Why your 2023 website is failing right now

While you've been maintaining a 2023 website, your competitors have been iterating. They optimized for AI search. They rebuilt their mobile experience. They're getting cited by ChatGPT when potential customers ask for recommendations in your industry. The gap between a site that's current and one that's 18 months old is bigger than it's ever been. Technology moves faster now. User expectations shift more quickly. What worked in 2023 doesn't just feel dated; it actively costs you business.

AI search changed the game

Traditional SEO optimized for Google's algorithm. You targeted keywords, built backlinks, and structured content for search engines. AI search works differently. ChatGPT, Perplexity, Google's AI Overviews—they don't rank pages. They cite sources they trust and synthesize answers. If your site isn't structured for AI to extract and cite your content, you're not in the conversation. It doesn't matter how well you ranked in 2023.

The fix: structured data, clear schema markup, and content written to be citation-worthy. Most 2023 sites weren't built with this in mind.

Mobile expectations evolved

In 2023, "mobile-first" meant that your site was optimized for phones. In 2025, it means understanding how people actually use them. Users scan, they don't read. They expect instant answers. They abandon sites that don't load in under two seconds.

Your 2023 site probably has:

• Long paragraphs that don't scan on mobile

• Navigation designed for desktop

• Load times that are too slow now

• CTAs buried below the fold

Result? High bounce rates. Traffic that doesn't convert. You're missing the platforms where your customers actually are.

In 2023, most businesses focused on desktop and mobile web. In 2025, your customers are asking AI assistants for recommendations, searching on TikTok and Instagram, and expecting seamless experiences across platforms you might not even be on.

If your website isn't optimized to be discovered and recommended by AI platforms, you're missing the fastest-growing search channel. And if your brand presence stops at your website, you're invisible to entire segments of your audience.

Your competitors already adapted

While you've been maintaining a 2023 site, competitors optimized for AI search, rebuilt mobile experiences, and are getting cited when potential customers ask for recommendations. The gap between current and an 18-month-old is bigger than it's ever been.

What to do

Audit for AI:

• Add proper schema markup

• Structure content for AI extraction

• Test how you appear in ChatGPT and Perplexity

Fix mobile:

• Test load times on actual devices

• Simplify navigation

• Move CTAs above the fold

Update content:

• Make your value proposition immediately clear

• Answer questions directly

• Use headers that match how people search

The bottom line

Your 2023 website isn't failing because you built it wrong. It's failing because the landscape changed, and the site didn't. AI search, mobile behavior, and user expectations—they evolved faster than most businesses kept pace.

The good news? Most of this is fixable without a full rebuild, but it requires acknowledging that what worked 18 months ago isn't working now, and doing something about it.