{ "meta": { "type": "knowledge_hub", "language": "en-GB", "last_updated": "2026-10-01", "ai_endpoint": "/knowledge-hub/the-future-web-where-are-websites-heading/ai.json", "source_page": "/knowledge-hub/the-future-web-where-are-websites-heading/" }, "retrieval_summary": { "what": "The web has evolved through search engines, smartphones, social platforms, apps, and now AI, changing how people find and interact with organisations online.", "who": { "organisation": "Feel Created" }, "relevant_for": [ "Digital and web managers", "Website owners", "Marketing and communications teams", "Organisations planning future website or digital platform development" ], "problems_solved": [ "Reduced direct website visits due to AI and search engines providing answers directly", "Less predictable journey from question to website", "Discovery distributed across multiple systems", "Need to maintain website relevance when users arrive later in the journey", "Answer-led search may lose context and downplay uncertainty", "AI agents may not always be transparent about how they reach answers", "Users may not know if an agent missed important information", "Conversational interfaces may not suit all tasks or user preferences" ] }, "page": { "title": "The future web: where are websites heading?", "slug": "the-future-web-where-are-websites-heading", "url": "/knowledge-hub/the-future-web-where-are-websites-heading/", "canonical_url": "https://www.feelcreated.com/knowledge-hub/the-future-web-where-are-websites-heading/", "status": "published" }, "article": { "type": "Knowledge Hub guide", "primary_topic": "The future of websites and digital platforms, focusing on sustainability, user needs, and the responsible use of technology", "intent": "The web has evolved through search engines, smartphones, social platforms, apps, and now AI, changing how people find and interact with organisations online.", "audience": [ "Digital and web managers", "Website owners", "Marketing and communications teams", "Organisations planning future website or digital platform development" ] }, "topics": [ "The future of websites and digital platforms, focusing on sustainability, user needs, and the responsible use of technology", "AI-generated answers", "Search behaviour", "Website purpose", "Digital platforms", "Answer-led search", "AI agents", "Conversational interfaces", "User control and approval", "Trust and transparency", "Task complexity and interface choice", "Personalisation", "Sustainable web" ], "content_focus": [ "Impact of AI on website visits", "Changing user search behaviour", "Role of websites in the digital journey", "Future of information discovery", "Changing user expectations", "AI influence on websites", "Search behaviour evolution", "Conversational user interfaces", "AI agent governance", "Balancing automation with human control" ], "canonical_claims": [ { "claim": "Personalisation can save time but may also hide useful choices and create different experiences without people realising.", "evidence_type": "page_content", "evidence_strength": "medium", "source_section": "could-every-visitor-receive-a-different-website", "id": "claim-001" }, { "claim": "Large media files, unused scripts and excessive tracking can make pages heavier without improving the experience.", "evidence_type": "page_content", "evidence_strength": "medium", "source_section": "will-the-web-need-to-become-lighter", "id": "claim-002" }, { "claim": "A lighter website is also quicker, easier to use, and less demanding of older devices and slower connections.", "evidence_type": "page_content", "evidence_strength": "medium", "source_section": "will-the-web-need-to-become-lighter", "id": "claim-003" }, { "claim": "Search is spreading into social platforms, marketplaces, maps, applications, and specialist tools.", "evidence_type": "page_content", "evidence_strength": "medium", "source_section": "how-will-people-find-information", "id": "claim-004" }, { "claim": "Websites remain one of the few digital spaces an organisation can present and manage for itself.", "evidence_type": "page_content", "evidence_strength": "medium", "source_section": "will-people-still-visit-websites", "id": "claim-005" }, { "claim": "AI agents can carry out several steps towards a goal, such as searching, comparing, and booking.", "evidence_type": "page_content", "evidence_strength": "medium", "source_section": "will-ai-agents-use-websites-for-us", "id": "claim-006" }, { "claim": "Conversational interfaces are useful when users do not know the terminology or starting point.", "evidence_type": "page_content", "evidence_strength": "medium", "source_section": "will-websites-become-conversational", "id": "claim-007" }, { "claim": "Conversational interfaces should provide another route rather than become the only route.", "evidence_type": "page_content", "evidence_strength": "medium", "source_section": "will-websites-become-conversational", "id": "claim-008" } ], "common_questions": [ { "question": "Should conversational interfaces replace traditional navigation?", "answer": "No, they should provide another route. People should still be able to browse, search, and move directly to known services." }, { "question": "What should not change as websites become more automated?", "answer": "Accessibility, privacy, accuracy and