Google is rolling out a few updates to Google Search to help users find doctors and healthcare providers that are right for them. These updates include being able to see if a doctor or healthcare provider accepts your insurance and if they speak your language.
Health insurance. Google Search can now show you which insurance networks the doctor or healthcare provider might accept. Plus, on the mobile search results, Google will let you filter providers by the insurance plans accepted. This will help users determine if a provider accepts their insurance, including Medicare, private insurance and employer-funded insurance, government-affiliated health programs and more.
Image: Google.
Speak my language. Healthcare providers and doctors can also edit their Google Business Profile listing to define the languages spoken at their offices. Google said patients “want to be able to communicate clearly in their language of choice.” Google says there are over a dozen languages represented, including Spanish and American Sign Language.
Image: Google.
How to update your details. Google says you can update your healthcare facilities details in your Google Business Profile, so make sure you verify your business with Google. Then you will be able to:
Add additional insurance providers they accept from a pre-populated list of available insurance providers
Remove insurance providers and networks that are listed erroneously
Note, the feature will be disabled if all insurance information is removed and for any other insurance related information and issues, providers can submit feedback directly to the Google My Business support team.
Why we care. Finding a healthcare provider or doctor can be intimidating for some, so any way to make it easier to find one is important.
For those of you who have healthcare providers as clients, you will want to make sure the insurance information in the Google search results for your clients is accurate and if not, make sure that the healthcare provider’s website clearly describes which insurance providers are accepted. Also, don’t forget the easiest method is to update the healthcare provider’s Google Business Profile to ensure Google has the latest details on your facility.
Google’s mobile search results now offer infinite scroll, what Google is calling continuous scroll. So as you scroll, Google will not show you the “more results” button when you reach the bottom of the page, instead, Google will just load the next page of results automatically.
Google said “with this update, people can now seamlessly do this, browsing through many different results, before needing to click the “See more” button.”
Google added that while “you can often find what you’re looking for in first few results, sometimes you want to keep looking.” And for those searchers who want to keep on looking, you will be able to continuously scroll “up to four pages of search results” without clicking to load more.
What it looks like. Here is a GIF of it in action:
When can I see it? Google has been testing this for some time, in fact, I’ve seen it myself over the past couple of weeks. Google did say it will “gradually roll out today for most English searches on mobile in the U.S.”
In 2018, Google took a step closer to infinite scroll with launching the more results button.
Why we care. This may (or may not) encourage searchers to look beyond the first few results and scroll more through more results. It is yet to be determined how this might impact your click-through rates and traffic from Google search but keep an eye on it.
With the iOS 15 release on September 20th, AMP URLs in Google Search just stopped working. Google is aware of the issue and said the issue should be resolved soon. This is only impacting Google searchers using Google Search on iOS devices that have been upgraded to iOS 15.
What happens. If you are on iOS 15 and you click on a website listing in the Google Search results, you will not be taken to an AMP URL, even if the AMP URL exists for that listing. Instead, you will likely be taken to the main site’s URL for that page, or a link to their mobile app – if you have the app pre-installed on your device.
Jeff Johnson, an iOS developer, dug into this and said with the iOS 15 Safari “User-Agent, there are no AMP links in Google search results, but if I simply change Version/15.0 to Version/14.0 and keep the rest the same, Google search results suddenly have AMP links again!” “This is reproducible on my iPhone, in the Xcode iPhone simulator, and also in desktop Safari Mac with its User-Agent spoofed as iPhone,” he added.
I added an example of what this looks like on my personal blog, if you want to see it in action.
Confirmed bug. Danny Sullivan of Google confirmed the bug on Twitter saying “It’s a bug specific to iOS 15 that we’re working on. We expect it will be resolved soon.”
Why we care. You might notice weirdness with your analytics data around your AMP URLs coming from Google Search over the past couple of weeks. Your traffic should not be impacted because the traffic is still going to your main URL, but traffic to your AMP URLs may have a decline due to this bug with iOS 15. It is still not yet resolved but it should be resolved soon.
