If you follow marketers or SEO experts on LinkedIn, you've probably heard "SEO is dead" more times than you can count. At the Summit, Rand Fishkin talked a lot about the alligator graph, something SEO experts have been talking about for quite some time.
The alligator graph is real, and some industries are feeling its bite right now. But after looking at a lot of homebuilder data, I don't think our industry is one of them. At least not yet.
What Is the Alligator Graph?
Picture two lines on a chart: one for impressions (how often your website shows up in search results) and one for clicks (how often people actually visit). For years, those two lines ran pretty much neck and neck.
That's changing. Impressions are climbing while clicks are dropping, and the gap between the two lines looks like an alligator opening its mouth. The result is a much lower click-through rate. More people see you; fewer people visit.
Why? People are getting their early research questions answered without ever leaving the page they're on. Google's AI Overviews and AI Mode serve up answers right in the search results. Social media platforms don't want people leaving their apps either. All of that is training folks to get their answers from third-party platforms instead of individual websites.
That said, fewer clicks don't mean fewer serious shoppers. Toward the end of their buying journey, people still need to click through to a website to take the next step.
Who's Feeling the Bite?
Rand's graph didn't look at the homebuilding industry. It looked at industries where this shift has been building for a while:
- Publishers and informational websites. They've been dealing with this for years. Most of their content answers general questions, and Google can now answer those same questions right in the search results. Getting people to click through to their sites has gotten really difficult.
- Software companies. Many rely on education-based content to attract buyers, and that content is getting absorbed into search results the same way.
- Retail. Google is encouraging people to buy directly on its platform, so more purchases happen without a visit to the retailer's own website.
The common thread? When the answer (or the purchase) can happen on the platform, people don't need to go anywhere else.
Why Homebuilding Is Different
I have not seen an alligator graph in a single home builder's Google Search Console, at least not as severe as the example Rand shared. People still want to come to builder websites, and they still need to.
One thing that's very unique about our industry is the size of the purchase. A home is one of the biggest decisions someone will ever make, and buyers are terrified of missing the perfect home or making the wrong choice.
Yes, home shoppers will use AI throughout their search. They'll ask it about neighborhoods, schools and what they can afford. But they are not going to hand the whole decision over to an AI summary. That fear of getting it wrong is what keeps people coming back to builder websites to see the floor plans, compare communities and check what's available with their own eyes.
Or Are We Just Not Showing Up?
Now, there could be another reason we aren't seeing the alligator graph. As an industry, we may be doing a poor job of giving Google and AI tools consistent information about our brands.
I've run AI visibility audits for a handful of builders, and the same problem keeps coming up: inconsistent information.
- Listing sites. Builders show their homes on their own website and on a number of listing sites. Often, the price, status, or other information gets updated on the builder site but not on the listing sites. To Google or an AI tool, that looks like your information isn't reliable. If it isn't confident it's giving an accurate answer, it might skip mentions of your brand altogether.
- Google Business Profiles. I often see a builder website target a bigger, better-known city to catch more attention, while the Google Business Profile lists the smaller city where the community is actually being built. Again, mixed signals. Google isn't going to serve you up as an answer if it isn't sure where you are.
Then there's the content itself. Are we creating content that answers those early research questions? Here's the thing: that content doesn't turn into sales quickly, so it's harder to prove results. That makes it more difficult to get buy-in to budget for it. It's a long game; you're investing in future opportunity.
I'm not suggesting you run ads on those early, casual searches. That said, creating helpful content around them can grow your reach well before a buyer is ready to shop.
What to Watch For
There is one scenario where a builder might see the gap start to open: educational content. If you publish more high-level articles like "What is there to do in the area?" or "The best places to live in [your market]," you may see impressions climb. That's the same kind of content AI loves to summarize, so don't be surprised if those pages earn more views in search than visits. You might see a site-wide drop in click-through rate (the share of people who click after seeing you), but traffic to your community, floor plan, and quick move-in home pages should remain stable.
That's okay. Those pages build awareness early in the buyer's journey.
What matters most is your community, floor plan, and quick move-in home pages. These pages are where serious buyers go to make decisions. I suggest keeping an eye on those pages separately so a rise in impressions from educational content doesn't hide how your most important pages are performing.
More Impressions Are a Good Thing
Getting more impressions is not a bad thing. It's a good thing! That means more people are seeing you, and your brand is being referenced more and more.
Yes, it's harder to measure when someone sees your name and doesn't click. But we want buyers to see and hear from us throughout their entire journey. If we show up earlier, even without a visit to the site, it pays off in the long run. Those buyers will be more likely to come to your website when they're ready to take the next step, whether that's filling out a form, booking an appointment or buying a home with you.
Being a trusted resource is always a good thing, even when it doesn't lead to a click right away.
The Bottom Line
The alligator graph is real, and it's reshaping how publishers, software companies and retailers think about search. But homebuilding plays by different rules. When someone is making the biggest purchase of their life, a quick AI answer isn't enough.
So don't panic when you hear "SEO is dead." Keep your community and home pages strong, make sure your pricing and locations match everywhere you're listed, use educational content to get in front of buyers early and watch your numbers with the full buyer journey in mind. Your website is still where the decision happens.