human responsibility become even more important. People still need information they can understand, choices they can control and services they can trust." }, { "question": "How can sustainability be improved for digital platforms?", "answer": "By maintaining and improving existing platforms, removing features that no longer serve a purpose, and keeping the system easy to update, rather than replacing the website." }, { "question": "How will people find information in the future?", "answer": "Search is becoming a mix of results, summaries, recommendations, and conversations, with AI assistants interpreting natural language questions and discovery distributed across many systems." }, { "question": "Are AI-generated features always wasteful?", "answer": "No, the additional processing may be justified when a feature provides a clear and useful benefit, such as an AI tool saving someone from searching through a large amount of unsuitable information." }, { "question": "What are the risks of personalisation?", "answer": "It can hide useful choices, make incorrect assumptions, and create different experiences without people realising, affecting fairness and privacy." }, { "question": "Will websites become conversational?", "answer": "Conversational interfaces offer an alternative to menus and links, allowing users to explain needs in their own words. They are useful when services are complicated or users lack terminology, but they will complement rather than replace navigation, browsing, and search." }, { "question": "Will AI agents use websites for us?", "answer": "Some AI tools can already compare options, navigate websites, and complete parts of a task. As they become more reliable, people may ask them to check availability, collect details, or carry out routine actions, introducing a new type of website user: technology acting on behalf of a person." } ], "services": [ { "name": "Search performance and technical SEO", "relationship": "search_visibility", "url": "/services/search-performance-technical-seo/" }, { "name": "Website architecture & integrations", "relationship": "technical", "url": "/services/website-architecture-integrations/" }, { "name": "Ongoing development and improvement", "relationship": "supporting", "url": "/services/ongoing-development-improvement/" }, { "name": "Accessibility audits & reviews", "relationship": "supporting", "url": "/services/accessibility-audits-reviews/" }, { "name": "UX design & user experience", "relationship": "supporting", "url": "/services/ux-design-user-experience/" }, { "name": "AI features & integrations", "relationship": "primary", "url": "/services/ai-features-integrations/" } ], "sections": [ { "id": "overview", "heading": "Overview", "type": "introduction", "key_points": [ "Search engines changed how people found information.", "Smartphones changed when and where they accessed it.", "Artificial intelligence (AI) is introducing another change." ], "content": [ { "type": "paragraph", "text": "The web has never stopped changing. Search engines changed how people found information. Smartphones changed when and where they accessed it. Social platforms, apps and digital services all created new ways to interact with organisations online. Artificial intelligence (AI) is introducing another change. People can now ask complete questions, receive answers drawn from several sources and use tools that can carry out parts of a task on their behalf. That does not mean websites are disappearing, just that the relationship between people and websites may be changing. This Topic Hub explores some of the most important questions about where the web may be heading, with links to Insights that examine each area in more detail." } ] }, { "id": "will-people-still-visit-websites", "heading": "Will people still visit websites?", "type": "section", "content": [ { "type": "paragraph", "text": "Websites are very unlikely to disappear, certainly not in the near future, but people may start to visit them for different reasons. For many people, the first encounter with an organisation already comes through a search result. Social platforms provided another route, and AI-generated answers have added one more. Those answers can provide enough information to remove the need for an immediate website visit. A website becomes more important when they need to check details, compare the options, complete a task or decide whether they trust the organisation and its claims. This means the question is not simply whether people will continue to visit websites. It is what they will still need to visit them for. For years, finding an organisation and then visiting its website has been a standard approach. With AI, that journey is already becoming less predictable. A search engine might show the opening hours, prices or other information directly within its results. An AI assistant, such as ChatGPT, will often combine several sources into one response. Social platforms, directories and specialist applications can also provide information without the need to visit a website. That can make the website appear less important, when its role may instead be moving later in the journey. A person may see a summary and then visit the website when they need to make a decision. They may want to confirm that the information is