‘users’

Google announced its Google Instant feature on September 8, 2010. It has certainly rocked the SEO world with hundreds of bloggers and web marketers speculating about the possible outcomes for SEO. Some have said that Google Instant will kill SEO, while others commented that it would certainly change search behaviour, and thus keyword selection for both organic searches and AdWords. To fully understand the possible implications for SEO and web marketing, one must also review how the user is affected by the new feature and why Google has introduced it.

What Is Google Instant?

It is a new improved search feature allowing for the displaying of results as a user enters the search into the search box. The idea behind the technology is to improve search relevancy and decrease search time. Google claims that the Google Instant feature can reduce search time with up to five seconds on each search. For the busy user, it will most certainly ensure better time management, but will the results be better?

Doing a few searches on terms, it has become obvious that in most cases the dynamic nature of the enhancement does allow for more relevant search results. Google argues that people read quicker than they can type. With that in mind, possible searches are immediately listed allowing for the user to select one of the suggestions or to complete the key phrase. As such a user will be able to ignore the suggestions. With the dynamic nature of the search facility, Google Instant picks up on the search behaviour of the individual and will adapt suggestions to be more relevant as it learns.

Users no longer need to complete the search phrase and enter before they get an idea of what is available. Google displays the possible search phrases as the user types. If the search phrase is close enough to what the user had in mind, the likelihood for someone typing the whole phrase before entering diminishes. The user can adapt search strategies on the go and will not need to first glance at a page for results before adapting the search. By quickly glancing at possible phrases or keywords, immediate, and more relevant searches, can be applied.

Benefits Of Google Instant For The User

- Quicker searching and thus time savings.
- Suggestions based on AI predictions provide search guidance.
-The most relevant suggestion is visible in light grey directly in the search box allowing the user to stop typing and simply entering for display of results.
- While typing results will appear, allowing for more time savings.
-The user can immediately identify whether the search results will be relevant.
- Since the user still has the choice of turning the feature off, the more conventional static search facility is still available.
- The user can still filter results with the Safe Search facility to protect against offensive language and sites. User control is thus still intact.
- Search as you type allows for glancing at the results as a user types. Since a person can still glance and take in information while typing, the results will be better.
- None of the functions of the Google search page are lost.
- Higher level of interactivity for the user.
- The less sophisticated user will be able to get better results while the advanced searcher will be able to use the predictions for quickly narrowing in on results.

The benefits of Google Instant for the user are obvious. One may ask why Google has decided to change the way searching is done when clearly everyone was used to the static searches. The answer is obviously for better results, but really thinking about it, it all boils down to staying ahead of the pack. Google needs to ensure highly relevant search results and will thus need to constantly change the interface for improvement of such. Since most website owners have begun to optimize, the web now consists of billions of well optimized pages competing for the same keywords. One may consider whether search results are that relevant with static searches at the end of the day. The feature is thus a welcoming change allowing for natural query language combined with settings of predicted keyword phrases.

Implications For Paid Searching (AdWords)

Advertisers paying for the total page impressions may in future find that their click through rates will be affected while the amount spent on Adwords increase. Such advertisers may want to consider changing their payment to that of payment for click through rate rather than page impressions. The Quality Score may thus be affected by the increase in impressions. The safety net according to Google however, is that for an action to count as an impression the user must click, enter or search the advert or must at least pause for viewing of the associated SERP. This pause period must be at least three seconds which should thus balance out the possibility of Quality Score being affected. Theoretically then, impressions should decrease rather than increase. Unfortunately advertisers will have to give it time to see the real impact of Google Instant on their page impression rates.

The two word key string may still keep its popularity amongst users and the advertisers. Users refine their two word key string (mid tail) searches as they type even when Google provides predictions until they see the phrase that they want. In this instance, not much change is expected in the sponsored clicks and web marketers are expected to keep the same strategy in keyword selection when it comes to Google Instant as they have used with the classic Google approach.

Long or Short Tail?

