mode, Google prioritizes AI-generated summaries over traditional results, especially for informational and how-to queries – two of the most important categories for lifestyle, travel, and recipe bloggers.
But AI Overviews aren’t the only shift.
Google has also doubled down on the Things to Know panel, People Also Ask and Search Suggestions powered by Gemini.
These features are dynamic, predictive, and heavily influenced by the broader topic context of a query, not just the exact keyword match.
Google is thinking in clusters now more than ever.
If your content isn’t connected topically and semantically across your site, it will be increasingly hard to surface in these areas.
Google’s announcement made it clear. These features are designed to:
“Help users explore a topic from different angles.”
“Get to the meat of an answer faster.”
That means your content isn’t longer competing for a link on Page 1.
It’s being mined (summarized, extracted, and reframed) by a generative model that decides whether to credit you, partially quote you, or skip you entirely.
From what I’ve seen, structured content tends to perform better in this new landscape.
Posts that include clearly labeled headings, succinct answers to common questions, and strong schema implementation are more likely to be pulled into AI Overviews or surface in Things to Know.
But Google is also experimenting here, and the rules are not consistent.
Some sites get full attribution with a link, and others are paraphrased with no link at all.
This is the part of the game that’s quickly changing.
It’s also where many bloggers are losing out, not because their content isn’t good, but because it isn’t formatted or positioned in a way that AI models can easily understand or reuse.
If your blog is still structured around single, isolated posts, with little thought to topical hierarchy, internal linking, or query intent, you’ll be left behind in this AI-powered ecosystem.
Understanding how these new features work and what types of content they prioritize is the first step toward regaining visibility.
The impact of these changes on niche bloggers
For years, independent bloggers (especially in the food, travel, and lifestyle spaces) have relied on Google’s search traffic as the backbone of their content businesses.
However, the March 2025 core update and the expanded rollout of AI Overviews have dramatically altered the playing field, and not in a way that favors the solo creator.
The biggest shift?
Visibility is no longer guaranteed, even for great content.
Blog posts that previously ranked on the first page are now being pushed below AI Overviews, pushed out by aggregators or big brand sites, or simply omitted altogether.
When those AI-generated summaries do pull from blog content, the click-through rate is often negligible, especially when the user already got their answer directly in the SERP.
The individual impact of this increase in zero-click searches is something I see every day.
Many of my blogging clients report steep traffic declines, even for evergreen content that has historically performed well for years.
Some creators have lost rankings for brand-name queries (their own site name).
Others find that Google’s AI has rewritten, paraphrased, or otherwise summarized their top posts without a clear attribution or link.
This isn’t just a core update – it’s a systemic reframing of what it means to “own” a piece of content in Google Search. And it’s hitting niche bloggers hardest.
Unlike major publishers, bloggers don’t have teams of developers optimizing site speed or fine-tuning schema.
They’re the writer, the photographer, the editor, and the technical lead all at once.
These changes raise the bar for what Google considers “helpful” while giving bloggers far less margin for error.
But here’s the other side of that coin: Google still needs high-quality, experience-based content to fuel its AI systems.
At Search Central Live in NYC, Google repeatedly emphasized that it does not want AI content to dominate the search results.
Google wants well-organized, expert-driven content from real people, especially when it reflects unique experiences, problem-solving, or first-hand knowledge.
Again, if you are a blogger hit hard by the recent changes, it doesn’t mean your content isn’t valuable.
But it means you must go one step further to help Google (and its AI-powered features) understand that value.
That starts with restructuring your site, tightening your topical authority, and making sure your most helpful insights aren’t buried in a wall of text or vague storytelling.
Stop writing to a perceived word count for Google and start writing instead for the user.
Do that, and you will generate a more intentional, more strategic approach to content creation.
While it may feel overwhelming now, it’s also an opportunity to future-proof your blog in a way that helps you stand out in a search experience increasingly built on summaries, context, and authority.
Content optimization strategies for bloggers
The AI-powered SERP isn’t just rewarding helpful content; it’s demanding it.
If your blog content isn’t clearly structured, uniquely insightful, and easy to navigate, it will get bypassed.
Whether it’s by AI Overviews summarizing someone else’s content or by frustrated users bouncing before they scroll, the result is the same: you’re invisible.
Here’s what you should do right now to improve your content’s ability to perform in this new landscape.
Prioritize structure and scannability
Use table of contents or jump links: Not only do these improve user experience, but Google has explicitly mentioned them in its Quality Rater Guidelines as indicators of helpful design. They also increase chances of generating actual SERP features like extra jump link rich snippets.
