Recently, Google updated the factors it reviews when determining which websites show up first when buyers search the web for their desired products or services. This means that manufacturers, like all other businesses, could see their rankings change relative to those of their competitors. It is especially critical for marketing leaders to address these changes now as a recent HubSpot report shows that traffic in the manufacturing space has recently dipped 7.2% due in part to greater market influences.
To help you understand and address these changes to maintain or improve your search rankings in Google’s search results, let’s take a look at a few of the finer details around this change.
The new algorithm change includes an emphasis on a combined factor named “Page Experience” when determining how websites are ranked in the search results.
Page Experience is made up of several key components that include major search factors we’ve detailed before like mobile-friendliness and site security (HTTPS), as well as a closer look at a group of metrics called Core Web Vitals that include the site’s loading speed, visual stability, and interactivity.
Google gives preference to websites that provide visitors with a helpful experience and the Page Experience factor is designed to more effectively reflect the value a user perceives from a site. To help you better understand Page Experience, let’s break down some of the major components that will have the greatest impact on how your website may be ranked up or down:
1. Loading TimeLoading Time is the perceived elapsed time between a user entering a URL in their search bar and the time that the major content elements become available for them to view with their browser.
2. Visual Stability
Visual Stability refers to how design elements on a website maintain order. For example, when you scroll down a web page, images and text should not be moving in an erratic manner.
3. Interactivity
Interactivity is the time from when a user first interacts with a page, i.e. clicking a link or button, to the time when the browser actually begins processing a response to that interaction. This paints a picture of their first impressions of the site based on how quickly it becomes functional for their use.
Businesses should conduct site audits to better understand what changes they may need to avoid being ranked lower in search results for their key products & services. Here are a few tips on what to look for to get started:
| Site Security | Review your site and make sure it is secured and served over HTTPS |
| Focus On Improving Page Speeds | Review your site for opportunities to compress images & minify code as possible, and remove any Flash elements which can help cut down on loading time and improve interactivity |
| Mobile-Friendly | Check whether your site is optimized for mobile search with a responsive website |
| Review User Experience | Be certain that the content on your page is easily accessible. For instance, is the content on your site blocked by a design element? Can the content be seen on desktop and mobile? |
Even when looking closely at technical factors like the ones above, don’t forget to make sure you’re focused on creating quality content that helps procurement professionals and engineers understand how your products and services can help them complete their jobs to be done. When you create quality content that is focused on helping your prospects as they search for new suppliers, you’re giving Google’s algorithm a reason to rank you higher as it is designed to surface the content that will help these users the most.
Quality content can serve to establish you as a resource for your customers and help you gain a competitive advantage.
Effective strategies around content and SEO for manufacturing companies can drive traffic, generate leads, and create opportunities for new business. Make sure that your business is embracing the digital space and making search engine optimization a priority to reach new prospects.
We’re dedicated to helping manufacturers throughout their Digital Transformation. To help you create a game plan to stay on top of ever-changing digital best practices, Thomas offers free digital health checks for manufacturers and industrial distributors who want to better understand how their digital marketing efforts are performing and in which areas they can improve.
Stay ahead of these changes and put your business in a position to succeed. Start considering how you will address these factors on your website to stay ahead of the recent algorithm change today and be sure to contact our industrial marketing experts with any questions.