Quick Guide to Google Search

What's New in Google Search?

If you own a business, you’re likely already familiar with Google Search. Maybe you have heard the acronym “SEO” before, and are curious how you can utilize it to boost your business’s visibility and drive brand awareness. Well, this post is intended to demystify some of the improvements being rolled out in early 2024 – namely, how generative artificial intelligence is shaping it.

What is SGE?

First, SGE, or Search Generative Experience, is Google’s way of supercharging search results by leveraging generative AI. Business owners can help potential customers through the non-relevant resources by tapping into this cutting-edge technology. If you’ve already been keeping up with SEO, that’s great, but it doesn’t mean you’re out of the woods. However, it does mean that you will be able to make adjustments easier than those that have not.

What's so Important About AI in Search?

Well, SGE doesn’t just find relevant websites for your query – it takes it a step further and analyzes web pages and extracts data. Once it has gathered information, it distills it to provide a concise answer directly within search results. Below, you can see how Google pulled the year “1992” from Planet Fitness’ website, www.planetfitness.com. Now, the searcher won’t have to open the website to locate the information.

AI to Improve Shopping

Now, when you are shopping for something, you will see a snapshot of certain features to consider. The idea is that the user will quickly see product descriptions, up-to-date reviews, prices, and more.

This saves them time when it comes to clicking “Submit Order,” so including these product details on your website is a sure-fire way to improve your ranking.

Keeping Spam Out of Search Results

Additionally, Google’s spam-fighting policies and systems are evolving to better address abusive practices. They’ve broken it down into three main categories:

Scaled content abuse

Today, automated content creation methods are becoming more sophisticated. It isn’t always clear if content is generated by AI, a human, or both. Thus, Google has changed their policy to consider this form of content abusive and spammy in nature.

Site reputation abuse

In some cases, websites that have their own content might also host third-party content. Using third-party content isn’t a crime in itself, but using it with the intent of capitalizing on the hosting site’s reputation is enough to get your website removed from search rankings.

Expired domain abuse

Sometimes, expired domains are purchased and repurposed in an attempt to boost search ranking of low-quality or unoriginal content. Under Google’s new policies, this is considered spam.

Other Changes to Google Search

Mobile-first is a MUST
Google Business Profile is king
Map Packs are evolving
Featured snippets matter
Less reliance on "10 blue links"
Long-tail keywords get prioritized by SGE

Leveraging AI in GBP

Last but not least, if your business is lacking a Google Business Profile (GBP), it is more important than ever to create one. Without one, your business is missing out on a large amount of local traffic. Some benefits include:

Improved SEO
Boosted business appeal
Increased engagement
Higher search ranking
Gather valuable insights and data
Visual maps

In Conclusion

Ultimately, even if your small business has been working with search engine optimization (SEO) in mind, it’s important to reassess your content regularly. Failing to remove offending content is opening yourself up to the avoidable consequences of being removed from the most popular search engine in the world. Further, by understanding Search Generative Experience and its mechanisms, focusing on user experience and providing relevant content, you can position your business for success in search.

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Resources & Further Reading

Gifford, G. (2020, February 27). How to optimize your google my business listing. Mailchimp. https://mailchimp.com/marketing-glossary/google-my-business/
Ng, R. (2023, August 15). Learn as you search (and browse) using Generative AI. Google. https://blog.google/products/search/google-search-generative-ai-learning-features/
Reid, E. (2023, May 10). Supercharging search with Generative AI. Google. https://blog.google/products/search/generative-ai-search/
Riddall, J. (2022, September 6). Do you still need directory submissions for local SEO?. Search Engine Journal. https://www.searchenginejournal.com/directory-submissions-for-local-seo/462281/
Riddall, J. (2024, April 11). How search generative experience will affect local SEO & Businesses. Search Engine Journal. https://www.searchenginejournal.com/search-generative-experience-and-how-it-will-affect-local-seo-businesses/511907/
Schwartz, B. (2024, March 20). Google march 2024 spam update done rolling out. Search Engine Land. https://searchengineland.com/google-march-2024-spam-update-done-rolling-out-438505