Are organic search results shrinking?

There is a general feeling that the organic search results space, especially in Google, is shrinking.

Is that really true?

If we were to consider the space on Google’s SERPs, Google AdWords has been there for quite some time now. There were always Ads on top of the SERPs and Ads on the right, and have been around for more than a decade now. I think the basic concern now is that for almost everything that a user types in, there are paid/sponsored results and even though the Ads are labeled as “Sponsored Ads”, if the Ads seem to match what a user is looking for, the user will click on the Ad. With the number of advertisers increasing over the years, the top and the side spaces of the SERPs are almost always crowded with relevant ads. The first screen that a user sees mostly contains Ads. At the most only two organic results show up in the first screen along with relevant Ads on the right and on the top.

Where does this leave pure organic results?

Besides being left with less space and having to find innovative ways to come up on the top of search results, organic results these days have to compete with for visibility not only with other sites but with Ads that are becoming more and more relevant and attractive. And Ads are here to stay, not only will we see more relevant Ads, the way they get displayed will become more and more innovative and attractive. For example, Google is launching “Listen now” Ads for music searches soon. Because of the attractive presentation and relevance, these Ads will generate a lot of interest, and clicks resulting in lesser clicks for organic results.

However, the scene is not that dismal, SEO professionals will need to use innovative ways of reaching out to their visitors, find different sources of reaching visitors such as content aggregators, and other ways of increasing visibility. It is not easy to rank on the first page of the major search engines but it is certainly possible to find sources that have better visibility. Twitting and using Facebook to reach interested audience are very popular ways of utilizing social media for promoting products/services. Pinterest has become another popular source for reaching out to interested audience.

The world of search is ever evolving and changing, the need now is to change with the times and use techniques and strategies that will help businesses stay ahead of competition.

More often than not, SEO professionals face the tough task of handling clients who want to rank on the first page of Google SERPs come what may. In my opinion, at the end of the day clients want to see results, it doesn’t matter if the visitors came from Twitter or Google. If conversions happened and their objectives were met, they should be happy. It always helps to have an honest and informative conversation with clients assuring them that objectives will be met despite their website not making it in the top 10 of Google search results. Keeping clients informed about successful conversions from sources other then Google, educating them, and regular communications will help in cementing their trust and keeping them happy.

SEO will continue to evolve and there will always be different ways of promoting products and services naturally.