current, compare what is available or find evidence that the organisation is credible. They may also need to complete an application, make a payment, book an appointment or contact someone directly. Websites remain one of the few digital spaces an organisation can present and manage for itself. Search engines, AI services and social platforms decide how information appears on their interfaces. The website gives the organisation more control over the complete explanation, the available choices and what happens next. Fewer visits do not necessarily make the website less valuable. People may arrive later, when they need to verify the details, make a decision or complete the task." } ] }, { "id": "your-website-is-more-than-a-marketing-tool", "heading": "Your Website Is More Than a Marketing Tool", "type": "section", "parent_id": "the-future-web-will-still-need-to-work-for-people", "parent_heading": "The future web will still need to work for people", "content": [ { "type": "paragraph", "text": "Modern websites support far more than marketing. They help organisations deliver services, connect systems and... 12 minutes read Read the guide" } ] }, { "id": "how-will-people-find-information", "heading": "How will people find information?", "type": "section", "content": [ { "type": "paragraph", "text": "People no longer need to rely on finding the right search terms or working through a list of results to get to what they need. Search engines and AI assistants are increasingly able to interpret questions expressed in ordinary language to find information and present answers. This gives people more ways to find information, but it also makes the path from asking a question to reaching a website less direct. Search may increasingly become a mixture of results, summaries, recommendations and conversations. Traditional search usually begins with a few words we think are likely to produce useful results. We then compare the returned links and visit the pages that appear most relevant. That behaviour will continue, particularly where someone wants to explore something or find a particular website. It is no longer the only way to search. AI means people can now ask complete questions in ordinary language. They can add more detail, explain their circumstances and ask follow-up questions without needing to begin again. The system will interpret the conversation and adjust its response as the person’s needs become more specific. Search is also spreading into more places. People already search within social platforms, online marketplaces, maps, applications and individual websites. Specialist tools can search academic papers, products, jobs, travel services or professional databases. AI assistants can bring information from several sources into a single response. This means discovery may be distributed across many different systems rather than dominated by a single familiar search results page. The change is not only technical. It also affects what people expect from search. A list of potentially useful pages places much of the work on the person doing the search. They need to choose which results to open, decide which sources look most trustworthy and piece the information together for themselves. Answer-led search does more of that work before someone sees the result. This can save time, but some of the context may be lost. A short answer might downplay uncertainty, miss an important exception or make different sources seem more closely aligned than they really are. This can mean that people use different ways of finding information depending on their task. A simple factual question might be answered immediately. When the decision matters more, many people will still visit several websites, read independent reviews and contact the organisation before deciding what to do. The future of search is unlikely to be one interface replacing another. People will use whichever option seems most useful at the time." } ] }, { "id": "creative-freedom-without-brand-chaos-designing-a-better-cms", "heading": "Creative Freedom Without Brand Chaos: Designing a Better CMS", "type": "section", "parent_id": "the-future-web-will-still-need-to-work-for-people", "parent_heading": "The future web will still need to work for people", "content": [ { "type": "paragraph", "text": "A good CMS gives editors useful choices without making them manage every design decision. Explore... 9 minutes read Read the guide" } ] }, { "id": "will-ai-agents-use-websites-for-us", "heading": "Will AI agents use websites for us?", "type": "section", "content": [ { "type": "paragraph", "text": "Some AI tools can already compare options, navigate websites and complete parts of a task. As these systems become more widely available and reliable, people may increasingly ask them to check availability, collect details or carry out routine actions on their behalf. This could change the relationship between people and websites. Instead of visiting every page and making every choice directly, someone may ask an agent to do the early work and return when a decision, approval or personal judgement is needed. That would introduce a new type of website user: technology acting on behalf of a person. Both the person and the organisation would need to know which actions the agent had taken. Most current AI