Break up long blocks of text: Use descriptive subheadings (H2s and H3s) that clearly outline what’s in each section. Don’t bury key insights in the middle of a narrative.
Include summaries and TL;DRs: Especially for recipe or travel content, a quick summary at the top can improve user satisfaction and serve as a featured snippet candidate for AI Overviews.
Collapse FAQs: You should consider adding FAQs if they make sense, but collapse them. They improve readability and reduce needless scrolling. Look at the People Also Ask results for target queries and mine those for article possibilities.
Optimize above-the-fold: Ensure the first impressions of your content are high quality. Push down auto-playing videos, email sign-ups, and forms further down the page.
Watch your ads: As a best practice, ads should not load above the fold if at all possible. Get the user invested in the content first before reducing their UX with ads. Also, group your blocks so you (not your ad company) have the final say on where those ads appear.
Remove superfluous or fluff content
Audit posts for filler: Ask yourself: “Did I include this section for users, or because I thought Google needed it?” If it’s the latter, it’s probably hurting you now.
Cut generic content that adds no unique value: Think of those long-winded intros about fall weather before a soup recipe or generic travel tips copy-pasted between city guides. If AI can write it, it’s not helping your rankings.
Go deep, not wide: A post that answers one specific question in-depth often performs better than a vague, 2,000-word overview written to “hit keywords.”
Reduce photos: A recipe post never needs five photos of the finished dish. A travel post doesn’t need several photos of the same monument. Reduce needless scrolling.
Show unique expertise and firsthand insight
Avoid redundant topics unless you can add real value: Google doesn’t need another listicle on “Best Things to Do in Oaxaca City” or another “Easy Lamb Chops Recipe.” If you’re writing one, it needs to include original experiences, hot takes, or firsthand tips – something that would make Google think, “We’d look bad if this didn’t rank.”
Highlight firsthand experience: This includes original photography, tips you’ve personally tested, or information you learned through direct experience.
Showcase custom reviews or feedback. Highlight a review or comment (especially if the post is an update) towards the top of the post to show value to new users on why the recipe, post, or DIY is worth their time.
Use custom schema to reinforce E-E-A-T: For example, HowTo, Recipe, and Review schema can help Google understand your content type and pull it into relevant AI surfaces.
Optimize for AI consumption
Answer common questions directly: Use FAQ sections, pull quotes, or inline summaries to increase your chances of being featured in People Also Ask or AI Overviews.
Label content clearly: If you offer a travel itinerary, say so in the H2. If you’re sharing substitution tips for a recipe, create a dedicated section. Google’s AI models are pulling structured info and a clear roadmap improves discoverability.
Think like a module: Each section of your post should be able to stand alone as a helpful unit. That modular thinking improves your odds in AI-powered carousels like “Things to Know” or traditional featured snippets.
Don’t ignore the technical details
Don’t block AI bots: This is short-sighted and reduces your visibility in LLMs and possibly in AI Mode and AI Overviews. You can read the pros and cons of doing this here and here.
Show clear bylines: Everything you publish should be linked to an identified author and to a valid “About me” or detailed author page. Show a “real person” exists behind the content.
Show dates on content: Users like to see dates on content. Showing “published” and “last modified” dates is a great way to ensure the content is timely and relevant.
Implement clean, valid schema markup: This helps AI understand your content type and surface it appropriately.
Compress image sizes and improve page speed: Poor load time is still a conversion killer, and technical bloat makes it harder for AI to parse and prioritize your post.
Ditch the pop-ups: Popups are notorious for lowering UX, deploying incorrectly on the first-click-from-Google, and stunting your ability to build real traffic. Consider removing them.
Fix broken or unhelpful internal links: Internal linking isn’t just for SEO. It reinforces topic relationships and improves crawl paths for discovery. Read my article, “Internal linking for bloggers: 9 mistakes to fix immediately,” and do a self-audit today.
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The importance of enhancing topical authority
For years, bloggers were told to “improve E-E-A-T” to earn better rankings.
However, the recent comments from Google’s John Mueller made it clear that E-E-A-T isn’t a checklist.
It’s not something you slap onto a page with a badge, an “About me” paragraph on the sidebar, or a bio block under your recipe card.
Instead, what Google can assess (and what it’s actively prioritizing in AI-enhanced SERPs) is topical authority.
This is not reputation in a vacuum but a demonstrated, recognizable depth of content across a focused niche.
For bloggers, this means building out your content like a library, not a scrapbook.
If your site is full of disconnected posts that don’t reinforce a central theme, you’ll have a much harder time competing in a search landscape that’s increasingly driven by topic modeling, AI clustering, and semantic relationships.
