What is Google Looking For in 2023

Let’s be honest, Google’s main aim is always to make money, something they are very good at. And how do they do this? Most of their money is gained through advertising I believe. But to make that work, they have to get users to visit their site and start searching. That has not been a problem so far, but with things like ChatGPT coming along (which some say could replace the traditional Search Engine), they cannot rest on their laurels. In short they will only survive if they give their users what they want. Which leads nicely on to what the people using Google want? So what do users want when they use Google? There are many reasons people go on to Google. In many cases, they are looking for solutions, whether that is a product or a service. But, and this is important, the way people search and shop is changing. Did you know that employers check Social Media? You may have heard that employers are looking at the Social Media posts of potential employees to ensure they are a good fit for the business. If they fail this ‘test’ they simply do not get on the interview shortlist. The thing is this process seems to be spreading to every ‘purchase’ people and businesses are making these days. They are not just searching Social Media posts either. Rather, they are using Google to find out who could help them and then go on to check them out in detail. People don’t just find these ‘solution providers’ by looking for say a ‘swimming pool installer’ either. No, they also look for answers to questions like ‘what is the best type of swimming pool’, or ‘is a concrete or plastic pool the best?’ This is an important point, as answering such questions offers an entirely different route to making contact with that potential customer. And as you provide answers to their questions, it means that they are more likely to put you on their shortlist. This is not new, but there is a different light being shone on this area now, as more and more people are looking for suppliers that really do seem to know what they are talking about before picking up the phone or writing an email. Businesses must change in line with people’s search and shopping methods The upshot of this is that unless businesses change and start providing really useful information on their websites, they will lose out to those that do, because they will not get on that shortlist… And with this in mind, we have to go back to Mr Google. You see, if people are searching for sites that really provide answers to questions, it must mean that they want to see a list of such sites when they search on Google. And, if this is indeed a fact, it means that Google must change the way it ranks sites so that it lists the pages that people want. Otherwise, people could start to use other methods, and that would cost Google a LOT of money. Why Swimming Pools? Oh, and by the way, why did I use swimming pools as an example? The answer is simple, as the chap who brought this new purchasing method to the notice of the World is called Marcus Sheridan. His book ‘They Ask You Answer‘, telling the story of how he turned his swimming pool company around using this same methodology. Using it, he got 10,000s of visits to his site and what is more converted them because they trusted his company and knew, because of all the information that it provided, that it offered a good solution to their needs. Please read the book The whole process covers more than just website copy, of course (you will have to read his book for the full story), but when it comes to SEO it shows that it is the website content that is going be even more important in 2023, for the simple fact that Google will be looking more and more to list the ‘solution providers’ that really do seem to know what they are talking about. I gather from talking to some SEO Gurus that there is a relatively unknown Google system of rating domains. I don’t think it has a name, but the best one I can come up with is ‘Google Domain Quality Score’ (which is not the same as the “Quality Score” in Adwords). To summarise, people’s method of ‘purchasing’ is changing and they are using the power of Google to create their shortlists. And the way businesses will get on that shortlist is to prove that they can help, by providing the answers to the questions their potential customers have. Answer the questions that your potential customers ask This means to survive that, Google must also change its ranking algorithm, and that, in turn, means that website owners must change their websites to ensure that they really do prove that they know what they are talking about, and one of the best ways of doing this is to answer the questions their customers have in an honest and informative way. To summarise the summary, if you want to get listed on Google (or keep the listings that you have) you will need to start answering those questions. If you don’t, you could well run into trouble in the future. If you want to discuss this please call me or email me graham@somltd.co.uk

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