It is very likely that the gross volume of visits to websites will decrease starting in 2026. However, this should not be seen as a problem. On the contrary, it is a sign of maturity and efficiency in the digital ecosystem. The nature of visits to a website is changing profoundly. We are no longer in the era of discovery browsing; we have entered the era of validation visits.
For years, we measured digital success in clicks, sessions, and pages viewed. Today, this paradigm is being replaced by something more relevant: authority referencing. Success is no longer about attracting curious visits but about being recognized as the right source even before the visit occurs.
We are transitioning from a “search and browse” model to a “recommendation and conversion” model. The decision begins outside the website. Therefore, the brand needs to exist as a clear and trustworthy entity in the ecosystems where this decision is formed, whether through AI assistants, direct response engines, or specialized contexts. When the visit happens, it is no longer exploratory; it is intentional.
In this new funnel, Artificial Intelligence plays an active role: it interprets context, answers questions, and selects the brands it considers most relevant. The user enters the website with much of the decision already structured. The site no longer has to convince from scratch; it now confirms, deepens, and closes.
Although traffic volume may decrease, its quality tends to increase. The traffic that disappears is from the top of the funnel—users who were only looking for a quick definition or generic information. The traffic that remains, and that truly matters to the business, is high-intent traffic: people ready to hire, buy, or proceed.
In this scenario, the website assumes a dual and strategic role:
Therefore, in 2026, the most relevant KPI will no longer just be the number of sessions on the website but the frequency with which your brand is recommended by Artificial Intelligence. When a brand is referenced as a solution, the click it receives is no longer a passing click; it is likely a conversion click.
In a world where AI assistants respond directly to questions, it is natural for users to feel less need to browse multiple sites. The journey has become more direct: question, contextualized answer, brand recommendation, and finally, a visit to the website to formalize the decision.
The website has ceased to be the engine of discovery and has become the seal of guarantee. If it is not correctly interpreted by these systems, the brand simply does not enter the decision-making process.