Why your search engine strategy needs to change.
Once the pinnacle of the internet, Google has long been a thorn in business owners’ sides. For the past two decades, quality traffic often went hand in hand with ranking first on the search engine platform. All you, or your marketing expert, needed to do was crack the code to decipher what the algorithm wanted, and voila… you’d rank (slightly) higher.
While the search engine optimisation (SEO) process evolved (much to the annoyance of business owners, marketers and web developers), the vision was concrete. Ranking first on Google will bring in new business or customers. Simple!
However, Google has its own ideas. Perhaps taking inspiration from Squid Game or the SAW franchise – understanding how to succeed will cost you nothing less than blood, sweat and tears. Ranking first, can indeed mean your website is featured at the top of the page. However, and more likely, ranking first will mean that your website appears way below the fold (the hidden section where you have to scroll down to see).
So what game is Google playing?
Google is now, first and foremost, an advertising platform. While it provides free web search services to its users, those searching (you and I) are the commodity. Like any advertiser, the more time we spend on the platform, the more ads that can be served.
In addition, the platform is facing growing pressure from AI tools such as ChatGPT, social media and forums like Reddit. These are chipping away at Google’s dominance as the gateway to the internet, or at least, the gatekeeper of information.
As a result, Google’s interface, or Search Engine Results Pages (SERPs), has evolved. Meaning, when a user searches, the format or layout of the search results has changed. To confuse matters further, depending on your keyword or phrase, the format or layout of the search engine results page can be different each time too.
Sometimes, you will have four, maybe five, ads placed before any organic search results.
Maybe you’ll see the local Google map, with three listings, ahead of your top-ranking website.
Perhaps, you will be presented with a snippet from a website, or some FAQs, designed to keep you on Google itself.
Or, if you’re lucky, you may actually see your website appearing organically at the very top of the page.
Three out of the four scenarios above will distract or detract users from ever clicking (or even seeing) the first organic result for a keyword.
So, if ranking first, doesn’t actually mean appearing first, what can you do?
Let’s break it down.
Know your SERPs
If we know and accept that the appearance of Google’s SERPs is reactive to the type of search being made, our strategy must capture this. Through identifying and mapping these layout shifts against our priority keywords; we can then pick the appropriate search engine tool to increase quality traffic.
To help organise the chaos, mapping the keyword, the type of category it falls into and documenting the prominent features of the search results, can not only calm the mind, but indicate where you need to focus your energy.
| Keyword | Keyword Category | SERP Appearance | Tool(s) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Restaurant Near Me | Local Search | Google Map (Places) | Google Business Profile |
| Italian Restaurant | Navigational | Sponsored Ads and Google Map (Places) | Google Ads
Google Business Profile |
| Italian Food Online | Retail / Ecomm | Shopping | Google Merchant Centre and Shopping Ads |
| Italian Wine and Food | Information | Organic and FAQ Snippets | Website
FAQ Structured Data (scheme markup) |
Mobile and desktop differences
To add yet another layer of complexity, the mobile appearance of SERPs can differ from the desktop. As 30% of searches performed on mobile are related to location, Google Maps (Places) is more likely to be a dominant feature.
Naturally, depending on your industry and competition in your area, those that feature in local Google Map results, are likely to benefit from proximity. That aside, other features of Google Business Profiles can help with your visibility. So don’t assume that just because you’re close by, your business can’t rank highly there.
Timing is key
While we all want our websites to feature at the very top of Google organically, it’s often a medium to long term strategy to achieve that goal. If your ambition is to start receiving quality traffic tomorrow, then SEO tactics are unlikely to yield that result in such a timeframe.
With this in mind, Google Ads (search or shopping) could be the short-term solution that ensures you gain the quality traffic you need from search engines.
If you’re uncertain about which search engine marketing tactic would work best for you, don’t hesitate to reach out. We can offer you expert guidance on how to achieve success with Google.
