Are You Becoming Invisible?
Welcome to The Real Estate Espresso Podcast, your morning shot at what’s new in the world of real estate investing. I’m your host, Victor Menasce. On today’s show, we’re talking about the evolution of digital marketing. If you’re in business, marketing is important. And if you’re involved in digital marketing, chances are that you’re still employing strategies from 12 or even 24 months ago, perhaps even those that were pertinent five years ago. However, with the ever-changing digital landscape, those strategies might no longer be effective.
Specifically, let’s talk about Google. The way Google presents search results has drastically changed over the years. Organic search used to be the main avenue to ensure your business comes up at the top of the list on the first page of Google’s search results. However, that priority sequentially fell behind paid advertising. Today, the top slot is occupied by a ‘snippet’, an often AI-generated summary derived from the highest-ranking search results. This shift may have resulted in your business ranking lower than in the past, perhaps even spilling onto the next page, leading to potentially higher ad spend on Google Ads for inferior results.
To add salt to injury, AI-chatbots are becoming the preferred method for many users in conducting search engine inquiries. An example is the new Co-Pilot plugin for Google Chrome, turning Microsoft’s Co-Pilot into your default search engine. Consequently, these developments necessitate a reevaluation and adaptation of your current digital marketing strategies to remain visible and competitive.
Consider AI-chat tools’ ability to deliver targeted responses to detailed inquiries, compared to the somewhat cumbersome and broad search results from traditional search algorithms. For instance, asking an AI chat window for the best kid-friendly hotel in Cancun, Mexico, offering a tranquil ambiance and accommodations for four in a single room for under $200 a night, you’ll likely get a much more specific and helpful answer than from a typical Google search.
What businesses need to consider is how AI makes such determinations. What determines ‘the best’? As an entrepreneur, understanding how your property or service ranks in response to such intricate questions is vital for your visibility and competitiveness. While this example focused on hotels, the same logic applies to various property types such as apartment complexes, office buildings, shopping malls, or other businesses or properties.
Previously, Google’s search engine optimization was predominantly based on keywords. Certain pairs of keywords, specific to your business or service, were key in optimizing your search ranking. However, with AI and its ability to process natural language inquiries, new search queries might include qualitative criteria. As such, your business needs to understand how these shifting algorithms interpret qualitative aspects of your business such as ‘best’, ‘fastest’, ‘favorite’, and how to optimize according to these new determinants.
In short, the introduction of AI has transitioned us from a mature, keyword-focused world to a significantly less mature, AI-based search world, making search results much more unpredictable and chaotic. That being said, gaining a basic understanding of how AI interprets your business and its reputation can greatly assist you in maintaining visibility in your respective business category. As AI continues to be adopted at an exponential rate, we must adapt and innovate alongside it to remain effective in our industries. So, take a moment today to put AI to the test and see where your business stands.
As you go about your day, keep these insights top of mind. And have an awesome rest of your day! Remain curious, learn, and continually adapt.
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