the evolution of google's serps and effects on user behaviour

INTRODUCTION• What is Google’s “Golden Triangle”?• Why was the study conducted?• Eye-tracking explained

KEY TAKEAWAYS • What we learned• Implications for businesses• Benchmarking click-through-rates

IMPORTANT INFORMATION • Download the full study• Submit a question

Angie DzwonkiewiczSenior Manager, Direct Marketing

Ian EverdellManager, UX and Research

WHAT WE WILL COVER

• The Golden Triangle is an area of concentrated gaze activity at the top left corner of the search results page.

• It was first discovered by Enquiro* in a 2005 ground breaking study.

• Generally speaking, if your listing was not in the Golden Triangle, your odds of being seen by a searcher are dramatically reduced.

WHAT IS GOOGLE’S GOLDEN TRIANGLE?

* Enquiro became part of Mediative in 2010.

GOOGLE SERPS: 2005 VS. 2014

WHAT WE WANTED TO KNOW

HOW THE STUDY WAS CONDUCTED

Example search task:“Imagine you are moving from Toronto to Vancouver and are looking for an apartment. Use Google to find apartments for rent.”

We tracked movement of the eyes across the SERP, and where the final click took place.

EYE TRACKING EXPLAINED

SERP = Search Engine Results Page.

• Little cameras take pictures of the eyes while the participants looks at the computer screen.

• Captures where participants do and do not look on the page.

• Measures attentional capture and engagement.

• In this study, eye tracking provides us with evidence of which results form the consideration set.

Where searchers have been conditioned to look has changed. 1

WHAT WE LEARNED

WHAT WE LEARNED

• SEO strategy is no longer a one-size-fits-all approach.• Branding opportunities exist—even if a click is not captured.

What this means to businesses: 1

WHAT WE LEARNED

• SEO strategy is no longer a one-size-fits-all approach.• Branding opportunities exist—even if a click is not captured.• Businesses must be visible where there will be the biggest impact

on branding and traffic.

What this means to businesses: 1

People are viewing more search results listings during a single session and spending less time viewing each (1.17 seconds/listing).

WHAT WE LEARNED

Now more than ever, searchers are conditioned by mobile to scan vertically.

2014 2005

2

WHAT WE LEARNED

• Front load relevant content in both organic and sponsored listings. • Keywords, meta descriptions, content, ratings and reviews, Google

+ Local Optimization are all critical SEO components. • Proper code markup (i.e. schema) should be used wherever

possible to provide more detail in the search listing.

What this means to businesses: 2

WHAT WE LEARNED

• 4th organic listing• 26% of page clicks• 15% of time spent on the page

Businesses that are positioned lower on the SERP (especially positions 2-4) will see more click activity than several years ago.

Prime organic real estate is shifting further down the page, and it’s worth much more.

WHAT WE LEARNED

3

WHAT WE LEARNED

• The importance of a business being the first listing vs. on the first page is dependent on the searcher’s intent, plus brand strength.

• The top organic spot can be difficult to obtain, especially for businesses that are competing with big brands.

• Understanding searcher intent can help determine how much should be invested in trying to appear higher up in the SERP.

What this means to businesses: 3

Informational search:

WHAT WE LEARNED

Navigational search:

4x more clicks

below the 4th organic listing.

1

WHAT WE LEARNED

It’s not always about getting to the #1 listing in Google. Businesses must focus on traffic and ranking in tandem—not in isolation—by putting effort into appearing in multiple areas of SERP.

In summary…

2 A solid, user-focused content strategy is much more robust than simply chasing the algorithm.

1KEY IMPLICATIONS FOR SPECIFIC TYPES OF BUSINESSES

• Searchers actively seek out big name brands, even if they are listed further down the SERP. For big name brands, it’s not critical to be the #1 listing.

• Smaller brands, even if they achieve 1st place organic ranking, cannot be guaranteed traffic.

National Advertisers

KEY IMPLICATIONS FOR SPECIFIC TYPES OF BUSINESSES

• There is the opportunity to appear in several areas of the SERP, maximizing screen real estate that is taken up.

• An essential element to a local SEO strategy is building website content that the searcher will find useful, and that will match a local searcher’s keywords and intent. Local searches often include regional/city modifiers.

Local Businesses2

KEY IMPLICATIONS FOR SPECIFIC TYPES OF BUSINESSES

• Publishers rely heavily on unique visitors to pages on their site, and are likely to be negatively impacted by the knowledge graph.

• Publishers must take SEO seriously if they want to achieve a high organic ranking, and minimize the decline in organic traffic.

Online Publishers3

BENCHMARKING CLICK-THROUGH RATES: 2005 VS. 2014

Listing Position 2005 CTR 2014 CTR Top #1 Sponsored Ad 9.4% 9.9%Top #2 Sponsored Ad 4.7% 4.6%Total Top 2 Sponsored 14.1% 14.5%Top #1 Organic Listing 32.3% 32.8%Top #2 Organic Listing 3.6% 11.8%Top #3 Organic Listing 5.7% 10.7%Top #4 Organic Listing 6.2% 7.3%Top 4 Organic 47.8% 62.6%Total Organic 56.7% 74.6%Above 4th Organic Listing 67.6% 84%

BENCHMARKING CLICK-THROUGH RATES: 2005 VS. 2014

Download the Full Study at:

https://www.mediative.com/SERP