Brands, marketers turn to new top-level domains to build recognition in the era of AI

"The era of traditional search is changing. AI-powered answers are putting space between brands and the consumers conducting searches, and marketers are seeing a drop in the traffic being driven by search results. That shift is already measurable. Recent research from Acquia found that 62% of marketers have seen a decline in clicks and web traffic from search, signaling that discovery is no longer as predictable as it once was."

"At the same time, overall referral traffic from search is slipping at a structural level. Data from Similarweb shows that general search referrals to 1,000 web domains dropped from 12 billion global visits in June 2024 to 11.2 billion in June 2025, a 6.7% decline year over year. AI is reshaping how consumers discover brands online. As a result, businesses are rethinking every element of their digital strategy, including domain names."

AI-powered answers are creating distance between brands and consumers, reducing search-driven clicks and web traffic for many marketers. Research from Acquia found 62% of marketers reported declines in clicks and web traffic from search. Similarweb data shows general search referrals to 1,000 web domains dropped from 12 billion visits in June 2024 to 11.2 billion in June 2025, a 6.7% year-over-year decline. Businesses are rethinking digital strategies in response, including domain-name choices. New top-level domains such as .studio, .ai and .pro are increasingly used to match brand focus and establish credibility in AI-driven discovery.

Read at Digiday