218 – Losing 30% of Your Traffic? How AI Search Is Reshaping E‑Commerce
April 07, 2026
What if your products are great, your website looks professional, and your SEO has been solid for years — yet customers are quietly disappearing? In this episode of The Business Behind Your Business, host Paul Sweeney sits down with e‑commerce growth expert Matthew Stafford to unpack one of the biggest shifts business owners are facing right now: how AI tools like ChatGPT, Copilot, Gemini, and Grok are completely changing how customers discover and decide what to buy.
Traditional SEO alone is no longer enough. Customers are increasingly asking AI for answers — and those AI tools are making trusted recommendations without sending people to Google results pages. If your business isn’t visible or “understandable” to these AI engines, you risk losing a significant share of warm, high‑intent traffic. This episode explains what’s changed, why it matters urgently, and what practical steps you can take right now to make sure your products are still being found.
What you’ll learn:
- Why over half of Google searches now result in no clicks — and what that means for your revenue
- What AI Engine Optimisation (AEO) is, explained in plain English
- How AI tools are influencing buying decisions and acting as a “trusted advisor” for customers
- Why traffic from AI recommendations converts up to five times higher than traditional search clicks
- How to restructure your website content so AI can understand, trust, and recommend your products
- Why FAQs, buyer‑intent answers, and clarity now matter more than keywords and quantity
- How reviews, testimonials, and even lower‑star feedback can increase trust and conversions
- The one simple action e‑commerce owners should prioritise first to stay competitive
In a world where customers may never even visit your website before making a purchase decision, this conversation is a wake‑up call — and a roadmap. Matthew shares practical, achievable advice that business owners can start implementing immediately, without waiting for the “next update” or perfect clarity.
If you want to protect your visibility, future‑proof your growth, and ensure your business is recommended when customers ask AI for the best option, this episode is essential listening.
Matthew Stafford Over the past three decades, Matthew Stafford has been entrepreneurial and successfully building several businesses across various industries, including Concrete, Brick and Mortar Locations, POD, and Software-based ventures. Matthew Stafford, the Managing Partner of Build Grow Scale and an equity owner of some in-house Ecommerce brands, has knowledge and expertise, enabling him to mentor thousands of store owners through paid Ecommerce groups and live events. His experience has also allowed him to help hundreds of ecommerce brands scale past the million-dollar mark – with many hitting the $10 million mark. To top it off, he’s been speaking on stages about ecommerce optimization for the past seven years! In fact, before COVID-19, BGS hosted the largest yearly Ecommerce-focused event in North America – BGS LIVE.
