Post on 07-Jan-2017
Rand Fishkin, Wizard of Moz | @randfish | rand@moz.com
Fight Back Against BackWhy the back button has become web marketing’s
greatest enemy (and how to defeat it)
Slides online atbit.ly/backenemy
Let’s Go Back to 2012…
Keywords, content, links, and a
crawlable site could get you here…
And keep you there.
Even if the experience users had wasn’t superb, so long as you
could outearnyour competitors’ links, you were likely to stay on top
On Facebook, the likes and shares
determined how often you’d be in
the news feed of your fans.
On Twitter, visibility was entirely
determined by publication time.
In 2012, we only had to worry
about the path to conversion
and CRO on our own sites.
We could let audiences self-
select out of these phases
after an initial visit without
fear of repercussions
If putting a price here meant 80%
of visitors left, no problem. So
long as the more qualified ones
(those we really wanted) stayed,
we were doing our jobs.
What Happened that Made 2016 so Different?
Google Moved to Learning Algorithms
Early On, Google Rejected Machine Learning in the Organic Ranking Algo
Via Datawocky, 2008
Amit Singhal Shared Norvig’s Concerns About ML
Via Quora
In 2012, Google Published a Paper About How they Use ML to Predict Ad CTRs:
Via Google
2012
“Our SmartASS system is a
machine learning system. It
learns whether our users are
interested in that ad, and
whether users are going to
click on them.”
By 2013, It Was Something Google’s Search Folks Talked About Publicly
Via SELand
In October of 2015, they finally revealed RankBrain, an AI-system input to the search rankings
Via Bloomberg Business
As ML Takes Over More of Google’s Algo, the Underpinnings of the Rankings Change
Via Colossal
Google is Public About How They Use ML in Image Recognition & Classification
Potential ID Factors
(e.g. color, shapes, gradients,
perspective, interlacing, alt
tags, surrounding text, etc)
Training Data(i.e. human-labeled images)
Learning Process
Best Match Algo
Google is Public About How They Use ML in Image Recognition & Classification
Via Jeff Dean’s Slides on Deep Learning; a Must Read for SEOs
Machine Learning in Search Could Work Like This:
Potential Ranking Factors
(e.g. PageRank, TF*IDF,
Topic Modeling, QDF, Clicks,
Entity Association, etc.)
Training Data(i.e. good & bad search results)
Learning Process
Best Fit Algo
Training Data(e.g. good search results)
This is a good SERP – searchers
rarely bounce, rarely short-
click, and rarely need to enter
other queries or go to page 2.
Training Data(e.g. bad search results!)
This is a bad SERP –
searchers bounce often, click
other results, rarely long-
click, and try other queries.
They’re definitely not happy.
The Machines Learn to Emulate the Good Results & Try to Fix or Tweak the Bad Results
Potential Ranking Factors
(e.g. PageRank, TF*IDF,
Topic Modeling, QDF, Clicks,
Entity Association, etc.)
Training Data(i.e. good & bad search results)
Learning Process
Best Fit Algo
Deep Learning is Even More Advanced:
Dean says by using deep
learning, they don’t have to tell
the system what a cat is, the
machines learn, unsupervised,
for themselves…
We’re Talking About Algorithms that Build Algorithms(without human
intervention)
Googlers Don’t Feed in Ranking Factors… The Machines Determine Those Themselves.
Potential Ranking Factors
(e.g. PageRank, TF*IDF,
Topic Modeling, QDF, Clicks,
Entity Association, etc.)
Training Data(i.e. good search results)
Learning Process
Best Fit Algo
Last October, Google Finally Went Public with Their Use of ML-Based RankBrain
Via Bloomberg Business
And RankBrain is Clearly Important:
Via Bloomberg Business
Google Leverages the Outputs from RankBrainDespite Not Knowing for Sure What It Uses:
Via SERoundtable
Google’s AI Just Keeps Growing in Power…
Via The Verge
No wonder these guys are stressed about Google unleashing the Terminators J
Via CNET & Washington Post
But Google Isn’t Alone
Facebook’s VisibilityAlgorithms
Via Slate
Machine learning based on
engagement determines
what appears in our
Facebook News Feeds
Twitter’s Emerging Visibility Plan
Twitter’s new home
screen will work the
same way –
highlighting the “most
important” (aka “most
engaged-with”) tweets
from accounts you
follow
Via Mashable
Instagram’s New Algorithmic Feed
announced the
change March 15th
saying they will
“take their time to
get this right.”
Via Mashable
Engagement is Becoming the Web’s Universal
Quality Metric
Google Suggest
The order of suggestions is
based on engagement w/
those queries
Chrome Autocomplete
Ordered by what I (and
others) have engaged
with most that contain
these letters
Google Maps & Local Results
Search volume, driving
directions, and SERP
engagement are all
elements of local rankings
Social Networks’ “Trending” Content
Suggested Accounts to Follow
What’s “Important” in Gmail
If lots of folks ignore,
delete, or report spam on
your emails, you won’t get
this label anymore
Sites & Brands Earn an Engagement Reputation
that Determines Visibility
Quantity of Posts/Emails/ Pieces of Content/ Rankings/etc
Quantity of clicks/likes/shares/reactions/etc
EngagementReputation=
Every Time a Visitor Clicks that Back Button, It Saps Away at our Reputation
How Do We Fight Back Against Back?