Since prediction suggestions may appear after the user has typed the first word in a keyword string, websites optimized for single keywords rather than phrases may be pushed up in the search results of organic searches. The sponsored ads appearing on the search results page may thus refer to the first keyword in a string and as such advertisers will have to make sure that they select single keywords for their AdWords campaigns as well. The advertiser thus must make sure that the user sees the advert earlier rather than later. This however, could also cost the advertiser more than for a longer keyword string. The cost per click may increase for the advertiser focussing on this type of strategy. AdWords campaign managers will have to monitor the process over a period to assess whether shorter and thus broader terms bring better results for them than the longer, but more specific key strings. Weighing the costs will thus be a major consideration in selecting the shorter and broader terms or going for less traffic, but more targeted and perhaps also cheaper traffic by means of the long tail method.

Brands To Get More Exposure in Paid Ads

Brands, related to a specific industry, may experience more impressions and thus higher click through rates. This may influence the quality score and they may pay for it. To prevent brands from suffering under the new search system, the quality score assessment done by Google will have to be adapted in future. Some believe that indeed, brand bias exists with the new system, providing some brands preference related to a specific industry over others. A brand with the industry name included in the brand name from the start of the word will thus get more untargeted traffic while others related to the same industry without the industry name in the brand name right at the beginning of the name, will experience less traffic. It is thus a two edged sword. Either a brand gets high volume traffic, but not targeted or gets less traffic, but also less exposure.

Brands Thus Have More Preference With Google Than Generic Terms

If a campaign manager has hoped to make the most of generic terms, the bad news is that there is a bias towards brand names when it comes to brand versus generic terms. Both will have to be targeted, but some brands will definitely lose as explained earlier.

Paid Ads Will Experience Visitor Traffic Differences

As explained, several shifts in keyword traffic can be expected for paid ads. Google for instance, may show ads for related companies near a specific location when a user types in such a search. A search for Johannesburg may lead to Google showing guesthouses near Johannesburg. As such Johannesburg guesthouses may get more impressions and the term guesthouses may experience a reduction in impressions. Time will tell.

Ads Displayed While A Search Is Typed

In the past Google has displayed public ads and other ads when there were no relevant ads to a search or particular website content. The feature is now to display ads as the user types. The paid ads campaign manager will want to get in on the displayed ads and as such research will have to be done. The idea should be to have one’s ad displayed while the user is still typing the search. Keyword research for organic searches must thus be done as well as for the possible suggestions by Google. The marketers will have to assess which types of ads will be displayed while the user types the search and make sure their ads are also displayed during the period. It means a lot of hard work ahead for most.

How Does Google Instant Change SEO?

With searching behaviour changed, SEO has to be adapted. Companies able to change their optimization of web pages quickly enough to reflect such will thus get the top rankings first. It is generally accepted that the single website owner doing optimization will at the end of the day see a decline in traffic. The larger website owners making use of SEO companies and specialists will thus definitely have an advantage. The secret will be to change optimization and keyword selection over the next couple of months to reflect the new searching behaviour of users.

The good news for SEO companies is that organic searches will not fall away. The users will be able to view more search results in one session. The predictions and streaming make it possible to quickly change a search to be more relevant to the intended query. Google thus leads the users in searches. We may even see users become more sophisticated in their search techniques based on the displaying of predictions by Google.

Users will still however, use Google organic searches for information retrieval. This means that just as in the past, when the majority of people used the organic search facility of Google and a tenth of the users clicked on sponsored ads that the same will apply for future searches. The pages on the web will not change, and all that will happen is that for some websites the traffic may decrease and for others it will increase. A well ranked site in the classic Google environment will also rank well in future whether or not Google Instant is applied.

Searching Behaviour Of Users Will Influence Key Strings

The head and long traffic may decrease while the fat tail traffic increase may become more. This will be the case as Google Instant provides predictions which may lead a user to be more specific. If someone for instance, types in Seychelles, predictions such as Seychelles holidays or Seychelles diving may prompt them to be a bit more specific. The users applying a specific approach such as typing Seychelles romantic holidays may be prompted to be less specific through predictions such as Seychelles holidays.
With the interactivity gained with Google Instant, the user may become less willing to scroll down to the bottom of the page or to the second page for more results. As such, the top five search results will get more traffic than before. Generic pages which are also well ranked, may in future far out perform the more specialised, but lower ranked pages. The trend may be caused by the predictions which are supplied by Google when the first three letters of the keyword is typed in.

