UNIVERSAL SEARCH 2018

Transcription

1 2018 SEARCHMETRICS WHITEPAPER UNIVERSAL SEARCH 2018 It's a Mobile World After All AUTHORS Jan Grundmann Stephen Bench-Capon

2 "We inhabit a universe that is characterized by diversity." Desmond Tutu, South African theologian In an AI-first world, interactions become even more seamless and natural. Sundar Pichai, Google CEO 2

3 Table of Contents 1. Executive Summary How Universal Search Influences your Mobile Strategy The Top Universal Search Integrations for Online Marketers...12 Number of Organic Results...13 Images...14 Knowledge Graph...15 Google Shopping...16 Google Adwords...17 Direct Answers...18 News...19 AMP and News Integrations...20 Maps...21 Videos...22 Mobile Apps The Diversity of Universal Search Infographic: Mobile Trends in Universal Search Results at a Glance

4 Executive Summary The term "Universal Search" refers to media, information and other links that Google displays in addition to the classic organic search results.the first extensions came from Google s other vertical search engines: images, maps, news, videos and shopping. Today, there are hundreds of different universal search integrations, the most important of which are presented in this report. After a year s hiatus, Searchmetrics Universal Search study returns to examine big trends in Universal Search. As Google begins its long-awaited Mobile-First transition, we find it is indeed a Mobile World after all. Changes there are coming fast and furious. The number of organic results on the first screen is declining, but searches from mobile devices and voice searches are on the rise. Maximizing the potential of universal search on mobile is a core part of online optimization. ORGANIC LINKS ON 1 ST PAGE Desktop 8.7 Mobile 8.5 The smaller screens on mobile devices mean that universal search integrations are displayed more prominently than their desktop counterparts. This study shows which universal search integrations are the most common pointing to where optimization can be most effective. Images and videos remain important, and our analysis has also found a huge increase in the use of knowledge graph integrations. Optimizing for direct answers, also known as featured snippets, could become essential to online success in 2018 not only because of the increase in mobile traffic, but because of the growth of voice search on smart speaker devices, which often read out the answer from the website occupying this coveted position. Any online business looking at search traffic should make optimizing for key universal search integrations an important part of its strategy. The organic traffic coming from the ten blue links is falling. In desktop search results on Google.com, there are now just 8.7 organic links; on mobile, just

5 How Universal Search Influences your Mobile Strategy Whether you are searching on mobile or desktop, the classic organic search results are accompanied by a wide range of Universal Search integrations. However, this does not mean that the search results pages are the same on all devices. On mobile devices, the smaller screen and the large number of integrations mean that the classic organic search results are less visible. Users often have to scroll down several times before seeing any organic links. To increase mobile traffic, online marketers and SEOs should therefore also look to optimize their websites for Universal Search integrations. To demonstrate how different the search results in particular the Universal Search integrations can look on desktop and mobile, the following pages show the example search results for the keyword "dating". 5

6 Example: Dating On mobile, the first organic search result is found only after scrolling down a couple of times. You have to scroll about five times to get to the next organic results. On desktop, even though there is a news integration and a people also ask at the top, the first organic result is already visible without scrolling. News (Top stories) Knowledge Graph People also ask 1 organic result Maps 6

7 10 organic results 7

8 Example: Dating Knowledge Graph Videos People also search for People also ask 8

9 MOBILE News (Top stories) People also search for 1 organic result Mobile Apps Maps 9

10 2 organic results Publisher Carousel 3 organic results 10

11 The screens may be small, but mobile search is a becoming a beast. Google s official statements on the issue are from a couple of years ago, but these already reveal that: In the USA, more than 50% of search queries were already being made from mobile devices in Source In 2016, 20% of mobile search queries were made using voice search. Source Few would dispute that these percentages have likely grown significantly as technologies and user behavior evolve. This is particularly relevant in voice search, with the rising popularity of smart speakers like Google Home and Amazon s Echo devices featuring Alexa. Google Home, for example, only reads out one answer to a question and this is usually the result that is shown in the search results as a direct answer or featured snippet. This shift towards mobile and voice search makes it clear how fierce the fight for organic traffic is becoming. Businesses with one eye on the introduction of Google s long-announced mobile-first index will be looking to implement a clear mobile search strategy. When doing so, any such strategy should certainly include the generation of traffic and conversions via universal search integrations. 11

12 The Top Universal Search Integrations for Online Marketers This section includes the Universal Search integrations that are most common and therefore most important for online marketers to be aware of. The data includes how often the different types of integration appear in the Google search results and examples of search queries that return each type of integration. This analysis is based on the search results on Google.com for 500,000 keywords. The percentages show the average values, taken over the course of For comparison, the changes from our 2016 analysis are also given, revealing which integrations have become more widespread and which are (currently) declining. For a quick refresher on the state of Universal Search from 2016, check out our infographic: UNIVERSAL SEARCH

13 Number of Organic Results The maxim of 10 blue links is a relic of a bygone age. Today, the search results include an average of 8.7 organic results on desktop and 8.5 on mobile

