Q2 • 2024
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do for such companies . . . because Bright Tribe is one. Regardless of how big or small your business is, the need to have your organic search and SEO efforts buttoned up has never been more important, and Dempsey is particularly focused on how new AI tools can help companies excel in this area.
A REFRESH ON ORGANIC SEARCH AND SEO
In case, among all the recent talk about AI, you might have forgotten why marketing “basics” such as organic search are still vital to your business, let’s start with a reminder: research says that 53 percent of website traffic comes from organic searches, and SEO company Moz says that up to 92 percent of that traffic goes to results on the first page. That means if you’re not investing in SEO, you’re throwing away most of your online opportunities to be discovered. Dempsey adds that mobile searches make up more than half of global website traffic, meaning that being visible on mobile—where the search engine results page layout is even more condensed—is crucial. “Focusing on SEO isn’t just beneficial; it’s
imperative for any business that wants to thrive in the modern marketplace,” Dempsey says. “Without it, businesses miss out on a critical avenue for growth.” The game has changed considerably in the nearly three decades since Dempsey began working in digital marketing, and that means the way we approach organic search has evolved as well. He points to the layout of Google’s search engine results page as just one example. Gone are the days of ads being in yellow boxes with basic blue links for organic results just below them. Today, your search results are a mix of ads, the Google Maps 3-Pack, and snippets. That’s before you even get to organic listings. For your business, this means that showing up organically now
requires a strategy that allows you to appear in multiple areas. Dempsey uses the example of a land excavation company he recently worked with, for whom getting into the Google 3-Pack was a game changer. “It wasn’t just about being found in organic listings; it was about maximizing visibility in every part of the page,” he says. “We achieved this by optimizing their Google My Business profile, strategically gathering reviews, and building local content to boost their organic local SEO.”
THINKING LIKE A CONSUMER So where does AI come into play in all this organic search/SEO results talk? To understand it better, try putting yourself in the shoes of a consumer. This should be easy, because you undoubtedly are one. In your day-to-day use of web browsers such as Google, you have likely noticed (or maybe you haven’t) that the search results popping up from what you type in are smarter and more personalized, almost like they know why you are searching for whatever it is you type in. Maybe this scares
you, or maybe it just helps you find what you are looking for more quickly. Either way, you have AI-based search to thank (or blame). Dempsey says that AI-based search is revolutionizing our access to information by making it more conversational and context aware. For consumers searching for goods or services online, this manifests itself in how we interact with our search engines. “It’s like having an informed conversation
rather than throwing keywords into a search engine,” Dempsey explains. “AI search tools understand the intent behind our questions and can pull from known information to provide more personalized answers.” He points to a recent personal experience in which he was searching for information
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