Are you worried about the future of search traffic? Wondering how to adapt your content strategy for the AI age?
In this article, you’ll discover why Google search is declining and how to adjust your content marketing to thrive in 2025 and beyond.

Why Content Marketing Still Matters in 2025
The marketing landscape is evolving faster than ever, with changes that used to take years now happening in weeks. As Marcus Sheridan, content marketing strategist and author of the upcoming book Endless Customers, notes, “We can't fit the future in the containers of the past.”
Success will come to those who embrace these changes, invest in the right capabilities, and focus on creating truly helpful, accessible customer experiences.
While the landscape has shifted dramatically since his early days of revolutionizing pool marketing, content's fundamental role hasn't changed. Content is just being discovered and consumed differently.
While the delivery mechanisms have evolved, the core principle remains unchanged: businesses must obsess over their customers' questions, worries, and concerns and address them comprehensively online. The goal isn't just about SEO anymore; it's about building trust and establishing authority in your space.
Focusing solely on Google search traffic was always a narrow view of content's value. Of the approximately 40 different reasons why businesses should produce content, search engine optimization is just one of them. Other critical reasons include:
- Providing comprehensive information for potential buyers visiting your website
- Creating content that AI systems can reference and recommend
- Building trust through transparency and expertise
- Supporting sales conversations and customer education
- Establishing thought leadership in your industry
- Creating assets that can be shared across social platforms
- Developing content that aids in customer decision-making
- Providing resources for after-sale support and customer success
So, while content remains crucial, businesses must adopt a more holistic view of its role in their marketing strategy. Content needs to serve multiple purposes and be discoverable through various channels.
For example, companies that have built comprehensive content libraries find their material being recommended more frequently by AI systems, creating a new avenue for discovery.

Understanding the Decline of Traditional Search
The search landscape is undergoing a dramatic transformation, one that many (not all) SEO professionals are reluctant to acknowledge.
Google's overall search volume remains high, but the critical metric for businesses isn't search volume – it's whether those searches lead to website visits.
According to Sheridan's research, Google may see a 25-40% decline in usage over the next decade. More importantly for publishers and businesses, there could be a 70% decline in website visitors from search results.
Several factors are driving this decline:
- Google's evolving search results page, which now buries organic listings beneath:
- Sponsored ads designed to look like organic results
- AI-generated answers take up significant screen space
- Related questions
- Reddit discussions and other aggregated content
- Google's formal announcement about offering an AI-only option for search that bypasses traditional search results entirely
- The rise of zero-click searches, where users get their answers directly in search results without visiting websites
Despite these challenges, Sheridan emphasizes that businesses shouldn't abandon content creation. Instead, they need to expand their view of content's purpose beyond search engine optimization. The key is transforming your mindset about your business in the digital age.
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GET THE DETAILS#1: The New Approach to Content Marketing: Adopt a Media Company Mindset
This isn't just clever wordplay—it represents a fundamental shift in how businesses should think about their role in the marketplace.
The media company mindset means seeing every aspect of your business as a potential story waiting to be told. For example, a single swimming pool installation could generate 50-60 different content pieces about homeowners' decisions. This approach requires looking at your business through a new lens and constantly asking, “How can we show and tell this story better?”
Invest in In-House Content Creation
Sheridan strongly advocates for in-house content creation rather than outsourcing. “Outsourcing your content is not the future of the web,” he states. That is not going to bring you to the promised land.” You must develop an internal capability to capture and tell stories as they happen.
In fact, he's been predicting for a decade that any company over $1 million in revenue will need an in-house videographer, and now–for the first time ever—his advice to clients is that their first hire shouldn’t be a content writer, it should be a videographer.
Master Storytelling
The ability to tell compelling stories has become non-negotiable. Sheridan reveals he won't hire marketers who can't demonstrate strong storytelling abilities during interviews. This skill is crucial across all platforms, from LinkedIn posts to video content.
When it comes to social media, Sheridan's own success on LinkedIn demonstrates the power of storytelling. Having published over 1,500 thoughtful posts in the past five years, he's learned that even the most valuable information won't gain traction if it isn't delivered through a well-told story.
His posts often begin with phrases like “I was talking to somebody the other day” or “Recently someone asked me this question,” creating immediate engagement through narrative.

