How to Prepare for Google Search Generative Experience?

How will this new interface impact click-through-rates? I've got no predictions to offer you here. Sites were already seeing CTRs decline from a constantly-changing SERP that in some cases featured more ads, videos, and Google SERP features than it did actual website links, so I'm afraid to say I think that trend is here to stay as AI chat results will push organic links even further down the page and out of sight. I do think that Google will continue to evolve how they're sending traffic to sites because, like I said, symbiotic relationship. They need us to produce content just as much as we need the traffic. How will Bard choose which sites to pull in? This is the biggest question on my mind right now, both from a general SEO standpoint and from a how-to-approach-Jasper's-content standpoint. While I believe we'll eventually get some kind of Google Search Console data for Bard search performance, we just don't have any true insight into how Bard will choose to pull in certain sites over others.

Google employees used the term “AI” more than 70 times during the Google I/O event on May 10, 2023.

At this event, Google presented the innovations it will implement. A large part is devoted to artificial intelligence. One of the major innovations that will be implemented is the search-generative experience. In this article, I will take you through the possible consequences.

With the Search Generative Experience , Google provides answers to keywords entered by visitors in search results pages with the help of AI.

In this article, I will take you through my vision of the consequences for websites and mention the impact this can have on organizations.

The possible impact of the Search Generative Experience update

The Search Generative Experience update looks like this:

And this affects different types of websites. There is now a lot of speculation. The term “zero-click SEO” is making a comeback, and there is also a lot of speculation about SEA in the future.

Since the Google Ads program is an important revenue model for Google, it will undoubtedly be placed in the search results pages. Google itself indicates that text ads will still appear in reserved places. The question is how and where. A number of things are certain, but a lot is also uncertain.

What will Google’s SERPs (search results pages) look like for commercial short-tail keywords, such as “buy shoes”? Both the volume and the average CPC (cost per click) that are charged are high.

Will Google then trade the Google Ads spots for an AI-generated answer?

I do not think so.

I estimate that advertisements will get a place in the generated response.

The way people search on search engines will also change. Many people now have access to ChatGPT and are developing prompts. People are increasingly understanding that the better and more comprehensive the prompt, the more relevant and complete the output you receive.

And then we have mid-funnel keywords; that’s what I call them. These are keywords that hang between long-tail and short-tail. These are keywords that people use in the middle of the buyer’s journey to get information.

Use keywords such as “installation tips for central heating boilers” or “create a checklist for your website”. For these types of keywords, AI-formulated answers are very useful and can provide much added value. Websites that generate a lot of traffic on these keywords can expect a drop in visits. I read a nice comparison about this:

Why would you enter another restaurant if you have already received a complete dinner from the chef in front of the entrance?

The same applies here: why visit another website if you have already received all the necessary information?

How to prepare for Google Search Generative Experience?

Google’s Search Generative Experience is a predicted evolution of the way users interact with search engines, moving from providing individual responses to queries, to generating comprehensive, flowing conversations based on a user’s questions and comments. As of my knowledge cutoff in September 2021, there aren’t specific steps for preparing for this particular technology, as it isn’t fully formed or officially released. However, I can suggest some general strategies to get ready for advancements in search technology:

  1. Stay Informed: Keep up to date with the latest news, articles, and press releases from Google. Consider following SEO and technology blogs, subscribing to relevant newsletters, and attending industry conferences or webinars.
  2. Understand Natural Language Processing (NLP): NLP is the technology that powers this new search experience. Understanding how NLP works can give you insights into how to adapt your SEO strategies. This includes learning about things like keyword context, semantic search, and language models.
  3. Emphasize Quality Content: High-quality, useful, and relevant content is likely to become even more important as search engines get better at understanding and interpreting content.
  4. Voice Search Optimization: As conversational search becomes more popular, voice search optimization will likely become more important. Consider how you can make your content easily accessible and understandable for voice searches.
  5. User Intent: With more sophisticated search technology, understanding and catering to user intent will become more important. Ensure your content not only includes relevant keywords but also answers questions and meets the needs of users.
  6. Mobile Optimization: Ensure your site and content are fully optimized for mobile users, as much of the conversational search is expected to take place on mobile devices.
  7. Structured Data: Implementing structured data can help search engines understand your content and provide more detailed results.

Work on the EEAT guidelines!

With Google’s EEAT update, context, authority, and relevance become even more important.

If you want to excel, you must create more content relevant to your target audience. Consider the following topics:

  • What pain or problem does my product or service solve?
  • What is the biggest benefit of my product or service?
  • What is my product or service used for, and what can I say about it?
  • What questions do customers ask me about this product or service?
  • What context can my product or service be used, and what can I say about it?

This way, you will share more valuable content, allowing Google to use your product information and expertise in SERPs. Also, hook up with your sales department for this. They can provide marketing input to create content based on questions asked during conversations.

Be warned if you rely too much on Google Search as a performance channel.

Is Google Search the most important performance channel for your webshop, and do you rely on it often? That is a risky approach. Make sure you set up a strategy in which you bet on multiple channels. Get started with brand awareness, focus on customer loyalty, investigate the possibility of marketplace marketing, or go international to maintain your turnover. Regardless of the consequences of AI on search results pages, it is wise to use a complete mix of online channels so that you are less dependent on one source.

This trend has been going on for some time: Google will always want to provide better and more complete answers to the SERPs so that visitors no longer have to leave Google.

In addition, they will focus more on Google Ads, as it is an important revenue model for the search engine. SEO seems to be shifting further and further into the background.

The search-generative experience for shops

Webshops generate traffic from the SERPs in various ways. Google Shopping and Google Search Campaigns are major sources of traffic from advertising. In SEO, blogs and product pages are important to generate traffic from product-based keywords.

As a result of the search-generative experience, you can imagine that Google Shopping becomes even more important for webshops. The better you organize and fill out your product information, the better Google can promote your product through AI-generated answers. For example, if people search for “Which football boots can I use best for futsal?” do you get to see blogs now? But an AI-generated text can delve into important elements of futsal boots and show the top-rated ones.

You can see what that can look like in this short video from Google.

Google not only links products to your search query but also gives back what factors you, as a buyer, should pay attention to or consider. With this, Google suddenly makes buying products even easier.

How Using Generative AI will Assist You in Shopping?

We can help you understand the big picture when shopping with generative AI in Search, making even the most deliberate and complex purchases faster and easier.

When you search for a product, you’ll see a list of important factors to consider and products that fit the bill. You will also receive product descriptions that include current, relevant reviews, ratings, prices, and product images. This is due to the fact that this new generative AI shopping experience is built on Google’s Shopping Graph, which has over 35 billion product listings, making it the world’s most comprehensive dataset of constantly changing products, sellers, brands, reviews, and inventory. In fact, more than 1.8 billion listings are refreshed in our Shopping Graph every hour to provide people with fresh, reliable results.

Exciting times

All in all, this update from Google will bring about many changes in search engine marketing. Is your website or webshop heavily dependent on Google? Then make sure you quickly diversify your online marketing strategy. You don’t want to be dependent on one source.

Furthermore, Google will reserve placements from the Google Ads program, which will also change for SEA marketers.

These are exciting times for SEO marketers. Although Google indicates that it still wants to forward traffic to websites, the concerns regarding zero-click SEO seem justified. No one knows how this will turn out, but the advice is to look at your online marketing mix and apply diversification.