Will Google Instant affect how you need to optimize for keywords?
Google's been rolling out new features all year (remember Google Caffeine?), but Google Instant takes the cake, so far. As we know from its other products, Google is all about the user experience. It describes Google Instant as "search before you type." So, how will Google Instant affect the future of search?
How Google Instant works:
It takes what you have typed already and predicts the most likely completion and streams results in real-time. The predicted results are based on popular searches.
How will Google Instant affect AdWords?
For those of you worried about how it will affect your AdWords performance, you can breathe a sigh of releif. Sort of. According to the AdWords blog, Google Instant will not change the way ads are served. However, it does give a new meaning to "impression". It counts impressions by a) the results page is displayed for a minimum of three seconds when the user stops typing b) the user chooses a particular result by clicking Enter or Search, or by selecting one of the predicted results, or c) the user begins to type a query and clicks anywhere on the page-- an ad, spelling correction, a search result, or a related search. This new way of counting impressions will more than likely change the number of impressions your ad pre-Instant would see.
On the upside, Google says "[Instant] may also improve the quality of your clicks since it helps users type queries that more directly connect them with the answers they need."
Say I want to search for a running app for my iPhone. Typing "running app" has a predicted search result of "running apparel" (the -arel is in gray font). Until I press Enter or Search the AdWords ads that appear, and of course search listings, are related to buying running apparel. Once I've told Google by pressing enter that I want a running app and not running apparel, the ads change.
And the affect of Google Instant on search ranking?
Time will tell, but straight from Google: "No, [Instant] does not impact the ranking of search results." How is this possible? Well, for one, if your site is already optimized for longtail keywords- keywords consisting of two or more words- you're in good shape. Because Google Instant will give the user the most popular search result, it does not matter how many keywords or letters the user types in.
Check to see how your current keywords are ranking. If they're not ranking high, it'd be wise to brainstorm a few more keywords to optimize for.
Big vs. Small Businesses
Try this: type "s" in the Google search bar. What do you see? The suggested search term is "Sears" The dropdown suggestion box yields Sprint, Skype, and Southwest Airlines (there's no Starbucks).
Small businesses monitoring their analytics will likely see more clicks on longtail keywords. This will hold true for more than just small businesses. Pretty much everyone who is not a well-known person/business/product will see more longtail keywords.
So what does Google Instant mean for the future?
As with all new introductions, there are a lot of questions to be answered. It’s only a day old, so it’ll be interesting to see the impact of Instant on AdWords impressions and click through rates. Will the clicks generate more conversions since the ads are more targeted? Is it the end of SEO? How will small businesses compete?
If you're concerned about the impact of Google Instant on your SEO or AdWords, contact Adam to discuss how Adam Howitt Consulting, Inc. can help your improve performance.
SEO and AdWords resources from Adam Howitt Consulting, Inc,:
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