ChatGPT, LLM Referrals Underperform Google Search: Study

DigiTrendz reports on research by Maximilian Kaiser and Christian Schulze analyzing 973 ecommerce websites over 12 months, revealing that ChatGPT referrals accounted for only 0.2% of total sessions with significantly lower conversion rates than Google organic search. The study found that shoppers arriving via AI assistants often exhibit ’trust and verification behavior,’ and while AI-driven referral traffic is growing steadily, it continues to trail traditional search channels in both scale and demonstrated purchase intent. Projections suggest ChatGPT is unlikely to match organic search performance in the next year.