Here are practical ways bloggers can build topical authority in 2025.
Go deep, not just broad
Don’t chase every keyword in your niche: Focus instead on building depth across key topic areas. A food blog with 12 detailed, interlinked posts on gluten-free baking may signal far more authority than one with 200 random baking recipes.
Establish content pillars: Choose 3–5 core themes (e.g., solo female travel, low-carb desserts, family travel in Europe) and create comprehensive, interlinked content clusters around them.
Improve internal linking with purpose
Map your internal links like you’d map a subway system: Every post should lead to other relevant content, not just the homepage or a “related posts” plugin.
Create hub pages or indexes: These help users (and AI systems) understand the structure of your content and reinforce your topical relevance.
Build on what you’ve already written
Don’t start fresh if you don’t have to: Use your existing content to your advantage. Update, expand, and connect it to new posts in meaningful ways. If a post is still getting impressions, make it better.
Create bridge content: If you have strong recipe posts and a growing category of how-to kitchen guides, create posts that link the two. Google sees the connective tissue.
Think like a curator, not just a creator
What’s missing in the conversation? Don’t just create content you’ve already seen 100 times. Publish the thing that’s missing. If you’re writing a post on “Things to Do in Oaxaca,” make sure it answers niche questions, reflects your personal experience, and includes tips users won’t find in a Frommer’s guide.
Would Google be embarrassed not to rank this? That’s the new bar. Your content should be so complete, helpful, and insightful that omitting it would make the AI Overview or “Things to Know” look weaker.
Use author pages and about sections wisely
Give context, not hype: While you can’t “add E-E-A-T,” you can provide background that helps Google understand who you are and what you specialize in. That’s useful for trust signals and can help in knowledge graph inclusion and author profile visibility.
How bloggers can monitor AI features and adapt to changes
Staying visible in Google’s AI-enhanced search results requires ongoing vigilance and flexibility. Here’s how you can effectively monitor your performance and adapt your strategies.
Track your presence in AI Overviews
Understand current limitations: Google Search Console (GSC) doesn’t provide specific tracking for AI Overviews or AI Mode impressions. This means your content’s appearance in these features is bundled with standard search data, making it challenging to isolate their impact.
Use third-party tools: To bridge this gap, several SEO tools have integrated features to monitor AI Overviews.
Semrush: Offers insights into keywords triggering AI Overviews and whether your site is featured.
Ahrefs: Provides tracking of AI Overview occurrences and your content’s inclusion.
SE Ranking: Enables monitoring of AI-generated snippets and their impact on your rankings.
ZipTie.dev: Offers detailed insights into AI Overview appearances.
Keyword.com: Allows you to see which keywords trigger AI Overviews and if your content is cited.
Analyze performance metrics
Monitor click-through rates (CTR): Keep a close eye on CTRs for pages that traditionally performed well. A sudden drop might indicate displacement by an AI Overview.
Assess traffic patterns: Look for shifts in organic traffic, particularly to cornerstone content. Declines may suggest your content is being summarized in AI Overviews without attracting clicks.
By proactively monitoring your site’s interaction with AI features and remaining adaptable in your approach, you can better navigate the challenges posed by Google’s evolving search landscape.
Search has changed – and it’s not changing back
The March 2025 core update, coupled with the expansion of AI Overviews and AI Mode, has made it clear.
The way Google processes, presents, and prioritizes content is fundamentally different than it was even six months ago.
Traditional blue links are no longer the centerpiece of the SERP.
AI-powered summaries, predictive modules, and dynamic panels now sit at the top.
They curate, summarize, and sometimes replace the content that bloggers have spent years creating.
For recipe, travel, and lifestyle creators, this is a pivotal moment.
The old playbook (write good content, optimize a bit, and wait for rankings) isn’t enough anymore.
If you want your content to thrive in this new ecosystem, it has to be structured with intent, created with clarity, and written in a way that’s not just helpful but unmistakably valuable to both humans and AI systems.
But here’s the good news: the bloggers who are willing to evolve will still have a seat at the table.
You still bring something to the web that AI can’t replicate:
Firsthand experience.
Personal storytelling.
Unique insight.
Creative expression.
That’s not just helpful content; it’s irreplaceable content.
2025 may be the most challenging year bloggers have faced, but it also offers something rare: a clean slate.
A chance to reassess your strategy, double down on your strengths, and rebuild your content in a way that’s ready for where search is headed, not where it’s been.
You’ve adapted before. You can do it again. I believe in you.