I've engaged in a whole mess of talk this week about - surprise, Google.
[
searchengineland.com...]
Barry has a nice response over there. Many valid points and I really hate to line-by-line nitpick, but I think it needs discussing further. We need to make sure the industry is on the same page with regard to what Google Search with AI really
is and not just what Google is putting out there.
> "this is all early" into the Search AI era.
Bing launched AI overviews/chat in January of 23 and Google AIO was mid last year. So we've had 2.5 years time to ponder this. We know what this is and represents.
> These are the changes that Google set out to
> make when younger searchers were going to
> TikTok over Google a couple of years ago.
People said the same about Facebook, then about Twitter. The last place people are 'asking' for search anywhere on social media is Youtube and TikTok. The TikTok response was YouTube Shorts.
> AI Mode is the answer to OpenAI
Gemini was Google's answer to ChatGPT. This is Googles
Get me a Bigger Hammer response because Gemini did not take off in any meaningful fashion akin to the way ChatGPT did. Anytime there is a failure at Google - they just add it to the SERPs to leverage the traffic there.
Adding AI Mode into search is more of a answer to Bing's AI search mode.
I think we should backup and rethink Googles "master plan". It isn't a surprise to anyone to say Google has wanted to "have it all" for more than a decade. Jon Henshaw wrote a [url]=https://coywolf.com/news/seo/how-google-is-becoming-the-new-aol/spot on piece[/url] about Google becoming the new AOL over a decade ago. Google has had a wet dream about being everything to everyone - everywhere - all at once. What that looks like in it's entirty is incomplete; but when you
look at Googles moves for some time, you can't help but think they want to be everything tech start to finish. In particular order:
- Chrome Books - they needed a platform to compete with MS and Apple.
- Google Fiber - Internet - screw the ISP's that were filtering YouTube.
- Chrome Browser - remember when I started talking about this three years before Chrome came out?
- Android - No Apple, you will not have a monopoly on phones.
- Buying Youtube to compete with old media.
- Docs, Email, Cloud - Well duh - players gonna play.
- Google Edu programs - indoctrinate the littles in "Google is the internet" the same way Apple survived the 80's.
Everywhere there is a baseline technology, Google is there.
The only thing that slowed down Google, has been the antitrust actions. We all kinda know, Google was bidding its time there. Then ChatGPT broke out and they were a bit flatfooted. ChatGPT gave Google the opportunity to put the hammer down and pursue the "take everything" project. AdWords is near maxed out on what is possible for revenue. They have squeezed AdWords clients as much as possible. The only way to increase AdWords revenue significantly going forward is to take the share of traffic they currently give to websites and force those websites to buy ads to exist. AI gave them that excuse to peruse that project.
Nobody was begging for AI in search. You know how you know? Bing made zero headway after billions upon billions of investment. Even the most optimistic projections gave Bing maybe a percentage point increase.
> ChatGPT search
OpenAI does not consider it to be a stand alone product and will not pursue it on a stand alone domain. If relations with MS continue to soften, they may even lose their Bing agreement within the next six months to a year. ChatGPT as search, is no longer a threat to Google search.
> Google wants to give searchers what they want.
Show me 10 places where people have asked Google for AI mode in search and I'll show you 200 where they hate it.
Google isn't giving anyone what they asked for - that's not how the plex operates. Just look at the absurd "advanced search" on Google. Same thing that has been there since 2002 basically. In fact, there are fewer features on there than there used to be. They are not giving features to any user that has ever asked for them. They are dictatorial in search. You get nothing.
>Google knows it has to change,
No, they don't. They don't have to do squat. They are rolling in cash. They could leave the servers running - go one vacation for 3 years - come back, and their share of market would not change one drop. Hell, it would probably increase by natural attrition of more competitors dying.
There is no grand call for Google to change. There *is* a grand call for them to continue to be Google as we know it.
> led to 10% growth in search queries
Yes, because people are not finding what they want with AI and having to refine their search to fix it.
>So the ad and revenue problem seems resolved.
What problem? There was never a problem with revenue. Nor with ads. Everyone assumes they will replace the citation links with Adwords. This entire AI push is about creating NEW revenue increases. Google Gets Paid.
> In the answer, the same two brands are mentioned over and over again
Maybe? But There is no proof anywhere - in no case studies - no clicks - no follow-up - no surveys - that show AI having any impact on any brand. The only brand benefiting from AI in search is, Google.
We do know however, that brands tend to buy AdWords. Gosh...you don't think Google would push brands to advertise - say it aint so!
> Agentic integrations
Which is really years away. There is no hint that this stuff is on the horizon for 'search'.
>Adapt or die
Adapt to what? Where is the traffic going to come from, "Magic Bean Branding".
There is no adaptation for Search Pros here.
Without traffic - millions of websites are moving to the verge of collapse. If you can't afford to buy traffic, your website is in trouble.
Want to adapt? It means to start thinking of it this way: Google is Dead To Me. That's what coming. This is a breakup.
The best action would be to block Google in your robots.txt. Just rip that bandaid off right now. Then get busy building a business.
