The answer is still yes.
AI has changed how search works, but it has not removed the foundations that make a business discoverable. The bigger question now is where your SEO budget should go and which parts of the strategy need to evolve.
For HOM, that means protecting the search value already built while expanding the work to include AI-assisted search, broader trust signals and new ways of measuring visibility.
AI Has Changed Search, Not the Need for SEO
Search engines still need to find, read and understand your website. That means technical SEO still matters: pages need to be crawlable, indexable, logically structured and clear about what the business offers.
If important service pages cannot be found easily, load poorly, contain confusing information or are disconnected from the rest of the site, AI does not make those problems disappear.
Our team still treats these foundations as essential. AI search may create new opportunities for visibility, but those opportunities are stronger when the underlying website is technically sound and useful to customers.
Your Existing SEO Investment Still Has Value
SEO builds value over time. Service pages can accumulate rankings, backlinks, impressions, traffic and enquiries. Your Google Business Profile, reviews, case studies and established content also contribute to how clearly your business is represented online.
We do not recommend abandoning those assets because another search channel has appeared.
For example, if an important service page is already gaining impressions and enquiries, improving its content, internal links and supporting evidence may create more value than publishing several new “AI-focused” articles from zero.
At HOM, we look at what is already working before deciding where new investment is needed. Existing visibility is an asset to strengthen, not something to replace automatically.
How HOM Is Expanding What SEO Includes
The scope of search optimisation is getting broader, and our approach is broadening with it.
Alongside rankings, organic traffic, enquiries and conversions, our team now looks at how clients appear in AI-generated answers. We test realistic customer questions, review how the business is described, note which competitors appear and look at the pages or external sources being referenced.
We also consider reviews, case studies, brand mentions, local visibility and the consistency of business information across other sources.
Measurement is expanding too. Where possible, we monitor AI referral traffic in GA4 and connect that visibility back to website behaviour, enquiries and conversion quality.
This helps us identify where the real gap sits. Sometimes it is technical. Sometimes a service page lacks detail. Sometimes the business has the expertise, but there is not enough evidence online to support it.
Where Should Your SEO Budget Go Now?
We would not cut SEO simply because AI is here. We would review how the budget is allocated.
Our priorities generally fall into five areas:
- Protect: maintain technical foundations and high-value pages already performing.
- Improve: strengthen pages with existing visibility, outdated information or missed opportunities.
- Expand: create new content where genuine customer questions or service gaps exist.
- Build trust: invest in reviews, case studies, first-hand expertise and credible external signals.
- Measure: track rankings, traffic and conversions alongside AI mentions, referrals and resulting enquiries.
The goal is not to spend more simply because search has become more complex. It is to spend more intelligently. We definitely think SEO is still a core investment. The work now needs to support both traditional search and the growing number of AI-assisted places where customers research, compare and decide who to contact.
