What’s this about?

Google almost always gives an ecommerce update just before the Thanksgiving turkey goes in the oven, and just in time for the shopping season kick-off.

This one focuses on product panels on mobile and enlarges them with space for an ad or two. It’s getting harder to spot organic results.

Read more about it in this extract from TWIS SEO News & Updates 17th November 2017.

#SEO #SEONews #SERP #Mobile #KnowledgePanels

Google’s Mobile Product Panel Expands Massively

Key Issues Summary:

  • Just in time for Shopping Christmas Season, Google has updated its mobile Product Knowledge Panels massively.
  • These now take up a significant portion of a mobile display, and of course, add enhanced advertising display, with direct Adwords ads and Google Shopping ads.
  • There is now some more real estate given to reviews and product images, so it’s not all advertising, just that ads take up prime space.

Google's Mobile Product Panel Expands Massively

Key Actions To Take:

  1. If you’re an e-commerce retailer operating in the product space, you may be in for a scrooge-like Christmas, as these expanded panels push your SERP results further down the page.
  2. You may need to take really active steps to consider ways to appear in the panels.
  3. I hate to say advertise on Google Shopping, but that may be the only way.
  4. Of course, having an extensive review infrastructure and authority in the reviews space is another way, but that takes a while to build (understatement).
  5. The other way to sell through to this traffic  is vertical search. If Google is sending traffic to other vertical sites, advertise there.
  6. Other than that, wish Google a Merry Christmas!
  7. Click here to contact me to discuss ways to get your retail store in front of consumers this Christmas.

Insights & Discussion:

Every year for as long as I can remember Google has updated around this time of year to give a more ecommerce feel to SERPs. This has included pushing retailers further up in SERP. Giving more real estate to ads and generally enabling consumers to search and buy more easily.

I’m still undecided over whether this is a good thing.

Traditionally, these updates have favoured big retailers over little ones, and this update is no real difference. Those with big budgets for advertising, or big infrastructure to appear in the knowledge panels will win. Those without won’t. It doesn’t always feel like the best results surface any more.

I know that a lot of jaded SEO cynics have long felt this, and to an extent they are right, but this feels like a naked land-grab which may not revert after the shopping season. After all, users are used to it by then.

Now, about that large Google Shopping EU Fine business. You still think that’s over-reach?

More Information:

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Mobile First is NOT Mobile Friendly

Google Mobile First Not Mobile Friendly

I recently wrote about how Google’s Mobile First is Not Mobile Friendly. Read it now.

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TL;DR

  • Yet more organic real estate is taken over by a knowledge panels with added ads – just in time for Christmas.
  • This means less of the SERP is available for ranking sites organically.
  • You should also be thinking of advertising on vertical search from the sites that do still get a dribble of organic traffic.
  • Read The State of SEO in mid-2017.
  • Read about how Google’s Mobile First Index is not Mobile Friendly.
  • Finally, get your content ranking well on Google by starting to understand Find Crawl Index.

Thanks for reading. If you would like to discuss what these changes mean for your web property, or would like to know how to implement them, please feel free to contact me.

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