Are rankings dead? What is the future of search?
Posted by Brett Pringle on 20 Nov 2008 | Tagged as: Common SEO Topics
Many of us in the search industry already know that rankings are not the be all and end all, yet there are still so many people out there who are fixated on keyword rankings or that trophy phrase. I’m sure we have all seen the occasional article or blog post along these lines in the past; however, this topic gained renewed vigor last week after a presentation by Bruce Clay in which he stated “ranking is dead”.
Many people disagree with Bruce Clay’s statement, however, he possibly just used the wrong words at the time. I am in full agreement with what I believe was the true meaning/intention behind what he said. Most of us know that rankings fluctuate on a daily basis; different data centres produce different results, local queries differ from country to country and finally there are all the advances in personalised search.
Search marketers have evolved along with search engine changes, the focus is not solely on keywords and rankings anymore but on traffic and conversions. I am not saying that rankings are dead; however, what is the use of ranking for keywords that do not result in either a lead or a sale?
So where does this leave website owners and marketers? Content is still king, even with developments in personalised search, great content will always succeed. Universal search (blended search) has also opened up a world of opportunity for generating site traffic including video, news and images.
To quote Matt Cutts,
“SEOs are starting to embrace the fact that they are marketers. It’s a broader spectrum. You have to think about how you build buzz, how do you get loyal customers, how do you optimize your ROI. All those different things and that can include how do I make good videos, do I have a book, things like that.”
To wrap up, sure rankings are not dead. They should, however, not be the sole focus in your marketing efforts. Use your analytics effectively, analyse your traffic and measure your conversion rates. Take on the role of a marketer and look to market your clients/sites with universal search opportunities while simultaneously measuring and improving conversions.
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Tags: Analytics, blended search, bruce clay, conversions, matt cutts, personalised search, rankings, traffic, universal search
November 21st, 2008 at 8:39 am
I definitely disagree with Bruce Clay here in that rankings are not dead, nor do I think they are nearly dead. But Brett, as you mentioned, what is the point of getting that number one spot if you aren’t making a sale or converting? In order for your rankings to be a total success they need to reach the top of the SERPs in combination with a converted customer.
November 21st, 2008 at 9:55 am
His exact words, i would disagree, although i still think the words just came out wrong in his defense.
But yeah, absolutely right, who would want to rank for phrases that don’t convert into sales. no point really.
November 21st, 2008 at 11:25 am
Exactly. Its all about conversions and getting the right traffic to your site. Rankings are important as in you have to appear high up on that front page to get noticed but as Kim says, its a combination its not just about no1 anymore.