As we approach the two-year anniversary of the launch of ChatGPT, reports suggest that Google’s market share in search is projected to fall below 50% by 2025.
This marks a potential turning point in the nearly $300 billion search advertising market, a landscape that Google has dominated for over a decade. The rise of alternative platforms like TikTok, Amazon, and AI-based tools such as Perplexity is beginning to reshape the search ecosystem. This changing tide will force advertisers and brands to re-evaluate their strategies in an increasingly competitive space.
The Rise of ChatGPT, Perplexity, and the AI Challenge
While Google’s Search Generative Experience (SGE) is making waves in the AI space, its competitors are gaining traction at a pace that suggests we’re on the cusp of an AI revolution in search. The growing interest in search terms like “Perplexity” and “ChatGPT” reflects a broader consumer shift towards AI-driven search experiences. These terms are following a pattern that resembles the Gartner Hype Cycle, with rapid adoption and interest peaking, followed by phases of market adaptation.
In the Australian market, data from Google Trends shows that interest in “Perplexity” has grown steadily throughout 2023 and into 2024, while ChatGPT has experienced notable spikes, particularly in its early stages. This sustained growth in curiosity around AI-driven search engines highlights the public’s increasing demand for more interactive and conversational search experiences—something traditional search engines like Google are now racing to integrate.
TikTok and Amazon: Disruptors in the Search Space
Another major disruptor is TikTok, which has evolved from being a simple entertainment platform to a powerful search engine in its own right. TikTok now offers brands the ability to target users based on search behaviour, marking a significant threat to Google’s core search advertising model. Younger audiences, in particular, are increasingly turning to TikTok to discover products, recommendations, and services. The platform’s highly personalised, video-based search results provide an alternative that Google’s text-based ads struggle to compete with. For brands, this presents an entirely new approach to search engine marketing—one that prioritises video content and algorithm-driven discovery.
Meanwhile, Amazon is proving to be an even more formidable competitor. Amazon’s search functionality is built around e-commerce, making it the go-to platform for consumers searching for products. It’s projected that by the end of 2024, Amazon will control 22.3% of the search ad market, growing at a rate of 17.6%. For many brands, this shift means rethinking their ad spend allocation. Instead of focusing exclusively on Google Search ads, businesses are now beginning their product advertising strategies directly on Amazon, where purchase intent is highest.
Perplexity: An AI-Driven Search Alternative
While Amazon and TikTok have an undeniable edge in e-commerce and video content, Perplexity represents a new kind of threat to Google. Backed by Jeff Bezos, Perplexity leverages AI to deliver conversational search results, similar to Google’s SGE but with more emphasis on organic user interaction. With plans to monetise through ads in AI-generated answers, Perplexity could soon capture a portion of the market that was previously unimaginable.
For example, a user asking Perplexity about the best way to remove wine stains might receive a conversational response offering multiple solutions. Instead of a simple list of blue links, the platform can present AI-sourced advice combined with relevant product recommendations—complete with direct purchase links. This blend of interaction and commerce is set to reshape how users think about search.
The Implications for Google Ads
Google’s announcement that it will start incorporating ads into AI-powered search summaries demonstrates its effort to stay relevant in this changing landscape. While the integration of AI is innovative, Google faces the difficult task of balancing its traditional search ads with the new, richer user experiences that AI offers. Will users find the ad-supported answers intrusive, or will the convenience of AI-generated responses overshadow concerns?
Advertisers will need to keep a close eye on how users interact with these new AI-powered search results. If users prefer getting a single, comprehensive answer over sifting through pages of links and ads, this could further reduce click-through rates (CTR) for traditional search ads, especially in industries where quick, accurate responses are highly valued.
A Changing Consumer Search Behaviour
The common theme across TikTok, Amazon, Perplexity, and ChatGPT is how consumer search behaviour is evolving. Users are now more likely to seek answers in a conversational or visually engaging format, which favours AI and video-based platforms. For brands, this means that relying solely on traditional search advertising strategies, like Google Ads, may no longer suffice.
In fact, the decline in clicks through to websites from search results has already been observed, driven by AI responses that don’t necessarily require a user to leave the search engine’s ecosystem. Instead of clicking on a link to read an article, a user might get their answer directly from an AI summary. For brands, this raises important questions about visibility. If fewer people are landing on websites from search engines, what does that mean for SEO efforts?
Balancing Performance Marketing with Brand Building
Given the rapid changes happening in the search landscape, brands must strike a balance between short-term performance marketing and long-term brand building. While platforms like Google, Amazon, TikTok, and Perplexity may offer excellent ways to reach customers, it’s essential to focus on creating memorable experiences that transcend algorithm changes and ad placements.
Search ads may continue to be effective in reaching specific audiences, but as fewer users click through to websites, the importance of building a strong brand identity becomes even more critical. The brands that win in this new era of search will be those that not only optimise their digital strategies for different platforms but also focus on engaging consumers with content that resonates and sticks in their memory.
Preparing for the Future of Search Marketing
As competition in the search space intensifies, Google’s dominance in the advertising market is facing its most serious threat yet. Platforms like TikTok, Amazon, and Perplexity are giving users alternative ways to search for products and information—ways that often feel more intuitive and engaging than traditional search engines. As we move towards 2025, brands will need to rethink how they approach search marketing.
Rather than putting all their eggs in the Google Ads basket, businesses should explore these emerging platforms and consider how AI-driven tools like Perplexity and ChatGPT can be integrated into their strategies. By staying agile and adapting to these new formats, brands can continue to thrive even in an evolving digital landscape.
The search marketing landscape is at a pivotal moment. Brands that recognize and adapt to these shifts will be better positioned to succeed in a world where AI and alternative platforms redefine how consumers search for and engage with content. The key lies in embracing innovation while staying true to the core principles of effective marketing: understanding your audience and delivering value in ways that resonate.
