For more than two decades, Google promised that if you built the best content and earned the best ranking, you’d be rewarded with free traffic. However, according to a number of industry experts, that equation is rapidly breaking down.
Across Australia’s marketing and media sector, digital leaders warn that the line between paid and organic results on Google has become increasingly “blurred”, as ads are now designed to look almost identical to organic listings while occupying more of the search results page than ever before.
The shift comes as Google rolls out new AI-driven features, including AI Overviews and its experimental AI Mode, while continuing to expand paid placements across the search page. The combination of these changes are pushing traditional organic results further down the screen.
The experts told us that in many searches today, users must scroll past multiple paid results before reaching the first organic listing, even if that result belongs to the most trusted brand or highest-rated business.
“It effectively creates a pay-to-compete environment,” Shai Luft, co-founder and COO at Bench Media told B&T. “You can invest heavily in SEO and still find yourself sitting below multiple paid ads. At that point, organic visibility alone simply isn’t enough.”
But Google rejects the suggestion that ads are designed to confuse users.
A Google spokesperson told B&T: “We want people to easily tell the difference between paid ads and organic results. That’s why we use clear labels and distinct designs to help users navigate Search. Our goal is always to provide the most helpful information at the top of the page, whether it’s a relevant ad or a natural search result.”
The spokesperson highlighted that advertising plays a key role in keeping Search free for users while helping connect people with relevant businesses and services. The company pointed to its broader economic impact, noting that according to the Australia AI Opportunity report, Google’s suite of business tools – including Search and Google Ads – generated $53 billion in economic activity for Australian businesses in 2024.
The search engine giant also emphasised that ads only appear when they are considered relevant to a user’s search query and are clearly labelled so users can distinguish them from other results.
Organic rankings, the company said, continue to be determined by an algorithm designed to surface the most relevant information for users, while advertisers do not receive ranking advantages or SEO guidance that would influence organic results.
The ‘hidden line’ between paid and organic results
For many marketers, the biggest shift isn’t simply the number of ads appearing on the page—it’s how difficult they are to distinguish from organic results.
Several industry leaders told B&T that Google’s search layout has gradually evolved in ways that make paid listings feel increasingly native to the results page.
“The more ads resemble organic listings, the more likely users are to click them as part of the normal search experience,” said Shai Luft, co-founder and COO at Bench Media. “From a design perspective it may look subtle, but from a revenue perspective it’s extremely powerful.”
Nick Grinberg, head of strategy at Next&Co, said the convergence between paid and organic results appears intentional.
“For years, people trusted the organic search results more,” he told B&T. “So if you want people to click the ads, make the ads look like organic results to increase the click-through rate.”
Grinberg argued the shift reflects a broader change in how search results are being monetised.
“Google seems to have changed from ‘help you find the best result’ to ‘monetise the click’,” he said.
Luft added that for most users, the distinction between paid and organic results is becoming increasingly subtle.
“Most people aren’t scanning the page analysing labels,” he said. “They’re clicking the first result that looks relevant.”
‘Technically disclosed, practically concealed’
At the centre of the debate is the small ‘Sponsored’ label used to identify paid listings.
While it technically satisfies disclosure requirements, many marketers say it does little to clearly differentiate ads from organic results.
Alfie Lagos, founder and director at Lexlab described the labels as “technically disclosed” but “practically concealed”.
“A single word in a small font does not constitute meaningful disclosure when every other design decision is working against it,” he said.
Bel Lloyd, customer success lead at Amperity agreed.
She told B&T that although the label technically meets standards, it’s easy for users to overlook.
“The ‘Sponsored’ label is small, greyed out and positioned in a way that most users skip right past,” she said. “Compare that to how TV or print ads announce themselves and there’s a clear asymmetry.”
Eye-tracking research has consistently shown users focus on the first visible results rather than reading labels closely.
“Users skim, click and move on,” Veronica Cremen, managing director of Vonnimedia, said.
“Recent CTR and eye-tracking data suggests users frequently click the first three results regardless of whether they’re sponsored.”
When ranking number one isn’t actually the top of the page
For brands that have spent years investing in SEO, the changing layout of the search results page is creating new challenges.
The top organic result, once the most valuable position in search, often appears below several ads and AI-generated summaries, particularly on mobile devices.
“With multiple sponsored placements and AI overviews appearing first, organic results are being pushed below the fold,” Cremen said.
That means businesses that rank highly organically may still struggle for visibility.
“If you’ve earned a top organic position but you’re sitting below four paid placements, your SEO investment is effectively being taxed by Google’s auction,” Lagos said.
Gemma Dawkins, national head of digital at PHD, said the shift is especially noticeable on smartphones.
“Brands that rank number one organically may still appear below multiple paid placements,” she said. “For competitive categories this effectively forces brands to invest in paid search to maintain visibility.”
In sectors like finance, insurance and travel, some marketers say participating in paid search has effectively become unavoidable.
“Organic alone won’t get you above the fold in many paid media environments,” Lloyd said.
Is it a strategy designed to drive clicks?
Few marketers believe the evolution of Google’s search layout is accidental.
The company runs extensive testing on interface changes and closely measures how design tweaks affect engagement and click behaviour.
“It would be naïve to think the blend design isn’t intentional,” Luft said. “Google continuously experiments with layout and placement to see what drives engagement.”
Lagos agreed.
“These are not accidental design choices,” he said. “Every change that survives has been validated against revenue metrics.”
According to Geoff Main, founder and marketing director of Passionberry Marketing, the logic behind the shift is relatively simple.
“Search platforms have learned something very simple about human behaviour: people click answers, not ads,” he said. “The closer paid placements look to useful results, the less ad-blindness you get.”
Still, some industry leaders argued Google must maintain a balance between monetisation and user trust.
Fabrizia Roberto, a fractional chief marketing officer, said the platform is navigating competing priorities.
“Google is an advertising business, so monetisation will always be part of the equation,” she said. “But if users consistently had bad experiences after clicking ads, the system would break down.”
The end of the “ten blue links”
Many marketers believe the debate around paid versus organic visibility is only one part of a much larger transformation.
Search itself is evolving away from the traditional page of blue links into a far more complex interface dominated by AI answers, ads, maps listings and Google-owned features.
“What’s really happening is the slow erosion of the old search model,” Luft said.
“The classic page of organic results is being squeezed from all sides by ads, shopping listings, AI answers and other features.”
Grinberg believes search behaviour itself will continue to shift rapidly as AI reshapes how people find information.
“We’re moving from the ‘ten blue links’ era into something much more dynamic,” he said. “Where people look, what they trust and what they click is going to keep changing.”
For brands that built their digital growth around organic search, the implications are profound.
“The golden age of free organic traffic is declining,” Lagos said.
“For businesses that built their strategy around ranking number one on Google, the reality is that number one often isn’t the top of the page anymore.”