“I look at so many people failing on social media,” Sheridan notes, “and it's simply because they just don't understand how to deliver the goods in a way that really sticks and resonates with people.”
Embrace Video Content
Video has become essential for every business, regardless of industry, and the moment you sign up to go into business, you lose the right to say, “Video’s not my thing.”
No customer has ever visited a website and thought, “I wish I could see a video on this, but they don't have a video on it. But you know what? I'm sure video's just not their thing, and I'm sure it makes them really nervous, so I'm going to give them the pass.” Instead, customers simply leave, seeking information elsewhere.
The key to successful video content is meeting your audience where they are and in the format they prefer, which means creating:
- Educational content that explains complex concepts
- Behind-the-scenes glimpses of your business operations
- Customer success stories and testimonials
- Product demonstrations and tutorials
- Expert interviews and insights
Mix Your Media Types
While maintaining a strong focus on video, Sheridan advocates for a varied approach to content creation. On LinkedIn, for example, he publishes a mix of written posts, images, and videos, typically one to two videos per week. Some videos are simple “verbal riffs,” while others are more produced studio content.

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This varied approach ensures you're reaching audience members who have different content consumption preferences while maintaining a consistent presence across platforms. The key is maintaining quality storytelling regardless of the medium.
#2: How Your Website Needs to Evolve
How websites function is about to transform dramatically, driven by changing buyer preferences and advancing technology. Sheridan points to a crucial statistic from Gartner that's reshaping the digital landscape: 75% of buyers prefer a seller-free sales experience. This stat represents a fundamental shift in how customers want to interact with businesses.
“This doesn't mean they hate salespeople,” Sheridan explains. “They just do not want to talk to a salesperson until they are ready.” And how do buyers define being ready? According to Sheridan, it's when they feel sufficiently informed and confident they won't make a mistake.
Integrate Self-Service Tools
Here's a detailed look at the essential self-service tools that replicate traditional sales experiences online.
Self-Pricing Tools and Estimators
The days of “Call for Quote” are over. Sheridan doesn't mince words about this, calling it “the literal middle finger of the internet.” Instead, businesses need to provide transparent pricing information through interactive tools.
He predicts that within five years, 90% of service-based businesses will be forced to have some type of pricing estimator tool on their website to remain competitive.
Sheridan's solution, PriceGuide.ai, allows businesses to create and embed pricing estimator tools directly on their websites. When prominently displayed on the home page, these tools typically increase website leads threefold.

Self-Selection Tools
These tools help customers make informed choices between different options.
While Sheridan only sells fiberglass pools, he has a tool that helps customers determine whether they should purchase a concrete, vinyl, or fiberglass swimming pool. Dozens of times a day, his website tells prospects, “Based on your answers, you should go with a concrete pool.”
This level of transparency and willingness to recommend competitors when appropriate builds extraordinary trust with his potential customers.
Other businesses could apply this concept in various ways, such as helping customers determine if a particular service or product is right for them before they invest time in sales conversations.
Self-Assessment Tools
Assessment tools help potential customers understand their needs and readiness for particular products or services. These can range from simple questionnaires to sophisticated evaluation systems that provide personalized recommendations.
Sheridan recommends ScoreApp, created by Daniel Priestley, as an effective platform for building these assessment tools.
Self-Scheduling Tools
One of the most powerful self-service features you can integrate is the ability for prospects to schedule time directly with a specific salesperson.
Data shows that closing rates consistently double when businesses allow prospects to choose which salesperson they want to work with.
This simple change gives prospects more control over their buying experience and creates stronger initial connections with sales staff.
Integrate Digital Avatars
By the end of 2025, Sheridan predicts that most websites will enable visitors to interact with AI-driven avatars that look and sound like real people, creating an experience that feels more like a video call than a text chat.
Customers will embrace these tools because they provide immediate, helpful assistance at any time, particularly outside of business hours when human staff aren't available.
Here's how Sheridan envisions this working:
“You're going to come to my website, and instead of a boring chat box where you can type some text, you'll see a video version of Marcus or one of my team members. It will look just like me, sound just like me…I'll be in the corner, and I will say to you, ‘Welcome to the River Pools website. I am Digital Marcus. I'm not the real Marcus, of course, but I am using all of the information he’s put on this website to answer any of your questions.'”
These digital humans will offer multiple interaction options, including:
- Real-time quote generation
- Appointment scheduling
- Product demonstrations
- Immediate answers to complex questions
#3: Content Marketing Implementation Tips for 2025 and Beyond
To succeed in this new landscape, Sheridan offers several key recommendations:
- Continue creating comprehensive content for your website, but don't rely on it for search traffic alone
- Invest in video content creation capabilities
- Focus on building your owned audience through newsletters and direct relationships
- Implement self-service tools before your competitors force you to
- Begin preparing for the integration of digital humans into your website experience
Marcus Sheridan is a content marketing strategist who helps people scale their audience and a partner at Impact, a coaching company that helps businesses share their stories without reliance on agencies. He’s the author of They Ask, You Answer and the forthcoming Endless Customers. Connect with him on LinkedIn.
Other Notes From This Episode
- Connect with Michael Stelzner @Stelzner on Instagram and @Mike_Stelzner on X.
- Watch this interview and other exclusive content from Social Media Examiner on YouTube.
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