Search Engine Land
  • SEO
    • > All SEO
    • > What Is SEO?
    • > SEO Periodic Table
    • > Google: SEO
    • > Bing SEO
    • > Google Algorithm Updates
  • PPC
    • > All PPC
    • > What is PPC?
    • > Google Ads
    • > Microsoft Ads
    • > The Periodic Tables of PPC
  • Focuses
    • > Local
    • > Commerce
    • > Shopify SEO Guide
    • > Content
    • > Email Marketing Periodic Table
    • > Social Media Marketing
    • > Analytics
    • > Search Engine Land Awards
    • > All Focuses
  • SMX
  • Webinars
  • Intelligence Reports
  • White Papers
  • About
    • > About Search Engine Land
    • > Newsletter
    • > Third Door Media
    • > Advertise

Processing...Please wait.

Search Engine Land » Channel » PPC » How to adjust SEO strategy to Google’s new SERP ad layout

How to adjust SEO strategy to Google’s new SERP ad layout

Google's recent changes to their search results pages threw paid search marketers for a loop, but what about organic search practitioners? Columnist Dan Bagby discusses the impact on SEO.

Dan Bagby on April 13, 2016 at 11:05 am

google-code-seo-algorithm4-ss-1920

Removing the ads from the right rail of Google search results pages was a long time coming (well, a long time for digital). An eye-mapping study from last year showed that people have gone from viewing the SERPs in an “F” pattern to doing a quick vertical scan down the left side, mostly ignoring the ads on the right side. People are also scanning the page faster by taking only eight or nine seconds to click, down from 14 to 15 seconds in the 2005 study.

It only makes sense that Google would eventually react to how searchers are adapting to the line of links they are used to by taking away the right bar. This is also further evidence of Google’s continued gravitation toward being a mobile-first search engine, since the right column of ads was not visible on mobile search.

While I understand why SEO professionals might worry, I don’t think the recent move to showing up to four ads above organic results will have a profound effect on organic search. The extra ad will only be showing on “highly commercial queries,” and there are several keyword types that remain ad-free or only have one or two ads on top, like e-commerce keywords with PLAs and no text ads, or long-tail keyword phrases.

All that said, no one trying to improve organic search traffic could be happy with the addition of extra ads before the 10 blue organic links. While we can’t change the SERP layout, there are a few ways we can react to maintain a solid SEO strategy. Here are a few ways you can adapt to the ever-changing SERPs.

Keyword research 

Keyword research has always been an essential part of any SEO effort. With so much variation in SERP layouts and the potential to have up to four ads before organic results, strategic keyword research is even more important.

When determining which keywords you are going to pursue, search each term to see what kind of search results layout you are going to be competing within. I recommend placing a higher priority on keywords that have fewer ads between the organic results and the top of the page. (Naturally, there is a lot more to good keyword research than seeing how many ads are shown for a given search query, but this can be a tiebreaker between keywords when building an SEO strategy.)

Review your top keyword targets to see if the SERP layout pushes organic results far down the page, and adjust strategy when necessary.

Also, note SERP layouts that include other results you can target, such as videos, images or featured snippets. Below are just a few examples of SERPs related to muffler repair that still favor organic results.

Screen Shot 2016-04-07 at 9.44.36 PM

Screen Shot 2016-04-07 at 10.09.56 PM

Local

With more ads showing up on top, the local 3-pack is getting pushed down — and this pushes the organic results below the fold.

Screen Shot 2016-04-06 at 9.15.22 PM

This really highlights the importance of a solid local SEO strategy for brick-and-mortar businesses. If local SEO is relevant to you, I recommend focusing on getting into the local 3-pack to stay above the fold.

I would also focus on being included in authoritative directories and review sites if they rank near the top of organic search results for local keywords, as it is likely difficult to outrank them. If you can’t win the ranking, you might as well be on the site that can.

Content strategy

Take this opportunity to review your content strategy. Every query is different, but I am still seeing most long-tail keywords surfacing ad-free search results pages. E-commerce and product related terms also seem to have SEO-friendly SERP layouts. Look for opportunities in the long tail for less competition from ads and other organic results.

You can also check the short-tail keywords to discover other content opportunities. For example, if you see your blog post is being outranked by video results, consider making a video, posting it on YouTube and embedding it in the blog post.

Many have expressed their concern about the new SERP layout and are calling out Google for their greed. I’m here to reassure SEOs that the sky is not falling, and everything is still okay in organic search. We have to continue to evolve and adapt to a mobile-first world, which means less on sidebars and faster scanning through search results.


Opinions expressed in this article are those of the guest author and not necessarily Search Engine Land. Staff authors are listed here.


New on Search Engine Land

    New mobile Google ad experiment puts favicon in-line with display URL

    Google launches video health tools to help publisher monetization

    SEO pioneer and expert Bill Slawski passes away

    New Yelp feature: Request a Call

    Google Ads issue with access to video pages frontend

About The Author

Dan Bagby
Dan is an experienced online marketer focused on SEO. He is currently leading SEO strategy for Whole Foods Market.

Related Topics

GooglePPCSEO

Get the daily newsletter search marketers rely on.

Processing...Please wait.

See terms.

ATTEND OUR EVENTS

Learn actionable search marketing tactics that can help you drive more traffic, leads, and revenue.

March 8-9, 2022: Master Classes (virtual)

June 14-15, 2022: SMX Advanced (virtual)

November 15-16, 2022: SMX Next (virtual)

Learn More About Our SMX Events

Discover time-saving technologies and actionable tactics that can help you overcome crucial marketing challenges.

Start Discovering Now: Spring (virtual)

September 28-29, 2022: Fall (virtual)

Learn More About Our MarTech Events

Webinars

Take a Crawl, Walk, Run Approach to Multi-Channel ABM

Content Comes First: Transform Your Operations With DAM

Dominate Your Competition with Google Auction Insights and Search Intelligence

See More Webinars

Intelligence Reports

Enterprise SEO Platforms: A Marketer’s Guide

Enterprise Identity Resolution Platforms

Email Marketing Platforms: A Marketer’s Guide

Enterprise Sales Enablement Platforms: A Marketer’s Guide

Enterprise Digital Experience Platforms: A Marketer’s Guide

Enterprise Call Analytics Platforms: A Marketer’s Guide

See More Intelligence Reports

White Papers

Reputation Management For Healthcare Organizations

Unlock the App Marketing Potential of QR Codes

Realising the power of virtual events for demand generation

The Progressive Marketer’s Ultimate Events Strategy 2022 Worksheet

CMO Guide: How to Plan Smart and Pivot Fast

See More Whitepapers

Receive daily search news and analysis.

Processing...Please wait.

Topics

  • SEO
  • PPC

Our Events

  • Search Marketing Expo - SMX
  • MarTech

About

  • About Us
  • Contact
  • Privacy
  • Marketing Opportunities
  • Staff

Follow Us

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • LinkedIn
  • Newsletters
  • RSS
  • Youtube

© 2022 Third Door Media, Inc. All rights reserved.