Google Decluttering The First Results Page – What This Means for Featured Snippets
Google recently announced that pages that earn a featured snippet will no longer repeat as a regular listing on the first page search results.
If you’re unfamiliar with what featured snippets are, they’re selected search results that are featured on top of Google’s organic results, right below the ads. Featured snippets are in a box and aim to answer the user’s question right away, which is great for brand exposure in search results.
This change not only affects featured snippet owners, but those in competition with featured snippet owners. For featured snippet owners, this change means that their URL will only appear once on the first page of Google, instead of getting two listings. For those who aren’t utilizing featured snippets, this means that their competition will no longer show up twice.
Although Google is prohibiting a business from appearing twice on the first page of results if they have a featured snippet, they can still show up at the top of the second page.
The featured snippets will be counted as one of the ten organic listings shown on the first page of Google results. By keeping an eye out on rankings and traffic to your site, you should be able to get a read on how your business is adjusting to this change.
Featured Results on Google
Potential clients approach us with wanting a featured results on Google. It is possible to get a featured result, but more importantly ranking for the 1st page is ideal. Position zero is what we call the featured snippet or result with Google. Google made a change to position zero that can be clicked on less and we’ve watched some clients lose traffic due to this. Give us a call or contact us if you are looking for ways to get a featured result on Google, we can help!
A Look at The Digital Marketing Benefits of Google Search Console
As a leader in national SEO and digital marketing we leverage the Google Search Console for data within our future strategy for our clients. The Google Search Console is a combination of Google SEO tools. Google Search Console has different data and configuration controls that help boost your website. There are also multiple visitor metrics. The Search Console gives you an insight into Google’s opinion of your website. You can check your site for any errors or broken pages. You can also receive messages from Google concerning your website. You’ll be notified if there is a potential security issues or malware outbreak. You can also use Google Search Console to add deep linking features to your app. Here is a look at some of the additional ways that Google Search Console can assist your digital marketing efforts.
Site Links
Site Links help people browse your website. The Site Links are automatically generated by Google. They are considered shortcuts to direct pages.
Search Traffic
The Search Traffic feature gives you access to important information such as the number of impressions, the keyword search phrases Google served your site and your average search engine rankings for a specific keyword. You can also view your hidden link structure.
Analytics
You can view analytics that show how your website is performing based on the organic search traffic generated through Google. You’ll receive access to the most popular devices, pages, and queries. Google Search Console also allows you to segment traffic through using different filters. You can segment your organic traffic based on your business objectives. You can use the analytics feature to view new opportunities and trends.
Internal Links
View the Internal Links breakdown to look at the pages with the most links from inside of your website. If the impressions are consistent, but you are noticing a lack of clicks, that is a sign that something is wrong. Test out some new description tags.
Content Keywords
The Content Keyword feature lets you view the most popular keywords founds on your website. This helps you ensure that the vision of your website content according to Google aligns with your small business objectives.
Crawl Stats
The Crawl Stats feature allows you to view the number of pages during the allowable reporting period of around 3 months. Analyze the Crawl Stats to identify website performance issues.
Link Multiplier
When you go to the Search Traffic section, you’ll be able to view the top linked pages. Check to see if the listed content is trending. If the content is currently in demand, use it to connect with bloggers and other influencers.
Digital Marketing Trends for 2020
The new decade is a great time to start setting goals for your digital marketing. You will want to use a variety of different methods to keep your brand in front of your target audience at all times. Therefore, you will want to consider these digital marketing trends for 2020.
Social Media Marketing
With people creating five new profiles every second on Facebook, your customers must find your company on this social media platform throughout the coming year. The most common demographic for Facebook is between 25 and 34 years old. You also need to determine which other social media sites your target audience is using, and make sure that your target audience finds your digital marketing on these platforms, including those like Snapchat that goes away after a few seconds. You can expect niche social media sites to become even more prominent throughout the coming year. SEO Locale can help you with your future social media management.
Pay Per Click Advertising
One of the most significant changes that you need to embrace throughout the coming year in your PPC advertising is to use hyper-specific landing pages. This will work in your favor in at least two ways. First, Google rewards pages that they find highly relevant to their perception of the user’s intent. Secondly, conversion rates are higher when buyers find exactly the content, they are looking for immediately on your page. Paid advertising management can help you get the boost you need immediately compared to SEO that takes some time to kick in.
YouTube Advertising
Most companies find that their conversion rate with YouTube advertising is 2.5 % higher than with other digital marketing techniques. This is especially true if your target audience is under 35. You will want to use short bumper ads that are less than 15 seconds. Make sure you are working with a professional team that can deliver your message in a very creative way. Our team at SEO Locale can help you create the multimedia you need to start your effective advertising.
Email Marketing
One of the hottest trends for 2020 will be the use of videos in emails. Remember, however, that not all providers show videos in emails, so be sure to include a link to it. The use of AI to personalize emails this year will continue to be significant. Try incorporating the user’s past behavior into your subject line to increase open rates. Email marketing can be difficult so keep in mind to segment your list out so it is getting to the right people.
Website
One of the trends for 2020 that you will see on many websites is the use of voice-assisted search to help users find answers very quickly. You will want to create some professional videos for your site that reflect your company’s voice because they are memorable and help set you apart from your competitors. You need to be very open with your pricing while pointing out why customers get great value when shopping on your site. Make sure that you are always offering excellent customer service directly from your website.
These are just a few of the trends that you will want to embrace in 2020. Contact us today to get started on your marketing for this new decade.
