Google Instant Changing The Way You Search, Discover and Buy

The real time web has already made a significant impact on how many of us sift through Google’s search results, with recent additions like Google Discussions and Google Updates. The release of Google Instant, a new and speedier way to search, Google has taken the obsession of “real-time” up to a whole new level. Think of it as crystal ball for your search results.

Funny enough, here’s my prediction on the release before Google made the official announcement.

What’s Google Instant?

Google Instant allows you to visualize dynamic search results as you type in your search keywords, providing instantaneous feedback by predicting what you may “really” be looking for. Google claims this will shave a whole 2-5 seconds per search, now multiply that, times the amount of searches being done every second and your result should be a grand total of 11 hours saved with each passing second! I can honestly see how this will impact the far-too-mainstream users who still haven’t mastered the art of search.

Behavioral change

One of the immediate impacts of Google Instant is a fundamental user behavioral change, as your eyes are instantly drawn to the constantly updating search results. For non-touch-typists, this may actually increase search time as constantly shifting search results may be somewhat distracting. On the plus side, Google Instant lets you discover more in a far shorter timeframe than previously required by quickly browsing through search predictions. This in turn, will lead people to explore their topics of interest in greater detail than before. Personalization means no two users have the same results or an infinite amount of possibilities. The beauty that binds all together is how users will discover or more importantly share the content they discover through the social web.

Instant Adwords

Love them or hate them Google Adwords Ads / sponsored links are a major factor of the Google search experience. For Adwords advertisers this will undoubtedly change the game or at the very least, keep them on their toes by creating a bigger basket of keywords to bid on. Sorry guys, no one ever promised it would be easy. Because of the interactivity factor, people will actually be exposed to a far greater amount of search results resulting in greater ad spend and increased revenue for the Big G.

One of two things will happen.

1. Sites that have previously ranked well for long term phrases may see a decrease in traffic due to users finding results before completing their search..
2. Website that ranked well for generic keywords will see an even greater increase in traffic.

Seeing the long term effect Google Instant has on site visitors will be extremely interesting to watch.

Far too many are quick to whip out the “SEO is DEAD” card, which I completely disagree with. Google gave the best answer to this question when asked about the impact of Google Instant on SEO; “Basically it stays the same. It’s still the same results, it’s just adapting to behavior.” That’s something that’s been true with the rising tide of the social web.

Coming to a Browser Near You

If you’re in the US, UK, France, Germany, Italy, Spain or Russia, Google Instant may already be enabled for your searches.  Mobile users, Google is coming to devices this fall! It’s already being demo’ed on Droid devices. As you start typing, Google will provide search results instantly. I’d love to know what you think of Google Instant. Post your comments below or share your thoughts in the FB Poll I published.