assistants still depend heavily on the person directing the task. They can research a subject, summarise information and suggest possible options, but the person often needs to follow the links, check the details and complete the action themselves. Some tools are already beginning to act as agents, carrying out several steps towards a goal rather than only answering a question. Someone looking for a training course might explain the subject, location, budget and available dates. The agent could search across several providers, compare the options and return a shortlist. A more capable system might also check availability, prepare an application or complete an initial booking before asking the person to approve it. This type of interaction could save people a lot of repetitive work, but they may not always know how the agent reached its answer or whether it missed something important. How much control the agent has should depend on what it is being asked to do. A straightforward restaurant booking may only need a final check. Choosing a financial product, changing account details, making a payment or submitting an application should require clear approval from the person. Organisations will need to decide what an AI agent should be allowed to do on their website. People should also be able to see what the agent has done, while the organisation remains responsible for keeping the service secure and reliable. AI agents could make many routine online tasks quicker. The difficult part will be deciding which steps an agent can handle alone and when the person needs to take over." } ] }, { "id": "will-websites-become-conversational", "heading": "Will websites become conversational?", "type": "section", "content": [ { "type": "paragraph", "text": "Most websites expect people to find their way through menus, links and categories. A conversational interface offers another way. Someone can explain what they need in their own words, and the website can ask follow-up questions, narrow the options or point them towards the most relevant information. This could be useful where services are complicated or people do not know the terminology used by the organisation. Conversation will not suit every task, though. The likely future is a mixture of navigation, browsing, search and conversational support. Navigation works well when people recognise the available choices. Someone looking for contact details, opening hours or a familiar service may prefer to follow a clear link rather than describe the task to a chatbot. Browsing also allows people to see what else is available and change direction without first knowing exactly what to ask. Conversation becomes more useful when the starting point is uncertain. A person may know the problem they are facing without knowing the name of the relevant service. They may be unsure whether they qualify, which option applies or what information they need before beginning. A conversational interface can ask a small number of questions and point the person towards the most relevant starting place. A university website could ask what someone wants to study, their existing qualifications and whether they are looking for undergraduate or postgraduate courses. A support organisation could help someone describe their circumstances before directing them to the most relevant information. Used well, this may reduce the need to understand internal terminology or search through several categories. Conversation also introduces its own problems. An incorrect answer can send someone towards the wrong service. A chat interface may present one suggested route without showing the other choices that would have been visible through navigation. Long conversations can be difficult to review, especially when someone needs to refer back to earlier information. Some people will also prefer not to use conversation at all. They may find it slower than browsing, difficult to predict or uncomfortable when discussing personal circumstances. A conversational interface should therefore provide another route rather than become the only route. People should still be able to browse the available information, use ordinary search and move directly to a known service. The strongest use of conversation may be where it helps someone find a sensible starting point. Once the direction is known, familiar pages, forms and controls may remain the better way to complete the task." } ] }, { "id": "could-every-visitor-receive-a-different-website", "heading": "Could every visitor receive a different website?", "type": "section", "content": [ { "type": "paragraph", "text": "Websites already adapt parts of the experience around a person’s location, preferences, previous activity or account information. Future websites may take this further by changing which content, services or recommendations each visitor sees. This could reduce repeated effort and help people find relevant information more quickly. It could also hide useful choices, make incorrect assumptions or create different experiences without people realising. The issue is not only how much a website can adapt, but whether people can understand and control those changes. Personalisation already appears across much of the web. Retail websites recommend products based on earlier behaviour. Streaming