Like it or not, generative AI search is officially here. May 2024 marked the official rollout of Google’s Search Generative AI Experience, and we’ll see continued impact moving forward.
This means a pretty significant shift in how people use search engines and how businesses and marketers should be adjusting their SEO strategies.
As we enter into this new era, let’s dive into SGE and how to optimize your website accordingly.
What is Google’s Search Generative Experience?
Google’s Search Generative Experience uses advanced AI to generate detailed, context-aware answers directly in search results, rather than just listing links. In theory, it allows for more conversational queries and understands the intent behind searches to provide precise information.
How does SGE differ from traditional search?
SGE integrates data from various sources to offer comprehensive responses and supports follow-up questions, making the search process more interactive for users.
“This differs from traditional search, which relies on keyword matching and ranking algorithms to display a list of relevant web pages,” said Lexie Buhrandt, search engine optimization (SEO) specialist at E-Power.
How Will SGE Impact Businesses?
Naturally, the biggest impact will be on featured snippets and click-through rates.
We’ll likely see fewer featured snippets in favor of these AI-generated results. And if searchers are getting their answers to simple queries upfront, there’s less of a need to click through to your company’s website.
However, not all hope is lost. While less traffic is concerning, the quality of traffic will likely be higher.
SGE will help weed out a lot of unqualified traffic that’s just looking for a quick response or in early research phases. As a result, the users who actually do click through to your website are probably intrigued by your brand and hungry for more information.
“This leads us to believe that we’ll see more qualified leads coming to websites,” Lexie said.
Is it Still Worth Investing in SEO?
Yes! Investing in ongoing search engine optimization remains crucial even with Google’s incorporating generative AI into search results. Here’s why:
- Traditional organic search results continue to be a significant source of traffic, at least for now. Users still click on links in the main search results, especially for those informational and transactional queries.
- Google’s generative AI relies on high-quality content from across the web to generate accurate and useful answers. Well-optimized content is more likely to be included, cited, and linked to in these AI-generated responses.
- Local search results, such as those for restaurants or services nearby, are heavily influenced by traditional SEO practices. Optimizing for local search ensures your business appears in local packs and maps.
- Good SEO involves improving site speed, mobile-friendliness, and overall user experience. In addition to helping you rank in search engines, these factors also help keep visitors on your site and convert them into customers no matter how they land on your website!
How Should Businesses Adjust SEO Strategy to Align with this New Shift?
Businesses can align with the shift toward Generative AI by focusing on creating authoritative content and taking a well-rounded approach to SEO and marketing as a whole.
Focus on Creating High-Quality Content
To succeed in the world of SGE and AI-driven content, your content has to be better — or higher quality — than what already exists.
Quality content is nothing new. It’s something we’ve been focused on at E-Power for years. Quality isn’t just grammar and spelling. It’s about value, readability, comprehensiveness, and ongoing optimization to provide more than AI can on it’s own.
Value
Provide valuable information that goes beyond AI to address your audience’s questions and needs.
At E-Power, we adjusted our focus to partner with clients and add in expert quotes, original data, and unique research/perspectives that users can’t find anywhere else.
“Additionally, businesses should invest in optimizing their online presence to provide value beyond traditional web pages, including leveraging other content formats like videos, podcasts, and interactive elements, which SGE may prioritize,” Lexie said.
Readability
Make sure your writing is clear, concise, and engaging.
“Your content should be structured to provide clear, concise answers that are likely to be featured in rich snippets or AI-generated responses,” Lexie said.
Use short paragraphs, headers, bullet points, and visuals to break up text. And avoid jargon, slang, and colloquialisms that your audience may not understand.
Comprehensiveness
Cover topics in-depth to provide thorough information and understanding.
Lexie suggests focusing on topics rather than single keywords or phrases. This comprehensive approach allows readers to get much more detailed insights than Google or other AI tools may provide.
Technical SEO
Focusing on the technical aspects of your website can help enhance visibility within SGE and make it easier for users and search crawlers to navigate, understand, and engage with your content.
Key technical SEO tasks include:
- Optimize images and minimize code to improve page speed and loading times.
- Implement schema markup to help search engines understand your content better.
- Use responsive web design so your site automatically adjusts to fit any screen size.
Diversify Your Marketing Approach
Relying solely on SEO makes your business vulnerable to changes in Google’s algorithms. A diversified marketing approach ensures that if one channel underperforms, others can compensate.
“I had a prospect come to me who only does SEO now and only wants to do SEO in the future,” said Justin Tadych, owner of E-Power Marketing. “Their current SEO isn’t great, and my fear is that any business that solely relies on one aspect of marketing is taking a big risk, especially with the unknown of SGE.”
Social Media Marketing
Invest in your social media presence to drive traffic to your website through platforms like Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn. Share content and engage with your audience through posts, stories, and live videos.
Email Marketing
Build and maintain an email list to send newsletters, promotional offers, and personalized content directly to your customers’ inboxes. Unlike search engines and social platforms, email isn’t susceptible to algorithm shifts, making it a powerful tool in your arsenal.
Paid Advertising
Digital advertising can help you stay in front of target customers even if organic traffic drops. Use paid ads on Google, social media, and other platforms to reach a larger audience and drive targeted traffic to your website.
Optimization Across Other Platforms
Google isn’t the only place people are discovering and engaging with businesses. Think beyond search engines and optimize your profiles and content across platforms like YouTube, Pinterest, Amazon, and forums like Reddit and Quora to drive qualified traffic to your website.
Let’s Tackle SGE Together
“Ultimately, staying informed about SGE updates and continuously refining strategies to match evolving search behaviors will be crucial for maintaining visibility and competitiveness in the digital landscape,” Lexie said.
We know that keeping up with all these changes can be tough, especially when you’re focused on the day-to-day of running a business. That’s why we’re here!
Our marketing experts can help you stay informed and navigate ongoing AI and search engine algorithm shifts. With more than 25 years in the industry, we’ve successfully helped clients navigate major changes and disruptions — from the rise of social media to a global pandemic — and search generative AI is no different.
If you’re seeing a decline in click-through rates or struggling to see real results from your marketing efforts, we can help. Talk with an Expert.
