Customer Searches Are Changing - What Does That Mean for Businesses?

Customer Searches Are Changing - What Does That Mean for Businesses?

The marketing landscape has undergone drastic changes over the years with the introduction of influencer marketing, artificial intelligence, and more online collaboration with offline operators. We’re also seeing changes in search marketing as customers find new ways to acquire and vet information on search engines like Google. In turn, businesses across the globe are adjusting their search marketing strategies and developing an SEO plan that isn’t entirely reliant on keyword ranking. 

A Changing Search Environment

In February, an article came out titled "Google Search Is Dying". The author argued that Google, which had a 92% search market share in the United Kingdom in 2021, is losing credibility through SEO, artificial intelligence, and advertisement. Today, many find Google no longer produces high-quality results related to their queries as the majority of top results are clickbait websites riddled with ads. The quality of these results tends to become worse once you get off the first page of Google, with some results not even containing the searched phrase.

According to the report by DKB, this loss of authenticity is one of the reasons Google is dying out and platforms like Reddit are becoming more used for research. That is because there are real human beings behind Reddit forums rather than AI networks like on Google. To regain authenticity, a business will need to create search strategies that take the customer into account as much data and trending words. Rather than assume what searchers are typing into Google, SEO marketers need to work alongside their content marketing counterparts to obtain intimate knowledge of their consumers to build an effective search strategy.

Alternatives to Google Search

Voice Search

That said, Google isn't fading away just because of its lack of authenticity and bombardment of irrelevant ads. Consumers are seeking new information sources in various ways, such as voice searches. As the world has become more comfortable dealing with automated assistants, voice searches have become the go-to way for consumers to find information.

When consumers use a voice search, they choose their words more carefully and speak in complete sentences in a question-oriented manner. That means businesses must take these things into account when creating their strategy. They can no longer count on searchers typing in a few keywords to describe what they are looking for.

Comparison and Review Sites

Likewise, consumers are opting to use comparison and review sites as alternatives to search engines like Google. Why? Well, it goes back to how on Google, everything is commercialised. Every result is trying to sell you something; every business is trying to promote itself. Comparison and review sites aren’t like this as they contain several options, many of which target the interests of varying groups.

For example, say you are looking to play on an online casino, but the payment method you’re seeking to use is PayPal. When you type in PayPal casinos on Google, individual operators that offer this payment system show up, but how do you know which one is the best? As we know, just because something is on the first page of Google doesn’t mean it is a reputable source, nor does it mean it offers other advantages like bonuses and mobile support.

When you use a review site that looks at different PayPal casinos, you’re getting the data side of the search strategy as they incorporate keywords like PayPal and online casinos. However, casino review sites also address the needs of consumers by dividing the information up by categories, such as the safest casinos, those that offer bonuses and high RTP, and even the fastest payout casinos that accept PayPal. These categories are also divided up by games. In other words, using comparison and review sites is a more all-around experience where an individual's interests are taken into account, rather than on Google, where the only goal is to rank high and push products.

Over the years, SEO marketing has proven a great way to gain insight into how consumers phrase their interests when looking for information on search engines like Google. However, Google has progressively become infiltrated with clickbait and ads, which is why individuals are modifying their search habits by choosing technologies like artificial assistants. Consumers are also looking at alternatives like comparison and review sites because they consider different interests and give individuals more options rather than push one singular product.