Google Chrome is now testing side search, a new feature that makes it easier to compare search results on a single browser page. “We’re experimenting with a new side panel in the Chrome OS Dev channel, so you can view a page and the search results at the same time,” Google announced on the Chromium blog.
This side search feature lets you view a page right in your main browser window without needing to navigate back and forth or losing your search results or with the need to use more tabs. “The goal of this experiment is to explore how Chrome can better help users easily compare results,” Google said.
What it looks like. Here is a GIF showing this in action:
How it works. First, you need to be in Chrome OS Dev channel on desktop to see. To open the side panel and view the search results, click on the G icon next to the search bar at the top left. Again, this is a test Google is trying on a beta version of Chrome.
Journeys. Google is also testing Journeys, a new way to see your browsing history in Chrome. Journeys will cluster all the pages you’ve visited related to a specific topic so you can easily view them without having to sift through your browsing history. This will also show you related search suggestions so you can continue planning your trip right there in that section. So search is embedded in your Journey’s browsing history.
Here is what it looks like.
Google is rolling out Journeys as an experiment in Chrome Canary on desktop.
Why we care. These experiments may show you how Google is trying to embed search more into Chrome and increase searches on Google. All of this may lead to more searchers on your website. Plus these two experiments seem like very useful features for Chrome users and searchers. There is a possibility, though, that the sidebar potentially leads website users to bounce from your site and potentially head to a competitor when they have the SERP open right next to their browsing window.
While MUM was the highlight of Google’s Search On event, the company also announced a number of changes to the search results that are important for search marketers to understand. These changes include the launch of larger and more visually browsable search results for some queries, enhancements to the “About this result feature,” a more “shippable” Google search interface, in-person shopping experiences from home and more.
Visual browsing with larger images
Google has rolled out a new, more “visually browsable” interface for some search results pages. You can see them for some searches that contain a keyword plus the term “idea” after it, like [painting ideas] or in the example GIF below, [pour painting ideas]. Google said this interface makes “it easier to visually browse to find what you are looking for.”
This launched earlier this week and I believe Google calls these large image blocks “image universal blocks.” Not only will they appear for idea-related queries but they can also be displayed for apparel queries.
Image: Google.
About this result enhancements
Google initially launched the About this result box in February 2021 and then in July added more details like ranking information to the box. Now, Google is showing even more information in the About this result box: The additions include what the source says about themselves, which can be pulled from places like the site’s about us page. Google can also show web results about the site or page, such as what others are saying about the result and also related results about the topic from other sites.
Google told us that you cannot control what information is being shown from the related results or what others are saying about the result. The search engine uses a set of undisclosed queries to find this information and only sites that meet a certain quality bar can show up in those sections of the About this result box. Google said it will keep an eye on abuse or manipulation of these features but currently, there is no way to tell Google if the information in the box is incorrect and should be removed. Technically, you can probably use the submit feedback button but it is unclear how quickly Google can react to such requests.
Currently, Google said the About this result feature has been used over 400 million times, which translates to a small percentage of searchers.
Image: Google.
Shoppable search
Google has made the Google search experience more “shoppable” for apparel-related queries. This new experience should make it easier to browse for apparel on mobile right from your search results, the company said. Google’s example is when you search for “cropped jackets,” Google Search will show you a visual feed of jackets in various colors and styles alongside other helpful information like local shops, style guides and videos. Google said this is powered by the Google Shopping Graph, which was announced at Google I/O earlier this year.
Image: Google.
In-person shopping at home
Google is adding new in-store inventory in order to make the online at-home shopping experience feel more like shopping in-person at the store. Google said people want to experience in-person shopping from home so now you can filter the results using an “in stock” filter to see if nearby stores have specific items on their shelves.
This is launching in English in the U.S. and select markets, including the UK, Australia, Austria, Brazil, Canada, Denmark, France, Germany, Japan, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Sweden and Switzerland on September 29th.
Image: Google.
