What it means for your business
In case you’ve been on vacation, on the moon, or just really busy getting things done, you might have missed the news: a lawsuit alleges that Google has a monopoly on search.
This is what I’m talking about. And it’s understandable if this news makes people nervous.
And trust me: as someone who is an expert in Google Search, I’m above-average-interested and have more at stake than the average googler.
The current situation
Here’s my main takeaway: we need to keep monitoring the situation, but right now:
Nothing has changed.
Nothing is likely to change anytime soon.
If and when things do change, it’s probably going to be gradual.
It’s one thing to change a law, but shifting the behavior of millions of users who are comfortable and familiar with Google? That’s a whole different story.
So, my advice: don’t change anything yet. We don’t have enough information to know what changes (if any) are needed, or which other platforms we should be prioritizing for optimization. The lawsuit may not even progress much further, making this a storm in a teacup.
In short: it’s too early to know if any changes will be necessary.
A broader perspective on search engines
Let me remind you: I’m a search engine optimization (SEO) expert first and a Google search expert second. That means the advice I give and the changes my team recommends are generally applicable to all search engines, not just Google.
There’s significant overlap in the techniques used to optimize sites for various search engines, so we aim to capture any available traffic from all of them. However, we put a particular focus on ensuring that websites communicate clearly with Google because:
In the USA, Google holds 87% of the market.
Trying to optimize for Bing, DuckDuckGo, or others right now could hurt your Google rankings, and for most businesses, that wouldn’t be wise. Being in the 5th position on Google is far more financially rewarding than being in the 5th position on Bing or DuckDuckGo.
Could prioritizing other search engines be important?
If major changes happen in the future, we might consider nuanced adjustments, like prioritizing a different search engine. For example, if Bing became a priority, we would make subtle changes, such as:
Allocating URLs differently.
Placing more emphasis on exact-match domain names.
Reintroducing some old keyword hacks that work well on Bing but have been abandoned by Google.
Adjusting for Bing’s lesser emphasis on content quality.
But remember, these adjustments wouldn’t necessarily require an entire website overhaul.
It’s like learning to drive: if you know how to drive a Ford, switching to a Toyota or BMW requires some small adjustments, but the core skills are the same.
The bottom line
You’ll keep hearing me talk about Google because it’s the biggest and most revenue-driving search engine for most businesses. I don’t expect that to change anytime soon.
However, I’m keeping a close eye on the antitrust lawsuit and will update my methodologies as soon as it’s useful and prudent to do so.
For now, keep calm, carry on, and continue doing what we’re doing. That will serve you well.
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