SEO Rankings Debate: Did Google Just Change SEO Traffic?

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(You might also be interested in my previous post on increasing your traffic generation with Scribe SEO plugin.)

It’s certainly no news that Google has recently completely redesigned its Search Engine Results Pages (SERPs).

Yes, Google gave searchers more options and ways to find what they are looking for.

However, what does it mean for us, online business owners, and how will the new changes affect SEO rankings and our traffic generation strategies?

There is nothing new in the “new” search options; as a matter of fact, they were available for about a year now, but they were never so “in the face” of a user.

Now that the options are so prominent, searchers are more likely to use them. By going to different options Google provides them, they will be directed to different sets of results.

Will the new SERPs shake up our SEO traffic generation efforts?

What it will come down to is evaluating all the different options for any given search (classic Google results, blogs, books, images, news, maps, videos, and updates from real-time search), choosing which ones you would like to rank for and focusing your traffic generation efforts on those.

Here are a few opinions of search engine marketing experts as to whether the new options will affect SEO:

Bill Slawski of SEO By the Sea says:

“Web Options have the potential to impact SEO by offering a much wider range of ways to find information. Whether or not they will may have to do with whether or not searchers will take the time to click on the ‘show options’ link, and explore the many new ways that they can find what they may be looking for.”

Lee Odden of Top Rank Online Marketing says:

“Yes! But it doesn’t change the SEO advice we give: fresh content, digital asset SEO…”

Bill Hartzer, commenting on an SEOmoz post:

“From what I am seeing, the ‘search engine optimization’ industry is actually turning back around to what it used to be: good old fashioned website marketing.

It’s not only ‘optimizing a website’ and ‘getting links.’

SEO is involving more nowadays: you have to get your site in front of real people and real traffic.

It’s also about using social media marketing techniques, as well. If you’re successful in social media you’ll be successful in search. If you can get lots of real people to a site then you’ll be successful in SEO.”

Allow me to sum it up: IT’S ALL ABOUT OPTIMIZING FOR PEOPLE.

That’s all the search engines have ever wanted, and the searchers ever wanted out of content - to easily find what they are looking for.

All you have to do is HELP THEM FIND YOU.

Here are some opinions from the Google users - basically, our target audience - on the new design:

I keep the basic google search (not igoogle) as my homepage. A few days ago I noticed that the logo and text input box have changed (lowercase g and j both don’t fit in the box). I was mildly annoyed… Why did google decide to copy everything from the top bar and paste it into a sidebar that not only takes up a good chunk of the results screen to show me the exact same ‘more’ button that is available three and a half inches up and to the right? I would love to give my feedback and probably ask for a way to revert to how it was. At the risk of sounding like a spoiled two year old, I don’t like it!

How do i get rid of the “+everything +more +show search tools” going down the side of my google search page?!?!?!?!?!? It’s new. it just appeared today. and i don’t want it there anymore. please tell me there is a way.

I hate hate hate hate hate this sidebar. The entire reason I use google exclusively over every other search engine and have since its inception is how open and clean the layout is and how my search results are squished to oblivion by an awful sidebar that displays exactly zero relevant information for me. Pro-Tip. When I use the search, the information I want to see is the results of the search. Not a million other tabs. I use google for search results. And while I respect the attempt to mix things up please do not make this a mandatory thing and give users an option to turn this off.

If this kind of user opinions keep pouring in, will Google stand firm on its decision? Or will they come up with something even more “brilliant”?

My point is - time never stands still and neither does SEO rankings or traffic generation in general.

Things will always change and those who stay on top of the new changes (i.e. YOU since you are reading this article) will always stay on top of SEO rankings.

One more important point I’d like to bring home: noticed the new ‘UPDATES’ option?

In the past, there were very few instances in which you would stumble upon real-time search in action, maybe some news-related inquiries.

The new SERP interface makes real-time search a part of ANY given search, which makes it a much bigger deal for SEO rankings.

Social engagements have just become even more important.

What is comes down to is that

Targeted Traffic = Where You’re Ranking in Google

Your SEO rankings and the amount of traffic you’ll generate from Google now directly depends on WHERE you rank in Google. It is logical to assume that traffic to the sites listed in any of Google’s different search engines will increase.

Your are right: you don’t have to comment or retweet, but would it help if I told you it would be much appreciated?

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