services arrange content around viewing history. News platforms and social feeds decide which subjects are likely to hold someone’s attention. The same approach could become more common across service, charity, education and public-sector websites. Some forms of dynamic content are relatively straightforward. A visitor might choose their location, role or preferred language. The website could remember an accessibility preference, save progress through a task or allow someone to build a personal collection of useful resources. These choices are visible. The person knows what information they have provided and can usually see why the website responded as it did. More complex personalisation may rely on signals the person did not knowingly provide. A website might infer interests, circumstances or likely intentions from previous visits, device information or data received from another service. Personalisation can save time, but it does not always get things right. Someone helping a family member or colleague with research may start receiving recommendations that are not relevant to them. Returning visitors may keep seeing familiar content while other useful information stays out of view. Some people are also uncomfortable when a website appears to know more about them than they expected. Personalisation can affect fairness as well as privacy. Two people may see different prices, opportunities, recommendations or explanations without realising the experience has changed. An automated system may reinforce an earlier choice rather than allowing someone to explore something new. Useful personalisation should reduce repeated effort without unnecessarily limiting someone’s choices. A website might remember where someone left a long application, but it should not make important decisions for them. It might recommend relevant guidance, but people should still be able to look through all the available information. The future web may become more responsive to individual needs. That will only work when people can see why the experience has changed and control how far it adapts." } ] }, { "id": "will-the-web-need-to-become-lighter", "heading": "Will the web need to become lighter?", "type": "section", "content": [ { "type": "paragraph", "text": "The web depends on infrastructure, networks, devices and energy. As digital services become more complex and more widely used, organisations will need to consider the resources they consume. A more sustainable future web should not involve adding technology simply because it’s available. It should consider whether the value created justifies the processing, data transfer and equipment required. In many cases, a lighter website is also quicker, easier to use and less demanding of older devices and slower connections. Digital services can feel separate from the physical resources behind them. A webpage may appear to arrive almost instantly on a screen, but its delivery involves data centres, network infrastructure, electricity and the device being used. Images, video, scripts and interactive features all require data to be transferred and processed. One page makes a very small contribution, but those demands add up across the scale of the web. AI-generated features, personalisation systems, behavioural tracking and complex interfaces can all add processing and data requirements. That does not mean these features are always wasteful. The additional processing may be justified when a feature provides a clear and useful benefit. A high-quality image can help someone understand a product or see the detail in a piece of work. A video may explain a complicated process more effectively than several pages of text. An AI tool could save someone from searching through a large amount of unsuitable information. The same technologies become harder to justify when they are added without a good reason. Large media files, unused scripts and excessive tracking can make pages heavier without improving the experience. Features added for a short campaign may continue loading years after the campaign has ended. Older websites can collect layers of technology that nobody has reviewed for some time. Sustainability is also about how long a digital platform can remain useful. Replacing a website because it has become difficult to change creates avoidable waste. Maintaining and improving an existing platform, removing features that no longer serve a purpose and keeping the system easy to update can often be the better approach. Helping people reach an answer more directly matters too. A well-organised page could save on visits to several other pages, repeated searches or downloads of a document simply to find one detail. The future web does not need to become visually plain or unambitious. It needs to focus more carefully on which technologies genuinely help and which simply increase demand for processing, infrastructure and ongoing maintenance." } ] }, { "id": "what-should-not-change", "heading": "What should not change?", "type": "section", "key_points": [ "A new interface is not automatically better.", "It is only useful if it genuinely helps people." ], "content": [ { "type": "paragraph", "text": "Technology may change how websites are found and used, but people will still need information they can understand, choices