Shopping with Google Lens
Soon, Google app users on iOS will see a new button that makes all the images on a page searchable via Google Lens. This feature will be arriving soon, but it is currently planned only for users in the U.S.
Image: Google.
Similar functionality will also be arriving on Chrome for desktop: Users will be able to select images, video or text on a site to see search results in the same tab. Unlike the iOS version of this feature, Lens in Chrome will be available globally in the coming months.
Image: Google
More MUM In Google
Google has announced a slew of new features around the expanded use of MUM in Google Search. This includes Google Lens and video search features, plus how Google will use MUM in the new “Things to Know,” refine this search and broaden this search and more. See our article over here for more details.
Why we care
Review these new changes Google has rolled out and will be rolling out. See how you and your clients can leverage some of these changes to generate more business and traffic. The one area of concern is the About this result section having third-party information outside of Wikipedia that may be hard to change if it doesn’t have the most positive or accurate information about your company.
Google announced new applications of its MUM technology, including multimodal search with Google Lens, Related topics in videos and other new search result features, at its Search On event on Wednesday. While these announcements are not an overhaul of how Google Search works, they do provide users with new ways to search and give SEOs new visibility opportunities as well as SERP and search changes to adapt to.
What is MUM?
Google first previewed its Multitask Unified Model (MUM) at its I/O event in May. Similar to BERT, it’s built on a transformer architecture but is reportedly 1,000 times more powerful and capable of multitasking to connect information for users in new ways.
In its first public application in June, MUM identified 800 variations of COVID vaccine names across 50 languages in a matter of seconds. That application, however, did not show off the technology’s multimodal capabilities. The announcements made at Search On provide a better glimpse at MUM’s multimodal potential.
MUM enhancements to Google Lens
Google demoed a new way to search that combines MUM technology with Google Lens, enabling users to take a photo and add a query.
An example of a multimodal search in which users provide an image and text. Image: Google.
In the “point-and-ask” example above, a user takes a photo of an unknown bicycle part and asks how to fix it. Google is able to match the search to an exact moment in a video, which helps users find the right information without having to manually research bike parts and then conduct a separate search for a tutorial.
A commerce-driven example of multimodal search. Image: Google.
In its announcement, the company provided another potential use case (shown above): Users can take a picture of a pattern on a shirt and ask Google to find the same pattern on socks. While users could simply describe the pattern they’re looking for with text, they may not find the exact pattern or they may have to filter through many results before locating the right one. This capability will be arriving in early 2022, a Google spokesperson told Search Engine Land.
Related topics in videos
Google is also applying MUM to show related topics that aren’t explicitly mentioned in a video.
MUM technology is used to identify related topics within a video and suggest queries to the user. Image: Google.
In the example above, the video does not explicitly say “macaroni penguin’s life story,” but Google’s systems are able to understand that the topics are related and suggest the query to the user. This functionality will be launching in English in the coming weeks, and the company will add more visual enhancements over the coming months. It will first be available for YouTube videos, but Google is also exploring ways to make this feature available for other videos.
Features that will eventually leverage MUM
Google also unveiled some new SERP features that are based on other technologies, but the company expects to improve them with MUM over the coming months.
“Things to know.” This feature lists various aspects of the topic the user searched for. Things to know can enable users to see the different dimensions other people typically search for, which may help them get to the information they’re looking for faster.
Things to know can help users find the right path for their search query. Image: Google.
In the example above, Google shows aspects of the query (“acrylic painting”) that searchers are likely to look at first, like a step-by-step guide or acrylic painting using household items.
“The information that shows up in Things to know, such as featured snippets, is typically information that users would see by directly issuing a search for that subtopic,” a Google spokesperson said. This feature will also be launching in the coming months.
Refine and broaden searches. The “Refine this search” and “Broaden this search” features enable users to get more specific with a topic or zoom out to more general topics.
The “Refine this search” and “Broaden this search” features. Image: Google.
