Recent advancements and developments in technology may change the way we perform local searches in the near future. The manner in which individuals perform and discover local searches will soon be fundamentally changed through technologies such as digital assistants, big data, augmented reality and beacons. Thus, the way you currently market and advertise locally needs to change along with these advancements. Here’s everything you need to know about these upcoming technologies: Big Data – Advan..... Read more

Have you ever searched for a query on Google and scrolled straight past the ads just to click on the first or second organic result? This is a common scenario, often termed as ‘ad blindness’ wherein search users move past the top ad section of Google without even reading them. This means that people generally trust organic search results more than paid Google Ads. In the past, we have seen Google come up with different visual tactics to overcome this ‘ad blindness’. Recent examples would be the ..... Read more

Mobile-first Indexing The upcoming Mobile-first Index was confirmed by Google in November last year. The Mobile-first index is the process of Google’s search index being split into separate desktop and mobile versions. According to Google’s announcement, more people are searching on mobile devices as opposed to computers or tablets, which means the Mobile Index will better serve the majority of search users. Google is still experimenting with this new update, meaning it has not been ..... Read more

The New Google Possum Algorithm May Cause Listings to ‘Play Dead’ During September 2016, there was a significant update made to the local algorithm which caused many business owners and webmasters to think their local listing had disappeared from Google’s local pack results. However, a more refined inquest has found that Google has implemented a filtering method within search engine results – hence the discovery of the Possum algorithm. This algorithm update affects local search results, putting..... Read more

Google’s ever-evolving algorithm has made some updates which may affect the search visibility of your website. In August, Google has announced the removal of the ‘mobile –friendly’ label on search results. Note; this doesn’t mean that Google isn’t labelling sites as Not Mobile Friendly, because as far as ranking signals go, mobile-friendly factors are still very important (exemplified through the fact that mobile devices outweigh searches made on any other dev..... Read more

Google analyst Gary Illyes was a speaker at the SMX Advanced keynote held in the United States last month in June. There were many topics covered throughout Illyes’ presentation, highlighting the changes coming to Google and its algorithms, and how it will all affect search users. Our summary below contains useful facts that can help boost the performance of your brand and digital marketing. Google Algorithms RankBrain, identified as Google’s third-most important ranking factor, was ..... Read more

Looking to improve your local rankings and presence on Google? With the recently updated guide on Google My Business, everyone has a chance to learn more about local signals and what Google deems important when it comes to local businesses and SEO factors. Utilising Google My Business has been a popular method for businesses trying to implement digital marketing on a local scale, but prior to this recent update, the limited information available and the lack of direct confirmation from Google so..... Read more

In this month’s blog article we look at some of the latest announcements which help us understand the most important ranking signals for Google’s algorithm, the upcoming boost of the mobile-friendly algorithm, and the newly updated guidelines on local search ranking factors on Google My Business. In-depth research has been conducted as the basis of the article with the latest up-to-date information, so use our findings below and let it serve you as a guide in planning out an effectiv..... Read more

On the 19th of February, a change was confirmed by Google which affects the layout of paid search ads on search results pages, through desktop devices. This change involved completely removing text ads showing on the right side bar, and having up to a total of four text ads display above organic results on the top of the page, whilst showing three at the bottom. This rollout was tested at various times late last year, and the change is expected to occur late February as a permanent fixture. Note..... Read more