How Does Google Instant Affect Natural Searches?

Advanced searchers may continue searching with the Boolean Operator style and sophisticated methods, but they are in the minority. Since most searchers make use of natural language queries, SEO specialists may have to reconsider their optimization strategies. Whereas a long phrase would have been used in the past directly, the user now gets predictions even before the first and second words are completed. As such users may often opt for mid tail predictions. Since natural language is so dynamic, it may take a long time before users typing in the whole long string will be able to find exactly what they want through the long tail method. Google has to adapt and predict more. So for now, it will still be the shorter phrases that will steal the limelight.

How Important Will Rankings Be?

Top rankings will become even more important than before. The top five results will become the focus point as the SERP has to be moved down to show the search suggestions. The user thus will always be able to see the top ranked results and in most likelihood will select from the first five more often than before.

Has Google Regained Control Over Keywords?

The answer must be yes. SEM and SEO specialists have tried their best to keep up with the many index algorithms of Google and many have succeeded. This of course, also compromised the search results as more manipulation of search results could take place by skilled SEM and SEO specialists. Google has taken an important step in regaining control over the search results by now recommending the most likely and relevant phrases to the user.

What Should the SEO Do To Make The Most of Head Terms?

Considering that the head terms will play an extremely important role in keyword searches and traffic to a site, the SEO may have to focus more on the one word head term to drive as much as possible natural search traffic to a website. The SEO must do several searches, and exceptional keyword research to find out which natural language phrases are used most and optimize for that. This inevitably means more work on the part of the SEO to find out which suggestions or predictions are offered by Google at every stage of a keystroke for a particular keyword and keyword string search. Top five ranking must be gained for the particular suggestions to ensure that the users click on a particular site. The rest of the sites will get the breadcrumbs, and although such may still be high, a drop in traffic can be expected if the SEO and SEM do not adapt their optimization and marketing strategies.

With the expectation being that more people will do fewer searches or never finish their intended searches before clicking on an ad or organic search result because of a suggestion or display of ads made by Google, the SEO and SEM will have to be adapted to such. You will thus focus on head terms, brand terms and of course, ensure top five ranking.

Some Other Considerations When It Comes to Google Instant

People have raised concerns about possible slowing down of their Internet because of Google Instant. Google has indicated that it would not happen and when compared to other web services including video, the connectivity will be fast. Google also said that they tried to minimize the data sent versus data receive ratio during each search. Some users still have slower connections, and they are the ones that will be negatively affected, but then can turn the feature off. The feature requires Internet Explorer 8, Firefox 3, Google Chrome 5 or 6 and Safari 5 for Mac. Many users may still make use of older browser versions and may thus not be able to utilize the full potential of the system. The classic way of searching will thus not completely fall away, and as such the SEO and SEM must decide whether or not they will still optimize for the old way of doing things as well.

In summary one has to look at:
• Browser capabilities of the user.
• User preferences – such as still wanting to use the classic search methods.
• Internet connectivity speed.
• Natural language versus Boolean search usage.
• Possible Google predictions for every keystroke.
• Brand names and generic terms.
• Traffic shifting.
• Top five ranking.
• Head terms, middle tail and long tail searches.

With the roll-out of Google Instant, a new playing field has opened. It will be up to SEO and SEM marketing teams to make the most of the feature. Those who fail to adapt their optimization and paid ad strategies will be pushed to the edges. For a site on the Internet competing for the top five positions, such a push could mean the end of the site or the ad campaign.

Smaller sites or companies with less capital and resources to spend on such will suffer while the big guns will get bigger. The secret to survival will thus be to get a top SEO or SEM team or company to be on the job of getting your site in the top five rankings for every head, middle and long tail search. In addition, you must ensure that your site ads are also displayed while the user types. Adapt or die will be the phrase for future SEO. The king of the Internet – content, is certainly not dead. The SEO and SEM will just have to make sure that the user gets to see that content, and once at a landing page, the user must not have reason to leave without subscribing, coming back, recommending or buying.

Making the most of Google Instant is the focus of iLeadOnline. We welcome the initiatives of Google and closely monitor the influence of its features on search behaviour, and thus optimization, for paid ads and organic searches. Contact us today to help you get to the top five rankings.