What’s New in Universal Search: 2016 Edition

What’s New in Universal Search 2016 Edition

Presented by Holly MillerProfessional Service Manager

Searchmetrics

#SEJThinkTank@searchmetrics

@millertime_baby

• We are an SEO & Content Optimization platform with our own data (Research Cloud)

A data and knowledge repository that contains over 250 billion data elements that are continuously updated like keywords, search topics, social and PPC data—reaching back to 2009. • Variety of customers (F500, enterprise, e-

commerce)• Established in 2005


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Who is Searchmetrics?

• Professional Service Manager • Expertise in SEO & holistic

brand marketing• Fun fact: I went on a safari! “Today, capturing search intent is about fitting in and standing out. That means being visible on page one in a variety of ways.”


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Who is Holly Miller?


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But first, some housekeeping itemsBrought to you by this zebra…

3,000,000,000searches per day #SEJThinkTank

@searchmetrics@millertime_baby

Universal Search shows SEO is not deadGoogle is the gatekeeper to online information


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Searchmetrics Universal & Extended Search StudyBlending in yet standing out

http://www.searchmetrics.com/knowledge-base/universal-search-study/


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3 Major TrendsSearchmetrics Universal & Extended Search Study

Extended Search are

traffic opportunities

Number of Organic Search results is less

More boxes in the SERP

Smartphone & Desktop differ

1. The original 10 organic search results have now become 8.5

2. Google is integrating an increasing number of boxes within in the search results

3. There are significant differences between the results for Smartphones and desktop

The study outlines strategies for exploiting the traffic opportunity to rank for the various Extended Search boxes.


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10 Organic search results now become 8.5From Blue Links to Boxes

Google’s classic-looking SERP

consisted of primarily 10 “blue links”emphasized by descriptions and an URL

Deemphasizing Right Rail Ads

bringing the desktop more in line with what’s visible on a mobile screen (more than half of Google searches originate on mobile )

designed to allow searchers to quickly glean a direct answer or provide a related question to the search query

Rich Answer Boxes

1. Knowledge Graph2. Direct Answer3. Twitter Cards4. Maps


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Audience Poll 1Which one is not an Extended Search element?


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More Boxes = more opportunity

1. Maps2. News3. Images4. Videos5. Product Listing Ads (PLA)

Four most common Universal Search boxes (+5th Element):

Universal Search integrations dominatethe majority of search queries

80% of searches now include at least one form of images, videos, news, or maps


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Differences between Universal & Extended Search

Direct Answer

Related Questions

Knowledge Graph

Carousel (Image)

Twitter Cards

App Packs (Mobile)

Extended Search(elements began 2012)

Images

Videos

News

Maps

Universal Search(integrations began 2007)


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Between the two, where’s the real opportunity?

Images Yes

Videos Yes

News Yes

Maps Yes

Direct Answer No markup language

Related Questions

No markup language

Knowledge Graph

Yes

Carousel No markup language

Twitter Cards No markup language

App Pack No markup language

Universal Search Extended Search

“Yes” indicates markup language (like Schema.org) can be applied.

92%of Business Purchases

start with Search


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People are asking questions…a lot of questions!Search is the starting point for purchases

B2C B2B81%

of Shoppers Research Online before buying

Source: Forrester/ Internet Retailer B2B Buying And Selling Online Survey Source: Adweek/ +GE Capital Retail Bank’s Major Purchase Shopper Study


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Extended Search – the real SEO opportunity

1. Direct Answer/ Fact Box2. Related Questions3. Knowledge graph4. Carousel (Image) 5. Twitter Cards6. App Packs (Mobile)

Element Overview:


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Direct Answers – the sweet spot

EARNING these rankings is challenging because …

• Markup language is not yet applicable to these elements (*thus far)

• It’s based on Google's analysis of the organic result.

Out of all Extended Search elements, the Direct Answer & Related Questions are a prime opportunity to optimize for SEO rankings


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Direct Answer boxes = SEO opportunity

Content that answers specific questions which users type into Google is likely to be featured here.

Pro: Earning prominent visibility above organic results and the opportunity to receive a click.

Con: Not actually receiving the click.


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SEO optimization tips

Linking & Content quality signals: “E-A-T”Expertise, Authoritative, Trustworthy

When Google “sees” that the domain itself has links to relevant pages on the subject and is linked to by other sources of quality, it translates into signals of trustworthiness and authority.

Structured pages involve the use of headings and subheadings, bullet points or numbered lists, and paragraphs which contribute to the overall positive user experience and make it easier for Google to potentially extract information relevant to a search query.

Direct Answer & Related Questions


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Related Questions – 2nd SEO opportunity

Answers can also surface midway through the desktop SERP in the form of Related Questions as “People Also Asked” box

1. Mobile2. Desktop3. I don’t know


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Audience Poll 2Which device contributes the most organic traffic to your domain:

Mobile or desktop?


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Results can vary – Mobile vs. DesktopDirect Answers are more likely to appear on Desktop

Different device types will trigger different types of Universal and Extended Search Elements. Therefore, Online marketers should take note which devices their target group uses for searches and strategically design their content before they start work on optimizations.

Searchmetrics data shows Google primarily responds with a Direct Answer to queries that involve “How” and “What.”


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Results can vary – Mobile vs. DesktopMobile Device Prompts Apps

Mobile searches trigger Direct Answer boxes less frequently than desktop. App packs (when applicable) are more likely to be served up.

Having data around mobile queries will indicate which mobile pages you should to optimize for these queries.

1. Videos2. Images3. News4. Maps


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Audience Poll 3If you are currently optimizing for Universal Search integrations,

which are you most heavily optimizing for?


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Key Takeaways

Extended Search are

traffic opportunities

Number of Organic Search results is less

More boxes in the SERP

Smartphone & Desktop differ

1. Traditional Organic search text listings are fewer, but there are more opportunities to appear within “boxes” if you can directly answer the question.

2. Related Questions, Twitter Cards, and App Packs are also prominent opportunities to rank on page 1 organically.

3. Different devices prompt different types of searches. Knowing the search intent will guide optimization strategies.

Searchmetrics Universal & Extended Search Study

http://www.searchmetrics.com/knowledge-base/universal-search-study/


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Measure success with The Searchmetrics Suite

Keyword Rankings returning a Universal Search or Extended Search integration


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The End

Questions? Email us at [email protected]


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Image Attribution

Image attribution credits by Holly Miller

What’s New in Universal Search: 2016 Edition

Marketing

Transcript of What’s New in Universal Search: 2016 Edition