The development and launch of generative artificial intelligence tools such as ChatGPT have created great excitement in the world of web marketing and beyond.
ChatGPT has ushered in a rapidly evolving trend that is affecting multiple industries, within a complex online and offline ecosystem.
Immediately after the announcement of the integration of ChatGPT into the search results of the Bing engine, owned by Microsoft, Google also presented its innovation for the future of search: Google SGE ( Semantic General Search Engine ).
It is a semantic search engine capable of understanding the meaning of keywords entered by users and providing more relevant results.
Google SGE is currently only available in the United States, in English. Google’s goal is to improve the search engine’s understanding of natural language by providing high-quality search results that truly meet user needs.
How Google SGE works
Google Generative Search (SGE) seeks to understand the intent behind search queries entered by users, and then generate personalised responses using artificial intelligence.
A mix of sources is exploited, including regular Google search results, knowledge graphs, and social media.
Responses may include text, images, videos, and other rich media, depending on what Google SGE deems most relevant. Generation times vary, although in some cases responses may seem slow to appear.
The difference between Google SGE and Gemini (Bard)
SGE should not be confused with Google Gemini (or Bard as it was previously known), which is a language model focused primarily on generating text in response to questions. SGE is specifically designed for the web search context.
Among the main differences, SGE better understands search intent, uses more sources, and is currently only available in English, whilst Google Gemini can generate text and is already active in 180 countries. Furthermore, SGE does not always appear for every search, but only when Google believes it can provide particularly useful results.
The queries that trigger Google SGE
Google SGE is not activated for all searches, but only for specific queries in which it believes it can offer particularly useful results thanks to its understanding of the language.
Here are some examples of queries that bring up Google SGE results.
Open and in-depth queries
Google SGE is designed to answer open-ended in-depth queries, i.e. those that can’t easily be answered by a single search result. For example, if you search for “how to make a cake,” Google SGE may generate a snapshot that includes a recipe, baking tips, and decorating tips.
Queries with elements of creativity or imagination
Google SGE can also respond to queries with elements of creativity or imagination. For example, if you search for “a poem about nature,” Google SGE may generate a snapshot that includes an original poem, a list of famous poems about nature, and a link to a poetry website.
Queries with elements of subjectivity or opinion
Big G‘s new tool can also answer queries with elements of subjectivity or opinion. For example, if you search for “best movie of all time,” Google SGE might generate a snapshot that includes a list of the top-rated movies, a review from a film critic, and a link to a movie discussion forum.
Comparison query
Google SGE can also help users compare products, services, or ideas. For example, if you search for “ iPhone vs. Samsung,” Google SGE could generate a snapshot that includes a comparison of the features, prices, and reviews of the two mobile phones. This information can help users make an informed decision about which product or service is best for them.
Here are some specific examples of comparison queries that trigger Google SGE in the United States:
- “iPhone vs. Samsung”
- “MacBook Pro vs. Dell XPS”
- “Netflix Subscription vs. Disney+ vs. HBO Max”
Shopping Queries
SGE can help you complete online purchases by providing product information, reviews, and prices. For example, if you search for “best cell phones under 500 euros”, SGE will provide a list of products that meet your request, along with links to purchase them.
It is always useful to specify that, being still in beta in the United States, Google SGE may undergo updates which will also expand the number of queries for which it is activated.
What changes for SEO
The arrival of SGE will not revolutionise SEO strategies, but it will certainly influence the ability to obtain clicks on organic results.
Presence inside the generative box will obviously guarantee more clicks, while even positioning yourself among the first results without appearing in the SGE box you risk losing visibility due to the space it occupies.
To have a chance of being included among the contents used by SGE, the factors that even today allow you to position yourself competitively and therefore authority, reliability, competence, and experience will be increasingly crucial.
Consequently, SEO strategies will not change with SGE: we will need to continue to focus on quality content that satisfies search intentions, building a product, be it a blog or an e-commerce, recognizable and authoritative both on-site and on social networks, and profiling a domain with quality link building.
In a nutshell, therefore, SGE will reward those factors and elements that are already at the centre of successful SEO strategies. By working in this direction you will be able to maximise your chances of appearing in the generative box and, therefore, attracting an even greater number of clicks.
Conclusions and when Google SGE is expected to arrive in Italy
Google SGE represents a significant step forward in search engines’ understanding of natural language. Truly understanding the meaning and intentions of user queries allows us to provide much more relevant results and, consequently, helps the user find what they are looking for more easily.
