{"id":723040,"date":"2026-04-21T10:20:41","date_gmt":"2026-04-21T07:20:41","guid":{"rendered":""},"modified":"2026-04-21T10:20:41","modified_gmt":"2026-04-21T07:20:41","slug":"rand-fishkin-zero-click-search-began-long-before-ai-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/rand-fishkin-zero-click-search-began-long-before-ai-2\/","title":{"rendered":"Rand Fishkin: Zero-click search began long before AI"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"ez-toc-container\" class=\"ez-toc-v2_0_84 counter-hierarchy ez-toc-counter ez-toc-custom ez-toc-container-direction\">\n<p class=\"ez-toc-title\" style=\"cursor:inherit\">Table of Contents<\/p>\n<label for=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-item-6a27f16a281ce\" class=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-label\"><span class=\"\"><span class=\"eztoc-hide\" style=\"display:none;\">Toggle<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-icon-toggle-span\"><svg style=\"fill: #dd3333;color:#dd3333\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" class=\"list-377408\" width=\"20px\" height=\"20px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" fill=\"none\"><path d=\"M6 6H4v2h2V6zm14 0H8v2h12V6zM4 11h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2zM4 16h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2z\" fill=\"currentColor\"><\/path><\/svg><svg style=\"fill: #dd3333;color:#dd3333\" class=\"arrow-unsorted-368013\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"10px\" height=\"10px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" version=\"1.2\" baseProfile=\"tiny\"><path d=\"M18.2 9.3l-6.2-6.3-6.2 6.3c-.2.2-.3.4-.3.7s.1.5.3.7c.2.2.4.3.7.3h11c.3 0 .5-.1.7-.3.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7zM5.8 14.7l6.2 6.3 6.2-6.3c.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7c-.2-.2-.4-.3-.7-.3h-11c-.3 0-.5.1-.7.3-.2.2-.3.5-.3.7s.1.5.3.7z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/span><\/label><input type=\"checkbox\"  id=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-item-6a27f16a281ce\" checked aria-label=\"Toggle\" \/><nav><ul class='ez-toc-list ez-toc-list-level-1 ' ><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-1\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/rand-fishkin-zero-click-search-began-long-before-ai-2\/#Fishkin_also_discussed_AIs_unreliable_answers_Google_reducing_organic_visibility_and_why_early_SEO_offered_more_open_opportunities\" >Fishkin also discussed AI\u2019s unreliable answers, Google reducing organic visibility, and why early SEO offered more open opportunities.<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-2\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/rand-fishkin-zero-click-search-began-long-before-ai-2\/#Early_SEO_was_wild\" >Early SEO was wild<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-3\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/rand-fishkin-zero-click-search-began-long-before-ai-2\/#When_Google_stopped_sending_traffic\" >When Google stopped sending traffic<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-4\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/rand-fishkin-zero-click-search-began-long-before-ai-2\/#Publishers_had_a_chance_%E2%80%94_and_missed_it\" >Publishers had a chance \u2014 and missed it<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-5\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/rand-fishkin-zero-click-search-began-long-before-ai-2\/#Did_Google_change\" >Did Google change?<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-6\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/rand-fishkin-zero-click-search-began-long-before-ai-2\/#The_biggest_AI_mistake_people_make\" >The biggest AI mistake people make<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-7\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/rand-fishkin-zero-click-search-began-long-before-ai-2\/#What_he_misses_about_the_early_days_of_SEO\" >What he misses about the early days of SEO<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-8\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/rand-fishkin-zero-click-search-began-long-before-ai-2\/#Whats_next\" >What\u2019s next?<\/a><ul class='ez-toc-list-level-5' ><li class='ez-toc-heading-level-5'><ul class='ez-toc-list-level-5' ><li class='ez-toc-heading-level-5'><ul class='ez-toc-list-level-5' ><li class='ez-toc-heading-level-5'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-9\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/rand-fishkin-zero-click-search-began-long-before-ai-2\/#Topics_on_this_page\" >Topics on this page<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/li><\/ul><\/li><\/ul><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n<h2 class=\"subhead\" itemprop=\"alternativeHeadline\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Fishkin_also_discussed_AIs_unreliable_answers_Google_reducing_organic_visibility_and_why_early_SEO_offered_more_open_opportunities\"><\/span>Fishkin also discussed AI\u2019s unreliable answers, Google reducing organic visibility, and why early SEO offered more open opportunities.<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p><\/p>\n<div class=\"bialty-container\">\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<div class=\"rll-youtube-player\" data-src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/UoHzp1PyXBA\" data-id=\"UoHzp1PyXBA\" data-query=\"feature=oembed\" data-alt=\"Rand Fishkin on 20 years of search and Search Engine Land\"><\/div>\n<p><noscript><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Rand Fishkin on 20 years of search and Search Engine Land\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/UoHzp1PyXBA?