14 Images While the number of keywords with image integrations on desktop has fallen significantly, and now stands at 23%, the rate in the mobile search results has remained steady, at 16% of all analyzed keywords. 23% -11% % +1% 8.2 KEYWORD EXAMPLES: Pikachu cosplay, Hot pants, Avengers, Big burgers, Conifers pictures 14

15 Knowledge Graph Google is answering more and more search queries from its own databases. This is underlined by the increase in Knowledge Graph integrations. 35% of desktop and 32% of mobile search results pages now include a Knowledge Graph. On smartphones, this is displayed above the fold. 35% +15% % +11% 8.0 KEYWORD EXAMPLES: Chess, Leaf tree, Alpine skiing, Crayons, San Francisco 15

16 Google Shopping Shopping integrations with Product Listing Ads (PLA) have fallen to 4% of desktop keywords. However, on mobile devices the opposite is true. Here PLAs have become more common, and are now shown for 11% of keywords. 4% -6% % +4% 9.2 KEYWORD EXAMPLES: TV Qled, Bed frame, Hand soap, Toys for kids, Samsung Galaxy s9 16

17 Google Adwords The number of keywords for which an Adwords advert is displayed has fallen since Today, 5% of desktop results and 12% of mobile results return at least one Adwords advert above the organic results. 5% -12% % -24% 8.6 KEYWORD EXAMPLES: Hosting, SEO software, Cheap smart watch, Flights to New York, Cleaning service 17

18 Direct Answers Direct Answers, also referred to as featured snippets, have remained fairly steady since On desktop, 16% of search queries result in a direct answer container; on mobile the rate is 4%. 16% +2% 8.9 4% +-0% 8.7 KEYWORD EXAMPLES: Lunar eclipse what is it, How to plant roses, Flu symptoms, Why was the Berlin Wall built, How does Paypal work 18

19 News The integration of news results has hardly changed since our last analysis. 11% (desktop) and 9% (mobile) of analyzed keywords return news integrations. 11% +-0% 7.3 9% -2% 7.3 KEYWORD EXAMPLES: Washington, Lottery, Weather forecast, Apple, News 19

20 AMP and News Integrations The universal search integration with the most AMP results is news. Accelerated Mobile Pages (AMP) are found in 21% of all organic results. For news, 78% of results are built on AMP. AMP BENCHMARK 21% AMP FOR NEWS INTEGRATIONS 78% From July 2018, page speed will be a ranking factor for mobile search results. As part of their preparation for this Google Speed Update, webmasters should consider whether to implement AMP or not. The AMP framework greatly speeds up load times by limiting the use of JavaScript libraries and by pre-caching pages. 20

21 Maps A maps integration with relevant local results is found for 3% of keywords in the desktop search results. In mobile search results, the prevalence of maps has fallen from 10% of keywords to 4%. 3% +2% 8.0 4% -6% 8.3 KEYWORD EXAMPLES: McDonald s, Tax accountant, Gym, Dermatologist, Electronics store 21

22 Videos At least one video integration is displayed for 22% of desktop and 23% of mobile search results. This is a slight reduction compared to our previous analysis in YouTube has become even more dominant and now has 92% of video integrations. In 2016 it had 90%. 22% -2% % -2% 7.9 KEYWORD EXAMPLES: How to tie a tie, Unboxing PS4, Michael Jackson Beat it, Let s play Minecraft, How to bench press properly 22

23 Mobile Apps Mobile apps continue to be shown frequently in Google s mobile search results. They are integrated for 11% of analyzed keywords. 11% +1% 6.9 KEYWORD EXAMPLES: Games, QR code, Photo editor, Messenger, Dating 23

24 The Diversity of Universal Search As Google s handling of search queries becomes ever more differentiated, there are now several hundred different kinds of Universal Search integrations. These are tailored precisely to the search intent of the user, the device (mobile, desktop, tablet) they are searching on, and the location where the search is taking place. To give an impression of some of this diversity, we are showing 12 examples of specific integration types. Carousel 24

25 Cinema Running Times Lyrics 25

26 Currency Converter Stock Prices 26

27 Google Jobs Google Flights 27

28 Unit Converter Weather 28

29 Traffic Medical Graphs 29

30 Translator 30

31 Infographic: Mobile Trends in Universal Search The infographic focuses on mobile search results. On the right, we see the average number of organic search results on the first page, whilst the main chart presents the percentages of keywords for which each Universal Search integration is shown on mobile. The 2016 values are given for comparison with our previous study. Universal Search: The mobile world 40% 30% 20% 10% % Images Video News Maps Shopping AdWords (PLA) (top) TOP 10 AdWords (below) Knowledge Graph Direct Answers Mobile Apps Question Box Twitter Cards 31

32 Results at a Glance The following table summarizes the most important results from this paper. Google Universal Search Trends * * Number of organic results Images 23% -11% 16% +1% Knowledge Graph 35% +15% 32% +11% Google Shopping 4% -6% 11% +4% Google Adwords 5% -12% 12% -24% Direct Answers 16% +2% 4% +-0% News 11% +-0% 9% -2% Maps 3% +2% 4% -6% Videos 22% -2% 23% -2% Mobile Apps 11% +1% * compared to

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