Definition
A zero-click search is a search that ends without the user clicking a result, because the answer is already on the results page: in a featured snippet, a knowledge panel, an AI Overview, a weather forecast, a calculator or a local map pack. The searcher gets what they were looking for; the websites that supplied the information get no visit.
The share of zero-click searches has been growing for years and has increased further with AI Overviews and AI Mode. Independent studies show that on queries where an AI Overview appears, the click-through rate to organic results drops considerably, especially on informational questions. The exact percentages differ per study and per market, but the direction is unambiguous: more questions are answered on the results page itself.
That does not make visibility inside those answers worthless. Being the source of a featured snippet or an AI Overview means being seen, being named and building brand awareness, even without the click. On commercial and transactional queries — comparing, buying, choosing a provider — people still click through, because the answer does not fit in one paragraph. The clicks that remain are, on average, more valuable.
Strategy therefore shifts from 'maximise clicks' to 'be present where the answer is formed'. That requires content that gets chosen as a source (direct answer, entities, evidence), brand mentions inside those answers, and pages that offer a reason to click through on commercial questions: prices, comparisons, tools, examples. So measure impressions, citations and brand searches alongside clicks.
Traze tracks per keyword cluster whether an AI Overview or featured snippet appears, whether your domain is listed as a source in it, and how the click-through rate develops, so you can tell traffic drops apart from ranking drops.