At Roiback Digital – the division of Roiback specialized in Online Marketing – we are always looking to keep up to date with the latest developments in online marketing, and specifically Google.
Today we would like to introduce you to a subtle but important new feature that Google has introduced in the “look and feel” (design) of its “SERPs” (Search Engine Results Pages).
Google is constantly updating various aspects of its products, performing a multitude of A/B tests every day, modifying designs, font sizes, colors, positions of the slots (ad spaces).
Specifically and as a purely anecdotal note, if we talk about changes related to the results in its search engine (its flagship product), Google makes about 3,200 changes per year (source Google Blog as of July 19, 2019). This would mean almost 9 changes per day.
On this occasion a subtle change that has been made last week has caught our attention. Google has increased the font spacing and size for the first position of paid ads (Google Ads) and for the first position of organic results (SEO). This change is only visible for results on mobile devices.
If we check from Desktop no change is visible. Spaces, for the moment, are the same, as well as font (Google Sans versions) and sizes (larger for titles and site links).
Below are the SERPs results from Desktop:
What happens when we look from a mobile device?
This is where we find this change as slight as important. We see that since a few days ago the Google font size for the first SEM and SEO position have slightly increased.
Below is an example of paid results (SEM) from a Samsung device:
Below is an example of organic (SEO) results from a Samsung device:
To be sure that this small change was not only visible from the Android operating system, we have also checked from an iPhone with the same result.
It is certainly an aesthetic and almost imperceptible change. But we already know that Google does not give stitch without thread and any change, especially if it is the payment section, is sure to be very well studied.
This time Google has decided to be neutral and apply the source increase to both SEO and SEM, surely not to further penalize the organic results that have been falling for some time, due to design changes made recently and in recent years.
As we already know, since long ago Google focuses almost 100% on mobile. Therefore, it has applied this change only to mobile results, which are the most used devices.
According to external sources, traffic from mobile devices exceeds 50% worldwide. At Roiback, we have hotels that already far exceed these figures and reach 60% or even 70%.
Why is this design change interesting?
Simple: the CTR (Click Through Rate) should increase, both in the first paid position and in the first organic position. More clicks and visits will be achieved in both search results.
More CTR equals more clicks and more sales.
In addition, the battle for the first paid position becomes even more important, while the first position in organic becomes the perfect complement when the user makes the first or second scroll from a mobile device.
If you want to give a new boost to your online marketing and take your brand to the first paid and organic position, contact us. At Roiback Digital, we help independent hotels and large chains to improve their online marketing results. In constant collaboration with our clients, we specialize in improving traffic, sales, and above all the ROI of our clients’ strategies.