Is Google Forcing Us All To Advertise?

With the recent announcements from Google it seems as if those of us that focus on "quality content and user experience" for our web sites will soon be forced to focus more on what we are willing to pay for clicks.

Read the article below and start to consider the following search marketing questions:

GOOGLE ARTICLE: SEO's Not Happy With Google Ads 2019 Announcements

1.) If Google is using up all of the "above the fold" screen space for paid advertising will your organic search results become insignificant?

2.) If your organic search results and connected landing pages become insignificant are you prepared to start paying for Google pay per click advertising?

3.) Why does Google say that web masters should focus on quality content yet the advertisers willing to pay per click are appearing over the organic web site results even when they have poor content and poor web site structure?

The grim reality may be that the days of attracting web site visitors through quality content and high organic search rankings are over. For small to mid sized businesses this is a blow to all the time invested in writing quality articles about every possible "thought" a prospect could have with respect to a product or service.

If this is true, what will Google look like in the near future? A "pay to play" online directory? An electronic coupon book? A place to ask honest questions but the answer results may be "slanted" toward the advertiser's need to sell you something? Or, will Google realize that people searching for information want honest information that helps than make informed decisions - not biased advertising?

Final point. What will paid advertising do to product and service review web sites? For example, a person is searching for a review of a Lenovo computer and uses Google. The entire screen showing results is compiled of paid advertising and rich snippets paid for by Lenovo. Will the consumer have to go to page two for organic results with unbiased consumer reviews? Or will the searcher completely miss the honest organic results because the paid results are camouflaged with review stars, images and colorful text snippets?

This is becoming a real let down for fans of Google worldwide. After all, Google gave so many small business owners hope when competing against the huge marketing budgets of large corporate competitors. Here at GBM Marketing we hope this is just a phase - but if not, we are here to change with the times and find search and lead generation solutions for our clients.