What Does the Future of Google Search Mean for Your Content?
The future of search relies on three things — artificial intelligence (AI), experience, and website authority. If I’m completely honest, AI is the thing that scares me the most.
Google is using AI in its Search Generative Experience (SGE), and it’s resulting in significant changes to the search engine results page (SERP). I saw a clear example of this on one of the worst evenings of my life in early December 2023.
My chest was in terrible pain. The pain intensified each time I lay down and my husband was fearful that my heart was in distress.
I kept tossing, turning, and thinking. Something occurred to me after about 15 minutes — I’ve felt acid reflux before and this felt like something akin to really bad reflux. “Could it be heartburn?” I asked myself.
That’s when I asked my husband to search for the symptoms of heartburn. Those search results looked like what you’d expect from Google Search, as shown in the image below.
My husband and I confirmed that I was experiencing heartburn based on my symptoms.
I knew two things. First, I had to wait for the discomfort and pain to pass. Second, I never wanted to experience heartburn again.
So I asked my husband to search for “how to prevent heartburn”. What popped up next amazed me. At the top of the search results, there was a list of solutions with a dropdown arrow beside each of them. We didn’t have to scroll to the traditional search results for the answers we needed.
An example is shown below.
These search results made me question how best to help my clients increase their SERP visibility while attracting their ideal customers. I had a similar thought when I attended BrightonSEO San Diego in November 2023. There was a lot of talk about SGE and various examples of these AI-generated results were shared.
Each example highlighted how difficult it would be for websites that don't focus on customer-first content to increase their visibility. Google’s SGE makes it easier for people to find the answers they need without scrolling down the SERP. In some instances, users can input additional prompts into the AI-generated responses to get more specific answers to their queries.
It’s mind-blowing! 🤯
So search engine optimisation (SEO) on Google is no longer about getting to position one of Google Search. Instead, it’s about helping Google view your website as a trustworthy source of information, a source Google’s AI tools will pick up and highlight in featured responses.
Here are three things you should do to become a trustworthy source.
Highlight Expert Advice
Let me make one thing clear. Including expert input and revising author bios to reflect the author’s expertise aren’t the magic wands that will instantly make Google value your content. Those tactics help but they aren’t the magic solution.
Here’s the truth.
There is no magic solution. One of the talks I found interesting at Brighton SEO San Diego was Danny Sullivan’s presentation on Google Search. Danny Sullivan is the Public Liasion for Search at Google and he shared that what Google is looking for hasn’t fundamentally changed.
Google has always wanted to create the best possible search experience. That means helping people find the most trustworthy and helpful content.
What’s happening now is that Google’s algorithms are getting much better at doing that. They aren’t perfect and it’s a continuous learning process. But they are getting better.
In essence, there’s no weird SEO trick. You just have to focus on creating expert-driven content that provides valuable insights and the best user experience.
So what can you do to provide valuable, helpful insights to your target audience? I explained three possibilities in one of my LinkedIn posts shown below.
Tap into the experience and expertise of industry experts. I am a big advocate for video podcasts. They are a great way to connect with key people in your industry and they offer a massive source of content repurposing opportunities. Here’s an example of how you can create expert-driven content from podcast episodes.
Tap into the subject-matter knowledge of your team. Your team has experienced people with industry-specific experience. Share their first-hand experiences and knowledge! Some team members will be willing to create their own video or written content and have you edit it. Others will need you to schedule time to pull the information from them that you can use to create the content you need. Do what you can to make showcasing the knowledge and expertise of your team as easy as possible.
Tap into the experiences of your customers. User-generated content and case studies are important for establishing authority and trust. Create content assets that focus on your customers’ experiences and include their feedback in your blog posts where relevant.
2. Use the Power of Video
Video creation can be overwhelming, time-consuming, and scary (especially for introverts). Why should videos become part of your content strategy?
Videos are powerful. Research by Wyzowl shows that 91% of consumers want to see more online video content from brands, particularly short-form videos. Sprout Social’s 2023 Index Report reveals that 66% of consumers pay the most attention to short-form videos, 2.5 times more than longer videos.
Connection is what makes videos powerful. People can see your nonverbal cues, hear your voice, and get a better sense of your brand’s personality.
Videos are also great starting points for other forms of content such as blog posts, LinkedIn articles, and social media posts. There are many repurposing and remixing options. In fact, longer videos are great for providing in-depth explanations, for repurposing into short-form videos, and for providing the “meat” you’ll need for your repurposed assets.
Video Content Ideas
One of the biggest challenges brands face when starting out with videos is finding video content ideas. I suggest using two options when coming up with video content ideas.
First, speak with your existing customers and people who match your ICP. Dive into the challenges they’re experiencing and the areas where they need the most help. This customer research provides a solid foundation for great video content.
Second, use your keyword research tool of choice and Google Search to find the questions people frequently ask. The People Also Ask section of Google Search is particularly useful for this research. You’ll have a bank of questions that you can answer in your videos!
Bonus Video Repurposing Tips
It’s also important to embed your short-form videos into your blog posts. Google indexes one video per page. This means that only one video in your blog post will be indexed by Google if you have multiple videos on the page.
But this doesn’t mean you should only embed one of your short-form videos into your blog post. Think first about providing the best experience for your readers. Ask yourself this question each time you consider adding a video to a section of your blog post – will this video further enhance what’s being said in the article?
Also, including multiple relevant videos in your blog post helps make it more interesting and easier to digest. Someone who’s skimming through is more likely to watch the videos rather than read the text. If your videos convey the message you want to convey, the reader will still walk away learning something valuable.
Embedding videos into your blog posts can also help increase the number of followers you have on social media. For instance, the YouTube Shorts I embed into articles for my clients include a Subscribe button as shown in the image below.
So use the power of video to help your brand stand out and increase your chances of being recognised in the future of Google Search.
3. Create Clear, Concise Responses
Give clear responses to the questions you’re answering in your blog articles. The People Also Ask section of Google Search is often a good place to get examples of these clear and concise responses. Here’s an example from Clideo.
Clideo’s answer to “Can I make a blurry video clear?” starts with “To get rid of any blurriness…” The writer gets straight to the point by directly answering the question and providing a clear solution. A bonus would be to provide an example of either how Clideo’s team members make blurry videos clear or how one of Clideo’s customers uses the tool to achieve the desired result.
The Future of Google Search is All About Authentic Content
Will Google Search be AI-driven? Yes, AI is a big part of SGE and Google’s AI tool will rely on the experience and helpful content brands provide to create the best possible search experience.
Should you be worried? You should only be worried if your content isn’t based on building authority and trust. You can only have those two content features when you build your content on customer research and first-hand experiences.
Should you stop creating written content and only create videos? No, written content still has its place. Videos will further enhance your brand’s authenticity and help you connect with your ideal customers in ways written content can’t.
The future of Google Search is about trust, authority, and experience. If you need help creating a content strategy that helps your brand build authority and trust, complete the form below and I’ll reach out to you.