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/noscript>\n<\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<p>Rand Fishkin didn\u2019t get into SEO because he saw the future.<\/p>\n<p>He got into it because he had no choice.<\/p>\n<p>In the early 2000s, Fishkin helped run a small web business with his mom in Seattle. They hired another company to do SEO until they couldn\u2019t afford to pay them anymore.<\/p>\n<p>That moment pushed him into search marketing. More than 20 years later, Fishkin has become one of the best-known voices in SEO \u2014 and one of Google\u2019s biggest critics.<\/p>\n<p>In this interview, he looks back at how search has changed, what went wrong, and what may h<a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/download-scripts-themes-apps\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"9\" title=\"Download Scripts &amp; Themes &amp; Apps\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">app<\/a>en next.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"early-seo-was-wild\" class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Early_SEO_was_wild\"><\/span>Early SEO was wild<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>SEO today can feel messy. But in the early days, it was even more chaotic.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThere was no <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/social-mediaa\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"1\" title=\"Social Media\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">social media<\/a>,\u201d is how Fishkin described that era, where forums like WebmasterWorld and Search Engine Watch were the center of the industry.<\/p>\n<p>People shared tactics openly. Many of those tactics were risky. Buying links was common \u2014 and effective.<\/p>\n<p>Fishkin did it, too. Then Google\u2019s Matt Cutts called him out in public.<\/p>\n<p>That moment changed how he approached SEO. He spent years focusing on \u201cwhite hat\u201d practices and following Google\u2019s guidelines.<\/p>\n<p>Looking back, though, Fishkin now questions whether that shift went too far. He believes Google\u2019s own behavior over time has made those guidelines harder to trust.<\/p>\n<p>The early industry wasn\u2019t just chaotic \u2014 it was also full of strange and memorable moments. Fishkin recalled massive conference parties with huge budgets and over-the-top ideas, including a staged \u201cretirement\u201d of the Ask Jeeves mascot.<\/p>\n<p>But what stood out most to him wasn\u2019t the tactics or the parties.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMy favorite thing\u2026 is people,\u201d he said, pointing to the relationships and friendships built over decades in search.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"when-google-stopped-sending-traffic\" class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"When_Google_stopped_sending_traffic\"><\/span>When Google stopped sending traffic<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>Many people think AI is the big turning point in search.<\/p>\n<p>Fishkin says the shift started much earlier \u2014 around 2011.<\/p>\n<p>That\u2019s when the idea of \u201czero-click search\u201d first appeared. Google began answering more queries directly on the results page instead of sending users to websites.<\/p>\n<p>At first, it was small features like weather boxes and calculators.<\/p>\n<p>Then it grew:<\/p>\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Around 2016\u20132017: nearly half of searches ended without a click<\/li>\n<li>By 2018: more than half<\/li>\n<li>Today: more than two-thirds<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Fishkin emphasized that this trend didn\u2019t start with AI \u2014 it has been building for more than a decade.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"publishers-had-a-chance-and-missed-it\" class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Publishers_had_a_chance_%E2%80%94_and_missed_it\"><\/span>Publishers had a chance \u2014 and missed it<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>Fishkin believes publishers could have taken action early \u2014 but didn\u2019t.<\/p>\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>\u201cThe time to fight back\u2026 was 15 or 20 years ago,\u201d he said.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>In his view, large media companies should have worked together to push back against Google\u2019s growing control. They could have demanded payment for content or limited how Google used it.<\/p>\n<p>Instead, they allowed Google to crawl and use their content freely.<\/p>\n<p>At the same time, Google expanded its influence through lobbying and policy.<\/p>\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>\u201cPublishers just missed that opportunity,\u201d Fishkin said.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Now, he argues, the focus has to shift to adapting:<\/p>\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Build subscription businesses<\/li>\n<li>Monetize attention, not just traffic<\/li>\n<li>Learn how to operate within platform ecosystems<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Some companies have already made that shift. Fishkin pointed to The New York Times as an example of a business evolving beyond traditional <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/news\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"2\" title=\"News\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">news<\/a> consumption.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"did-google-change\" class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Did_Google_change\"><\/span>Did Google change?