By Legal Futures Associate BSD Legal Marketing [1]
New data available through Google Search Console and Google Analytics is giving law firms greater insight into how their websites are being discovered [2] through AI-powered search.
As AI becomes a more established part of the way people research services online, one of the challenges for law firms has been understanding whether their content is actually appearing within AI-generated results and whether those results are driving people to their websites. The good news is that this picture is now becoming clearer.
Google Search Console provides data showing how websites are appearing within Google’s generative AI search features, while Google Analytics can identify traffic arriving from a number of AI assistants.
For us at BSD Legal Marketing, the new data is particularly interesting because it allows us to look beyond traditional rankings and organic search traffic and begin to understand how AI is becoming part of the wider search journey. [3]
What are we seeing for law firms?
One of our early examples comes from a new law firm website launched in June 2026. During its first three months, the website recorded more than 7,200 impressions within Google’s generative AI search features.
The number itself, of course, needs some context. There are not yet established benchmarks that tell us what constitutes a “good” level of generative AI impressions for a law firm website, and an impression does not mean that somebody has visited the website or made an enquiry.
What we found more interesting was the trend. The website began with no generative AI visibility following its launch, before impressions increased throughout July and August as we developed the website and it became more established.
We are also starting to see AI Assistant appear as an identifiable acquisition channel within Google Analytics across client accounts. This means traffic arriving from recognised AI assistants can increasingly be analysed alongside established channels such as Organic Search, Direct, Referral and Social.
From AI visibility to actual enquiries
For law firms investing in Generative Engine Optimisation (GEO), AI Optimisation (AIO) [4] or wider legal SEO [5], this creates a much more useful way of assessing performance.
There has been a lot of discussion about how law firms can become more visible in AI search, but measurement has been one of the more difficult parts of the conversation.
The new data gives us a better starting point. We can see whether visibility within generative search is increasing, which pages are appearing and whether AI assistants are starting to send visitors to the website.
However, BSD Legal Marketing believes firms should be cautious about treating AI impressions or mentions as a success metric in isolation.
Seeing more than 7,200 generative AI impressions for a website that only launched in June is encouraging, particularly because we can see visibility increasing over time. However, as we all know, impressions aren’t enquiries.
The more important question is what happens afterwards. Are the right people finding the firm? Are they visiting the website? Are they making an enquiry? And, ultimately, is that activity contributing to new instructions?
Those are the same questions we have always asked about SEO, and they need to remain at the centre of the conversation around GEO and AI search.
AI isn’t replacing SEO
The emerging data also highlights why BSD Legal Marketing does not view GEO or AIO as a replacement for traditional SEO.
Potential clients may now move between several different platforms while researching a legal issue. Someone might ask ChatGPT an initial question, use Google to look for a solicitor and then visit several law firm websites before deciding who to contact.
The fundamentals therefore remain important, i.e, a technically sound website, clear service pages, useful legal content, demonstrable expertise and a straightforward route from finding the firm to making an enquiry.
The thing that is changing is the number of places in which that content can potentially be discovered.
As AI search develops, the ability to measure that part of the journey should give law firms a better understanding of where their online visibility is coming from, and whether it is ultimately contributing to new business.
BSD Legal Marketing [6] is a specialist digital marketing agency working exclusively with law firms and businesses operating within the legal sector. Its services include SEO, PPC, content marketing, website development and AI search optimisation.