AI Overviews and affiliate marketing: what advertisers need to know

For years, many affiliate programmes have relied on a simple flow: a shopper searches on Google, clicks a review or comparison site, and then clicks through to the webshop. That middle step is now under pressure. Google’s AI Overviews and AI Mode answer more questions directly on the results page, and fewer people click on to the websites behind the answer.

For advertisers, this is not a reason to cut affiliate marketing. It is a reason to look closely at which partners still drive sales, and to build a partner mix that depends less on Google traffic.

What AI Overviews and AI Mode are

AI Overviews are the AI-generated summaries that appear at the top of many Google results. In May 2025, Google expanded them to more than 200 countries and territories and more than 40 languages. AI Mode goes further: it is a separate, chat-like search experience where users ask follow-up questions. In October 2025, Google announced AI Mode for more than 40 new countries and territories, including Sweden and several other European markets.

The impact on publisher traffic

Several independent studies point in the same direction:

Pew Research Center found that users clicked a result link on 8% of Google searches that showed an AI summary, compared with 15% of searches without one. Only 1% of visits included a click on a source cited in the summary. Google disputed the method.
Ahrefs reported in February 2026 that the average click-through rate for the number one position was 58% lower when an AI Overview was present, based on December 2025 data compared with December 2023.
Chartbeat data reported by Axios in March 2026 showed that search referral traffic had fallen by 60% for small publishers, 47% for medium-sized publishers and 22% for large publishers over two years.

The studies mainly cover the US and English-language search, so the effect in each European market will vary. But the trend is clear enough for advertisers to plan for it.

Which affiliate types are most affected

Not every publisher is hit equally. The key question is whether the shopper still needs to visit the partner’s site to get value.

Most exposed: content sites, blogs and comparison sites that depend on Google for traffic, especially for informational and “best product” searches that AI can summarise.
Exposed: coupon sites, because discount codes can be shown or summarised directly in search and chat answers.
Less exposed: cashback and loyalty partners, where members must visit the platform to activate their reward, so the tracked click still happens.
Less exposed: creators, newsletters, apps and communities with their own audience, because their traffic does not come from search.

This picture can change quickly. If AI tools start to offer cashback or deals directly, even today’s safer categories may come under pressure.

How to adapt your partner mix

Advertisers do not control Google, but they do control who they work with and on what terms.

Review traffic sources: ask your larger content partners how much of their traffic comes from Google, and how that has changed over the past year.
Diversify: recruit more partners with their own audiences, such as creators, newsletters, communities, loyalty schemes and relevant brand partnerships.
Keep strong content partners: publishers with original testing and expert reviews still matter, and they are often the sources AI answers draw on.
Rethink fees with care: some content publishers now ask for fixed placement fees to make up for lost traffic. Test them against clear goals rather than paying by default.
Protect your brand terms: make sure your own site ranks well for searches on your brand plus “discount code”, and keep your programme rules on brand bidding up to date.
Feed the AI: keep product data, prices and stock accurate in your product feeds, and make sure your own product pages answer common questions clearly.

What to measure from now on

When fewer clicks reach your partners, every click matters more. Watch a few signals each month:

Clicks and sales per partner type, to spot which groups are declining.
Conversion rate per partner, since traffic from AI-informed shoppers may be smaller but more ready to buy.
Share of revenue from your top five partners, as a measure of concentration risk.
New customer share per partner, to separate real growth from sales you would have made anyway.

A quick check before peak season

With Singles’ Day on 11 November and Black Friday on 27 November 2026, there is still time for a short review. Many Nordic retailers run Black Week offers from around 20 November, so partner plans need to be in place well before then.

Compare each partner’s clicks and sales for September and October with the same months last year.
Ask your top content partners which pages they will update for Black Week, and send them your offers early.
Line up at least two or three partners with their own audiences, such as a newsletter, a creator or a loyalty scheme, for the peak weeks.
Check that your product feed shows correct campaign prices from day one.

Key takeaways

AI Overviews and AI Mode reduce clicks to websites, and small content publishers are hit hardest.
Content, comparison and coupon sites are most exposed; cashback, loyalty and creator partners less so.
Diversify towards partners with their own audiences, while keeping high-quality content partners.
Measure conversion, new customers and concentration risk, not just clicks.

AI search is changing where shoppers discover products, but they still buy from webshops, and someone still has to recommend them. The advertisers who adapt their partner mix early will keep affiliate marketing a profitable channel.

Want to know how exposed your programme is? Start with a free audit of your affiliate programme.