The First SEO Trends of 2025: What’s Changing and Why It Matters
We’re only one week into 2025, and it’s already clear that this year is going to be big for SEO. Between Google’s latest AI expansions, new tools for managing AI crawlers, and a continued shift in how search results are presented, SEO professionals are entering a landscape that demands both technical savvy and strategic foresight.
Here’s what you need to know to start the year strong.
AI-Organized Results Expand to Restaurants
Following Google’s rollout of AI-generated recipe search layouts in late 2024, restaurant recommendations are now getting the same treatment. These results display categorized recommendations based on user queries, curated and clustered using AI.
Why it matters:
If your brand or client is in the hospitality, food, or local service industries, this format shift will change how visibility is earned. Local SEO optimization (think reviews, location schema, and Google Business Profile accuracy) will only grow in importance.
Tag Assistant is Back, and Better
Google has officially revived its Tag Assistant Chrome extension, combining the two previous versions (Legacy and Companion) into one streamlined tool. If you’re working in GTM or any tag-heavy implementation, download the updated extension now.
Pro tip: Use Tag Assistant to verify GA4 tags, GTM containers, and troubleshooting directly in-browser. A must-have for any technical marketer.
AI Crawlers Can’t Render JavaScript
In a recent episode of Search Off the Record, Google’s Martin Splitt issued a warning that AI crawlers cannot parse JavaScript. That’s a major red flag for sites built with JavaScript-heavy frameworks or client-side rendering.
Why this matters:
AI search engines rely on HTML for content discovery. If your site is hiding key content or links behind JS, it may be completely invisible to these bots.
Action to take:
Shift to server-side rendering or prioritize HTML-first builds for SEO-critical pages. Also, make sure all important metadata and links are accessible without relying on JS execution.
AI Overviews Are Getting Even Taller
BrightEdge reports that the average pixel height of AI Overviews on Google has jumped from 600px to 800px. That means even more of the SERP is now consumed by AI summaries, with fewer traditional organic listings appearing above the fold.
What to do:
Optimizing for AI Overviews is now as important as ranking on page one. Prioritize concise, structured, authoritative content with schema markup to increase your chances of inclusion.
Cloudflare’s AI Audit Dashboard: Control What Bots Can Access
Cloudflare now offers an AI Audit Dashboard that allows site owners to:
- See which AI bots are crawling their site
- View request volume per bot
- Block or filter specific AI services
- Monitor robots.txt compliance
Coming soon: a feature to monetize your site data by charging AI bots to crawl your site.
Why this matters:
Clients concerned about unauthorized data use in LLM training can now set boundaries, while potentially earning from their content. This tool will be especially relevant to publishers, e-commerce sites, and data-rich industries.
Looking Back to Move Forward: Highlights from 2024
Before you get too deep into your 2025 strategy, here are a few standout insights from last year that are worth revisiting:
- The $60M Deal That No One Is Talking About: A reminder of how niche platforms and under-the-radar moves can reshape market dynamics.
- Presenting Effectively During QBRs: Why storytelling with data matters more than ever.
- The Google Antitrust Case: How regulation is already shaping search partnerships and defaults.
- YouTube SEO in 3 Pillars: Still one of the most overlooked channels in search strategy.
- SearchGPT Optimization Tactics: The foundation of any AI-first content strategy moving forward.
Final Thoughts
2025 is shaping up to be a landmark year for search. From AI-generated SERPs to increased control over crawler access, marketers will need to combine technical understanding with forward-thinking strategies to compete.
If your roadmap isn’t already aligned to these shifts, now is the time to course-correct.
Need help optimizing your 2025 strategy? Let’s talk.