they can control and services they can trust. Accessibility, privacy, accuracy and human responsibility become even more important as websites rely more heavily on automation. A new interface is not automatically better. It is only useful if it genuinely helps people. New technology often looks very impressive in a demonstration. A conversational interface gives an immediate answer. An agent completes a task in seconds. A personalised service appears to know what someone needs before they ask. Those systems need to work for people with different needs, devices and levels of knowledge. Someone may use a screen reader, have a slow connection or know very little about the subject. They may misunderstand a question, provide incomplete information or need to change an earlier choice. They may also want to know why the website gave them a particular answer. A more advanced interface does not remove those needs. Any new way of using a website should remain accessible. A conversational service that does not work with a keyboard or screen reader will exclude some people. A personalised interface that hides useful choices may make the task harder rather than easier. More advanced technology must not make information harder to verify. A misleading search result can usually be checked against other pages. An assistant may present the same mistake with far more confidence. An agent could then go further and act on the misunderstanding before the person notices. Organisations are still responsible for the services they provide. They need to protect personal information, understand how automated decisions are reached and give people a clear way to challenge or correct them. Sometimes a familiar page, a well-labelled link or a short form will still be the better answer. The most useful parts of the future web will help people find information and complete tasks without hiding how decisions were reached or what other routes are available." } ] }, { "id": "the-future-web-will-still-need-to-work-for-people", "heading": "The future web will still need to work for people", "type": "section", "content": [ { "type": "paragraph", "text": "Websites may become more conversational, more personalised and more closely connected to AI tools that help people find information or complete tasks. Some interactions may begin away from the website, while others may be handled partly by technology acting on someone’s behalf. The details will keep changing and not every prediction will be correct. What matters is that new technology helps people see what is available, judge what is right for them and decide what happens next. The future web may work differently, but it will still need to work for people." } ] }, { "id": "what-does-an-intelligent-website-actually-look-like", "heading": "What does an intelligent website actually look like?", "type": "section", "parent_id": "the-future-web-will-still-need-to-work-for-people", "parent_heading": "The future web will still need to work for people", "content": [ { "type": "paragraph", "text": "Learn what an intelligent website looks like and how AI-ready content, connected systems and structured... 9 minutes read Read the guide" } ] } ], "entities": [ { "name": "Conversational interfaces", "type": "Technology" }, { "name": "Website navigation", "type": "Concept" }, { "name": "Web sustainability", "type": "Topic" }, { "name": "Answer-led search", "type": "Concept" }, { "name": "Social platforms", "type": "Platform" }, { "name": "Personalisation", "type": "Topic" }, { "name": "Sustainable web", "type": "Topic" }, { "name": "Search engines", "type": "Platform" }, { "name": "AI agents", "type": "Technology" }, { "name": "Websites", "type": "Digital Asset" }, { "name": "AI", "type": "Technology" } ], "concept_relationships": [ { "subject": "Conversational interfaces", "predicate": "should complement", "object": "traditional browsing and search" }, { "subject": "Answer-led search", "predicate": "can reduce", "object": "user effort in finding information" }, { "subject": "Websites", "predicate": "remain important for", "object": "decision-making and transactions" }, { "subject": "Sustainable web", "predicate": "requires considering", "object": "resource consumption" }, { "subject": "Social platforms", "predicate": "offer", "object": "alternative routes to information" }, { "subject": "Web sustainability", "predicate": "requires", "object": "justifying technology use" }, { "subject": "Personalisation", "predicate": "can reduce repeated effort", "object": "for users" }, { "subject": "AI assistants", "predicate": "change", "object": "how people find information" }, { "subject": "Search engines", "predicate": "provide", "object": "direct answers in results" }, { "subject": "Task complexity", "predicate": "influences", "object": "choice of interface" } ], "implementation_patterns": [ { "pattern": "Provide structured data for search engines and AI assistants", "description": "Use structured data to help search engines and AI systems present accurate information directly in results.", "benefit": "Increases visibility and reduces reliance on website visits for basic information." }, { "pattern": "Blended interface approach", "description": "Offer navigation, browsing, search, and conversational support together, allowing