Continuing with the “acrylic painting” example from above, the Refine this search section shows suggestions for acrylic painting ideas, courses and so on, while the Broaden this search section shows related, but more general topics, like styles of painting. These features will also launch in English in the coming months.
More announcements from Search On
In addition to the MUM-related announcements above, Google also previewed a more “visually browsable” interface for certain search results pages, enhancements to its About this result box, a more “shoppable” experience for apparel-related queries, in-stock filters for local product searches, as well as the ability to make all images on a page searchable via Google Lens. You can learn more about those features in our concurrent coverage, “Google search gets larger images, enhances ‘About this result,’ gets more ‘shoppable’ and more.”
Why we care
When Google first unveiled MUM, it touted the technology’s multimodal capabilities and power with abstract examples and no rollout dates. Now, we have a better idea of what MUM can actually do and a roadmap of features to expect.
The enhancements to Google Lens are a new, and perhaps more intuitive, way to leverage multimodal search than the industry has seen before. The e-commerce example Google provided shows how this feature may help the search engine become more of a player in that sector while making it even more important for merchants to apply product schema and submit accurate data feeds so that their products can show up on Google.
The other MUM-related announcements (Related topics in videos, Things to know, Refine this search and Broaden this search) are all about enabling users to learn more through related topics. These features may present SEOs with the opportunity to get in front of users by connecting a search to another related search or a video to another related video or search that they’re ranking for.
The interconnectivity of Google’s search results and features may offer new ways for users to arrive at whatever they’re seeking. If Google discloses how someone arrives on a publisher’s content (such as through Refine this search suggestions, for example), this could reveal new user journeys (and the business opportunities that may come with them) to optimize for. These features are also another step further away from the ten blue links of old, and SEOs will have to adapt to the changes while making the most out of the new visibility opportunities these features have to offer.
In addition, these announcements, along with the other Search On announcements (visual browsing with larger images and more shoppable search features) may provide users with new and more intuitive ways to search, which can help the company maintain its position as the market leader.
Google has updated the How Google Search Works website portal today and with that informed us that the search company made 4,500 “improvements” to search in 2020. “There have been 4,500 such improvements in 2020 alone,” the company said.
4,500 changes. Google said in the year 2020, Google made 4,500 updates to Google Search. These changes can be ranking changes, user interface changes and much more. By comparison, in 2019, Google made 3,200 changes to Google Search. Looking further back, in 2010, we covered that Google had about one change per day. Google said in 2019 it made about 350-400 changes in 2009.
Clearly, Google has expedited those changes over the years and is increasing the rate at which it updates Google Search.
Updated How Search Works site. Google also launched a “fully-redesigned How Search Works website that explains the ins and outs of Search.”
In 2013, Google first launched its How Search Works site with an explanatory infographic. The site has some pretty cool features, including showing examples of pages Google took down because of spam. Google took down that spam feature and relaunched the portal in 2016 with more details on how normal people want to know how Google Search Works.
Google said in the 2021 version it has “updated the site with fresh information, made it easier to navigate and bookmark sections and added links to additional resources that share how Search works and answer common questions.” “The website gives you a window into what happens from the moment you start typing in the search bar to the moment you get your search results. It gives an overview of the technology and work that goes into organizing the world’s information, understanding what you’re looking for and then connecting you with the most relevant, helpful information,” Google added.
Why we care. It is nice to see Google document how many changes it makes from year to year in Google Search. It is also good for search marketers to review how Google Search works and do a deep dive into the language Google uses to describe how the search engine functions. Dig into the new portal and let us know if you find anything exciting.
E-A-T (Expertise, Authoritativeness, and Trustworthiness) is how Google serves its users’ most relevant search results. A large part of Google’s E-A-T can be objectively measured and improved upon using Topical Authority. So, if you want to rank better than your competitors on Google, you need to understand the drivers of Topical Authority and how to improve on them.
Join iQuanti’s Ajay Rama and Kartik Shrivastava in this webinar to understand the framework and tactics used to build topical authority and win in Google’s E-A-T.
