Every year, the web changes its face. In 2024, web trends have affected both the way information is searched and how a site is designed. Three underlying movements stand out: the rise of AI-generated answers in search engines, the increasing demand for digital eco-design, and the tightening of accessibility rules. These topics are significantly altering the daily lives of businesses, developers, and users.
Zero-click search and generative AI: web traffic redistributed
Have you ever typed a question into Google and received the answer without clicking on any link? This phenomenon has a name: zero-click search. In short, the engine directly displays a summary, an excerpt, or an AI-generated answer at the top of the results page.
According to a study by Bain & Company published in December 2024, about 60% of searches end without a click to an external site. The same survey specifies that 80% of consumers rely on these zero-click results at least 40% of the time. As a result, organic traffic to websites is declining by 15 to 25%.
Google has deployed its “AI Overviews,” blocks of answers written by artificial intelligence, on an increasing number of queries. According to an analysis by Ahrefs covering 300,000 keywords, the presence of an AI Overview reduces the click-through rate on the first organic result by about 34.5%. For sites that depend on natural referencing, this forces a rethink of content strategy. Regularly following web news, for example on informations-web.com, allows for measuring the extent of these changes over the months.
This shift has a concrete effect on digital marketing. Producing a well-positioned article no longer guarantees a stable volume of visits. Sites must work on their presence in rich snippets, structure their data, and provide content that AI cannot summarize in two sentences.
Web eco-design: the new W3C rules
Designing a lightweight and sober site is no longer just an ethical choice. The W3C (World Wide Web Consortium) has published its Web Sustainability Guidelines, a technical reference that sets measurable criteria to reduce the carbon footprint of a website.
The document covers several areas:
- Compression and optimization of images to limit page weight and data transfer
- Reduction of the number of server requests, particularly by removing unnecessary third-party scripts
- Choosing hosting powered by renewable energy sources, with tracking indicators
- The lifespan of the code: favoring standard technologies over heavy frameworks whose obsolescence requires frequent redesigns
These recommendations are not yet legally binding in France. Their influence is felt in web design and development: agencies responding to public tenders are beginning to integrate these criteria into their proposals.
A lighter site loads faster and offers a better user experience. Eco-design thus aligns with SEO performance goals. Google favors fast pages in its rankings, which aligns ecological sobriety with online visibility.
What this changes for a web project in 2024
A developer launching a showcase site or e-commerce must consider weight from the mockup phase. Every image carousel, every autoplay video, every custom font increases the environmental cost and loading time.
Audit tools are multiplying. Some calculate the grams of CO2 emitted per visit. Others measure the number of HTTP requests. Integrating these audits from the design phase avoids costly redesigns a few months after going live.
Digital accessibility and WCAG compliance in 2024
Web accessibility has shifted from a niche topic to a concrete obligation for many businesses. The WCAG (Web Content Accessibility Guidelines), maintained by the W3C, define the technical standards that allow people with disabilities to use a website.
In 2024, regulatory pressure is intensifying. The European Accessibility Act, which is gradually coming into effect, requires online commerce sites and digital services to meet a minimum level of accessibility. Companies that do not comply expose themselves to sanctions and lose a significant share of potential users.
Specifically, making a site accessible involves working on several points:
- The color contrast between text and background, verifiable with automated tools
- Keyboard navigation, for those who cannot use a mouse
- Text alternatives for each image, so that screen readers can convey the information
- The semantic structure of HTML (hierarchical headings, labeled forms), which facilitates understanding by assistive technologies
These adjustments also benefit SEO. A structured and machine-readable site achieves better results in search engines. Accessibility and SEO share the same technical foundation.
Semantic search and structured content: adapting your digital strategy
Search engines no longer read pages word by word. They analyze the overall meaning of content, the relationships between concepts, and relevance to user intent. This is called semantic search.
For a website, this means that content quality takes precedence over the mechanical repetition of keywords. An article that precisely answers a question, with reliable data and a clear structure, will be better positioned than a text stuffed with generic terms.
Structured data (schema.org) play an increasingly important role. They allow engines to understand whether a page is about a product, an event, a recipe, or a customer review. An e-commerce site that correctly tags its product sheets is more likely to appear in rich results.
SEO in 2024 relies on understanding search intent, not on technical tricks. Companies that invest in useful, well-structured, and accessible content reap sustainable results, even in the face of the rise of generative answers. The challenge is no longer just to attract traffic but to become the source that AI cites when generating its answers.