users to choose their preferred method.", "benefit": "Accommodates diverse user preferences and task types, improving overall user experience." }, { "pattern": "Design for accessibility and verification", "description": "Ensure new interfaces are accessible and allow users to verify information and understand decisions.", "benefit": "Builds trust and prevents exclusion." }, { "pattern": "Conversational interface as a supplementary route", "description": "Provide a chat interface alongside traditional navigation, search, and direct links to known services.", "benefit": "Helps users find starting points without limiting their options." }, { "pattern": "Agent approval workflow", "description": "Implement clear approval steps for AI agent actions, especially for high-stakes tasks like payments or applications.", "benefit": "Ensures user control and trust, while maintaining security and reliability." }, { "pattern": "Visible personalisation", "description": "Allow users to set preferences such as location, role, language, and accessibility, and show why content changes.", "benefit": "Builds trust and gives users control." }, { "pattern": "Justify technology use", "description": "Add features like AI or personalisation only when they provide a clear and useful benefit to users.", "benefit": "Avoids unnecessary processing and data requirements." }, { "pattern": "Maintain and improve existing platforms", "description": "Instead of replacing a website, focus on removing unused features and keeping the system easy to update.", "benefit": "Reduces avoidable waste and extends the platform's useful life." } ], "practical_guidance": [ { "guidance": "Provide a mix of navigation, browsing, search, and conversational support to cater to different user needs and task complexities.", "importance": "high" }, { "guidance": "Organisations should decide what AI agents are allowed to do on their website and ensure people can see what the agent has done.", "importance": "high" }, { "guidance": "Ensure any new interface, such as conversational services, works with keyboards and screen readers to maintain accessibility.", "importance": "high" }, { "guidance": "Design conversational interfaces to ask a small number of questions and point users to the most relevant starting place.", "importance": "medium" }, { "guidance": "Use conversational interfaces to help users find a starting point, then direct them to familiar pages and forms.", "importance": "medium" }, { "guidance": "For high-stakes actions like financial decisions or applications, require clear approval from the person.", "importance": "high" }, { "guidance": "Ensure websites provide complete, current information that supports decision-making and task completion.", "importance": "high" }, { "guidance": "Review and remove features that no longer serve a purpose to reduce processing and maintenance demands.", "importance": "high" } ], "risk_areas": [ { "risk": "AI agents may not be transparent about how they reached an answer or whether they missed something important.", "impact": "Users may lose trust or be unaware of gaps in the agent's actions." }, { "risk": "Conversational interfaces may not suit all tasks, potentially frustrating users who prefer direct navigation.", "impact": "User experience may suffer if the interface does not match user preferences." }, { "risk": "Automated systems may present misinformation with confidence, leading to actions based on misunderstandings.", "impact": "Users may make incorrect decisions or be misled without easy verification." }, { "risk": "Answer-led search may downplay uncertainty or miss exceptions, leading to oversimplified information.", "impact": "Users may make decisions based on incomplete or misleading context." }, { "risk": "Conversational interfaces that are not accessible exclude people using keyboards or screen readers.", "impact": "Some users cannot access information or complete tasks, leading to exclusion." }, { "risk": "Conversational interfaces may provide incorrect answers, leading users to wrong services.", "impact": "Users may be misdirected and unable to find the right information." }, { "risk": "Personalisation may raise privacy concerns if users feel the website knows too much.", "impact": "Users may lose trust and disengage." }, { "risk": "Personalisation may hide useful choices and reinforce existing preferences.", "impact": "Users may miss out on relevant information and opportunities." } ], "common_misconceptions": [ { "misconception": "AI agents will replace human interaction with websites entirely.", "clarification": "AI agents will handle routine tasks, but humans will still be needed for decisions, approvals, and personal judgement." }, { "misconception": "Conversational interfaces are always the best way to help users.", "clarification": "They can be slower, unpredictable, and uncomfortable for some users; browsing and search remain important." }, { "misconception": "Conversational interfaces will replace traditional navigation.", "clarification": "Conversation will complement navigation, browsing, and search, not replace them." }, { "misconception": "Answer-led search will replace traditional search engines.", "clarification": "People will use a mix of interfaces depending on the task; answer-led search is not likely