<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>Fishkin does not believe Google has become worse for users.<\/p>\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>\u201cIf it was easier or better to search on Bing\u2026 people would go to those places,\u201d he said.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>But he does believe Google has become much harder for publishers and creators.<\/p>\n<p>The change, he said, was gradual. As Google grew, went public, and aligned with investor expectations, its priorities shifted toward growth and revenue.<\/p>\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>\u201cThey became the people that they spent time with,\u201d Fishkin said.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2 id=\"the-biggest-ai-mistake-people-make\" class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"The_biggest_AI_mistake_people_make\"><\/span>The biggest AI mistake people make<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>Fishkin says most people misunderstand how AI works.<\/p>\n<p>They treat AI answers like search results \u2014 consistent and reliable.<\/p>\n<p>But they aren\u2019t.<\/p>\n<p>If you ask the same question multiple times, the answers can vary widely.<\/p>\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>\u201cYou will get completely different answers. And if you do that 10 times, you will get 10 incredibly unique different answers,\u201d he said.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>His advice is simple: don\u2019t rely on a single response. Ask multiple times and look for patterns. If the same answer shows up consistently, it\u2019s more likely to be trustworthy.<\/p>\n<p>This matters most for important decisions, like health or finance, where relying on one answer could be risky.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"what-he-misses-about-the-early-days-of-seo\" class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"What_he_misses_about_the_early_days_of_SEO\"><\/span>What he misses about the early days of SEO<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>Fishkin doesn\u2019t miss a specific tactic or tool.<\/p>\n<p>He misses the level of opportunity that existed in the early web.<\/p>\n<p>Back then, smaller creators and independent sites had a better chance to succeed. Traffic was more evenly distributed.<\/p>\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>\u201cThe world of clicks and traffic\u2026 was so\u2026 flat compared to\u2026 today,\u201d he said.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2 id=\"whats-next\" class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Whats_next\"><\/span>What\u2019s next?<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>Fishkin believes the future of media and search may look more like the past.<\/p>\n<p>He expects a smaller number of powerful platforms to control most of the flow of information.<\/p>\n<p>At the same time, individual creators will still produce much of the content \u2014 but within those systems.<\/p>\n<p>Still, he hopes the web can evolve again.<\/p>\n<div class=\"ttd-topics-display\">\n<div class=\"ttd-topics-content\">\n<h5><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Topics_on_this_page\"><\/span>Topics on this page<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h5>\n<div class=\"ttd-topics-links\">Rand FishkinSearch engine optimizationGoogleThe New York TimesSeattleMatt CuttsAsk.comArtificial intelligenceMicrosoft BingElectronic publishingGoogle SearchZero-click result<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"ttd-topics-show-extra-button\">+8 more<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<blockquote><p><strong><span style=\"color: #ff6600;\">If you liked the article, do not forget to share it with your friends. Follow us on\u00a0<span style=\"color: #ff0000;\"><a style=\"color: #ff0000;\" href=\"https:\/\/news.google.com\/publications\/CAAqBwgKMN63nwsw68G3Aw\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\">Google News<\/a><\/span>\u00a0too, click on the star and choose us from your favorites.<\/span><\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<blockquote>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong>If you want to read more like this article, you can visit our <span style=\"color: #ff9900;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/technology\/\" target=\"_blank\" >Technology<\/a><\/span> category.<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><span style=\"color: black;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/rand-fishkin-search-engine-land-20-for-20-474800\" target=\"_blank\" >Source<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Fishkin also discussed AI\u2019s unreliable answers, Google reducing organic visibility, and why early SEO offered more open opportunities. Rand Fishkin didn\u2019t get into SEO because he saw the future. He got into it because he had no choice. In the early 2000s, Fishkin helped run a small web business with his mom in Seattle. They&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[18],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-723040","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-technology"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/723040","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=723040"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/723040\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=723040"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=723040"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=723040"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}