For virtually all companies, ranking high is crucial for sustained business growth. Right now, Google is in the process of implementing SGE. So, what is Search Generative Experience, or SGE, which is planned to roll out broadly before summer?
SGE is Google’s biggest update since the launch of Google in 1998. Simplified, it’s a combination of the classic Google experience and an equivalent to Chat GPT. Basically – AI that summarizes information from search results. For consumers, it’s a much better experience than the current Google, as information is compiled for you, with the improvement that you no longer need to click through the search results; instead, information is summarized and presented back to you with the help of AI. You can also ask follow-up questions to refine your search.
To get a better understanding, we contacted AI SEO expert Erik Wikander at Zupyak and asked a few questions.
What will it mean when this is widely rolled out by Google?
It will affect different verticals in different ways, but in short, it will place higher demands on content. It is predicted that most traffic will end up with the highest-ranked results in the search results (1-3), unlike today, where content that is currently in position 4 or worse also gets a fair amount of traffic.
How will the SaaS industry and other B2B services be affected by this?
If you are dependent on organic traffic to acquire new customers, there is a risk that you will lose traffic on a certain type of content. At the same time, it also creates an opportunity to quickly capture niche traffic. The same principles that applied yesterday will apply today; it’s about establishing your company as an expert in your field. If you succeed in doing that, you can benefit greatly from this change.
What does a company need to consider/do to avoid risking losing traffic/business?
Start looking at how you perform organically today, how much of your content is in position 4 or worse. This will give you a hint of how you might be affected. If you haven’t already done so, start structured work on your organic content, starting with a search behavior analysis. Understanding search behavior and the topics you want to own is the first step, followed by creating content optimized for search behavior.
Erik’s 3 best tips for preparing for the arrival of SGE:
- Assess the implications of the shift to SGE by looking at which of your content ranks 4 or worse on search engines today.
- If you haven’t already, start working on search behavior analysis and create a plan for which markets, topics, and keywords you want to own.
- Review your existing content and ensure that it is of sufficiently high quality and matches the search behavior you want to address. Then start creating new and great content based on search behavior to take advantage of the shift!
Do you like to know how we can help you address this upcoming challenge? Get in touch today!