to replace other methods entirely." }, { "misconception": "Personalisation always improves user experience.", "clarification": "It can hide choices, make incorrect assumptions, and affect fairness." }, { "misconception": "Fewer visits mean the website is less valuable.", "clarification": "Fewer visits do not necessarily make the website less valuable; people may arrive later when they need to verify details or complete tasks." }, { "misconception": "AI-generated features are always wasteful.", "clarification": "The additional processing may be justified when a feature provides a clear and useful benefit." }, { "misconception": "New technology is automatically better.", "clarification": "A new interface is only useful if it genuinely helps people; it must work for different needs, devices and levels of knowledge." } ], "technical_context": { "search_behaviour": "Traditional search uses keywords and result lists; AI enables natural language questions and conversational search.", "discovery_channels": "Search engines, AI assistants, social platforms, marketplaces, maps, applications, and specialist tools.", "website_role": "Websites provide controlled presentation, complete explanations, and transaction capabilities." }, "reasoning_paths": [ { "user_problem": "Reduced direct website visits due to AI and search engines providing answers directly", "why_this_guide_is_relevant": "This page explains the topic and gives practical points to consider.", "evidence_refs": [ "claim-004", "claim-006" ], "relevant_sections": [ "will-people-still-visit-websites", "how-will-people-find-information", "will-ai-agents-use-websites-for-us" ] }, { "user_problem": "Need to maintain website relevance when users arrive later in the journey", "why_this_guide_is_relevant": "This page explains the topic and gives practical points to consider.", "relevant_sections": [ "will-people-still-visit-websites", "how-will-people-find-information", "will-websites-become-conversational" ] }, { "user_problem": "Personalisation can hide useful choices and make incorrect assumptions", "why_this_guide_is_relevant": "This page explains the topic and gives practical points to consider.", "evidence_refs": [ "claim-001", "claim-007", "claim-002" ], "relevant_sections": [ "could-every-visitor-receive-a-different-website", "creative-freedom-without-brand-chaos-designing-a-better-cms", "what-should-not-change" ] }, { "user_problem": "AI agents may not always be transparent about how they reach answers", "why_this_guide_is_relevant": "This page explains the topic and gives practical points to consider.", "evidence_refs": [ "claim-006" ], "relevant_sections": [ "how-will-people-find-information", "will-people-still-visit-websites", "will-ai-agents-use-websites-for-us" ] } ], "knowledge_hub": { "page_type": "guide", "learning_intent": "The web has evolved through search engines, smartphones, social platforms, apps, and now AI, changing how people find and interact with organisations online.", "topic_hierarchy": { "primary": "The future of websites and digital platforms, focusing on sustainability, user needs, and the responsible use of technology", "supporting": [ "AI-generated answers", "Search behaviour", "Website purpose", "Digital platforms", "Answer-led search", "AI agents", "Conversational interfaces", "User control and approval" ] }, "evergreen_use": true }, "content_profile": { "content_type": "Knowledge Hub guide", "primary_topic": "The future of websites and digital platforms, focusing on sustainability, user needs, and the responsible use of technology", "supporting_topics": [ "AI-generated answers", "Search behaviour", "Website purpose", "Digital platforms", "Answer-led search", "AI agents" ], "primary_audience": [ "Digital and web managers", "Website owners", "Marketing and communications teams", "Organisations planning future website or digital platform development" ] }, "retrieval_topics": [ "The future of websites and digital platforms, focusing on sustainability, user needs, and the responsible use of technology", "AI-generated answers", "Search behaviour", "Website purpose", "Digital platforms", "Answer-led search", "AI agents", "Conversational interfaces", "User control and approval", "Trust and transparency", "Task complexity and interface choice", "Personalisation" ], "organisation": { "name": "Feel Created", "url": "https://www.feelcreated.com/", "type": "Digital partner specialising in websites and digital platforms", "specialisms": [ "Digital strategy and planning", "User experience (UX) design", "Accessibility and inclusive design", "WordPress design and development", "Content strategy and information architecture", "AI-ready structured content", "AI Features & Integrations", "Search optimisation and technical SEO", "Website performance optimisation", "Website security and technical governance", "Platform architecture and integrations", "Content management systems", "Digital audits and reviews", "Creative and marketing support", "Website maintenance and support" ], "service_model": "We work as an extension of our clients' teams, combining strategy, UX, accessibility, content design, WordPress development and ongoing support to create digital platforms that help organisations communicate more clearly, work more efficiently and grow sustainably." } }