google wants to pay you for AI answers

In this email we’ll talk about Google quietly testing a program that pays website owners when their content gets used in AI answers, plus the weird ranking rollercoaster some sites went on this month. More below…

Google Is Testing Paying Websites For AI Answers

Google has started quietly testing something called the “AI contribution pilot” – a program that pays publishers when their content contributes significantly to the AI-generated answers in AI Overviews, AI Mode and the Gemini app.

The whole thing runs through Google Search Console. Invited sites accept the terms, add payment details and track their earnings inside Search Console settings, the same place you check your search stats now.

It’s a small invite-only pilot at this stage and early reports suggest the money is modest. The fine print matters too – your content only earns when it shapes the answer while it’s being generated. If the AI just links to you afterwards, or uses your page to double check a fact, that doesn’t count. More detail here at Search Engine Roundtable.

Google’s John Mueller admitted this week that Search Console’s AI reporting is rough. Every link in an AI Overview gets recorded at the position of the whole AI box, and links hidden behind “show more” aren’t counted until someone expands them. So treat the numbers in that new generative AI report as directional, not gospel. More on that here.

What this means for you:

Don’t block Google’s AI crawlers

Some sites started blocking AI bots over the last year and for some that was a fair call. The trade-off has changed though and being excluded from AI answers now also means being excluded from whatever payment program grows out of this pilot. It’s worth checking your robots.txt file to make sure you’re not inadvertently blocking AI crawlers.

Get your Search Console house in order – in an email a few weeks back (click here for it), I shared new Google Search Console features that allow you to add your social media accounts. This is well worth doing.

This paid pilot runs entirely inside Search Console, which tells you where Google wants site owners living. If your Search Console is still owned by an old developer’s account, or you’ve never verified it properly, get it fixed ASAP. If you need a hand sorting out access, hit reply.

Access Google Search Console (GSC) at google.com/webmasters/tools
Ideally you should setup a domain level profile so you’re tracking as much data as possible. Even if you don’t use the data right now, it could be useful in the future.

The September Ranking Rollercoaster

There was an unconfirmed Google update around September 3rd and 4th that hit some sites hard with real traffic drops in both Search and Discover, showing up in the sites’ own analytics, not just third party tools.

Weirdly around September 13th a bunch of those same sites got everything back. The drop completely reversed, no changes made on their end. The charts in this writeup are worth a look.

What this means for you:

1-Check your September data in two halves

– open Search Console and compare September 1 to 12 against September 13 onwards. If you saw a dip early in the month, there’s a decent chance it’s already recovered on its own.

2-Don’t make panic changes off a two week dip

– the sites that recovered did nothing. If you’d rebuilt half your site mid-wobble, you’d never know whether the recovery was you or Google. Diagnose first, change second – if a drop hasn’t recovered after a few weeks, that’s when it’s worth digging in properly.

Other Bits and Pieces

Google Business Profile posts now show view counts – if you gave up on GBP posts because you couldn’t tell whether anyone saw them, you can now. Worth posting again, especially offers and updates. More here.

If you run Local Services Ads, the migration into Performance Max is underway in the US and rolling out in phases. Export your lead history and screenshot your settings before your account moves, some reporting doesn’t survive the trip. Audit checklist here.

Thats it for this email, any questions, just hit reply – if you’re stuck with site speed or need help with SEO, email me back with some background on the problem you’re looking to solve and we can send over some recommendations.