Understand & Serve All of Your Visitors’ Intents#1
Don’t Just Ask “Who is My Customer?”
Via Moz
Ask “What Are All the Needs of These Searchers?” Then Serve As Many as Possible
You might be trying to sell desks, but searchers
are seeking answers to all of these and more.
If the Competition Delivers Value to Searchers Who Aren’t Buyers, But You Don’t…
They’re Likely to Win the Engagement Battle
Via JustStand.org
Outearn Your Ranking’s Avg. Clickthrough Rate#2
Optimize the Title, Meta Description, & URLa Little for Keywords, but a Lot for Clicks
If you rank #3, but have a higher-
than-average CTR for that position,
you might get moved up.
Via Philip Petrescu on Moz
Every Element Counts Does the title match
what searchers want?
Does the URL seem
compelling?
Do searchers
recognize & want to
click your domain?
Is your result fresh?
Do searchers want a
newer result?
Does the description
create curiosity &
entice a click?
Do you get the
brand dropdown?
Given Google Often Tests New Results Briefly on Page One…
It May Be Worth Repeated Publication on a Topic to Earn that High CTR
Shoot! My post only made it to #15…
Perhaps I’ll try again in a few months.
Driving Up CTR Through Branding Or Branded Searches May Give An Extra Boost
#1 Ad Spender
#2 Ad Spender
#4 Ad Spender
#3 Ad Spender
#5 Ad Spender
With Google
Trends’ new, more
accurate, more
customizable
ranges, you can
actually watch the
effects of events
and ads on search
query volume
Fitbit was running ads on Sunday
NFL games that clearly show in the
search trends data.
Optimize Signal:NoiseRatio on Every Channel#3
Better Content > More Content
A lot of SEO used to be about establishing
authority through brute quantity, but Panda,
and now Rankbrain, are changing that.
Better Social Shares > More Social Shares
Via Rand’s Facebook Page
When I have a successful
post on Facebook, it boosts
Facebook’s likelihood to
show my posts in the future…
Better Social Shares > More Social Shares
High engagement grows
my reach potential.
Low engagement shrinks
my reach potential.
Better Emails > More Emails
Via Pinpointe.com
Better Emails > More Emails
Via CrazyEgg.com
Better Rankings >More Rankings
A brand that consistently gets on page 1
but isn’t holding searchers’ interest or
develops a negative brand reputation in
SERPs may find those page 1 rankings are
hurting their ability to get #1 rankings!
Put User Experience First in Your Marketing#4
Speed, speed, and more speed
Delivers an easy, enjoyable experience on every device
Compels visitors to engage, share, & return
Avoids features that dissuade or annoy visitors
Authoritative, comprehensive content that’s uniquely
valuable vs. what anyone else in your space provides
The Marketer’s User Experience Checklist
Uniquely Valuable Content
Via R2D3
Lots of articles try to explain machine learning, but this
one SHOWS how it works in a way anyone can grasp.
Speed, Speed, and More Speed
Via Moz
Easy, Enjoyable Experience on Every Device
Via CNN
Via CNN
Easy, Enjoyable Experience on Every Device
Engagement, Sharing, & Repeat Visits
Via Meshable.io
Nothing That Dissuades Or
Annoys Visitors
Ads, more ads, distractions,
and no salary numbers? It’s a
miracle they rank at all.
This might convert more visitors to email subscribers, but it
might also convert many more visitors to back-button-clickers J
Cyrus May Have Gone a Little Overboard…
Via Cyrus on Twitter
Craft Compelling CTAs at the Top of the Funnel#5
Top-of-Funnel Content Can’t Be Used Solely to Filter Out the Non-Customers
Trying to rank w/ content
that only serves one niche
of your search audience
may be a recipe for failure
Fighting Against Back Means Serving a Broader Audience
AngelList’stool makes
salary comparison
easy, fast, and serves a
huge range of roles,
locations, and markets
Via AngelList
Or, Getting More Precise with Your Search Query -> Content Targeting
By targeting a less
competitive, lower volume
query, Compass can reach
the audience they’re seeking
Either Way, Engagement Metrics on Content Must Become KPIs
Improving Pages/Session and
lowering Bounce Rate should
probably play a “link-building-
like” role in your SEO arsenal
Our Content CTAs Deserve to Be Customized, Tested, & Refined
(just like conversion-focused landing pages)
e.g. I bet I could make a
better CTA for the
comparison tool than
this (which looks far too
much like an ad IMO)
Via Talkpay (Comparably’s Blog)
Welcome to 2016: A World of Engagement-Based Reputation
The Machines Are Judging Us…
Let’s Show ‘EmWhat We Got.
Fight Back Against Back.
Rand Fishkin, Wizard of Moz | @randfish | rand@moz.com
Bit.ly/backenemy