This month has seen one of the biggest changes to Google Pay-Per-Click advertising since it was first launched in 2000, sending shock waves right through the global marketing industry, and what’s more, it was completely unannounced.

Whether you’re a business owner or a marketer, the alterations to the Search Engine Results Page (SERP) could have a significant impact on your online presence and even have the potential to wipe you off the face of the earth – well at least online anyway.

Don’t Panic!

With the right knowledge and the right skills this major change could work in your favour, giving you the chance to rank higher than your competitors, who may be scared off by the uncertainty of what lies ahead.

So what are the changes?

If you type any search term into Google you will clearly see that there is no longer a column on the right of the page, where paid search ads once live. Instead the experts at Google have added an additional ad to the top of the page, increasing the number of ads above organic search results to 4 ads. But this is not all as some of the ads which previously resided on the right hand side, have now been placed at the bottom of the page. The ads at the top have also been growing in size over the months, effectively pushing the organic listings down “below the fold”

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So what does that mean to me?

First of all, the changes have meant that the remaining ads, which were at the bottom of the right hand column, have been eliminated, and businesses which previously showed in these positions will no longer appear in a Google search. For these businesses the change will have a significant effect and it is assumed that many who have poor performing ads will seek other marketing opportunities, as they will no longer be appearing.

For the remaining advertisers it means that, if they are appearing in positions 1 to 4, they will get more traffic and therefore their ads will become more profitable. Some advertisers are worried that the increase in competition for the top positions will spark an increase in Cost Per Click (CPC) but so far research has detected hardly any change. So for businesses with good performing ads the change is good.

But what about organic searches?

Once again the recent change to PPC advertising on Google has hammered another nail in the coffin for Search Engine Optimisation (SEO), however all is not lost!

The layout of the new SERP page has meant that organic searches results now appear below the fold, meaning that less people are likely to click on them. But it’s not to say they are completely redundant. Google still likes up-to-date content on your website and SEO still has a place in the digital marketing mix, but these changes mean that SEO is becoming less effective as a solitary tactic and is not a scalable solution. This is where PPC advertising comes into its own.

What we are doing?

At Stratique we stay up-to-date with all major changes to core tools such as Google Adwords and Google Analytics to make sure that our client’s digital marketing is adaptable and optimised. We always endeavour to get our clients’ PPC advertising in the top positions to ensure that impressions and clicks remain high.

For more information on our services get in touch at 01827 69772

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