It is widely thought that Google’s attempts thus far at presenting time-relevant results so far have been less than convincing. The ‘latest results’ feature in the options menu has been around for a while now and tends to boost the time factor too far above keyword relevance to produce meaningful results. Other attempts, like incorporating automatic latest results and news results, have had marginal impact. What happens when Google succeeds?

Achieving real-time search does seem to be a priority for Google and with so many attempts being made they’re sure to hit the nail on the head at some point. When this happens, real-time search is going to become a reality for everyone. When time becomes a major driving factor in search, and it will, the currency of your content will need to catch up. Search engine optimisation will become a daily matter.

Even at this early stage, there are some businesses for which Google’s real-time efforts are having some effect. If your industry has any significant involvement in the real-time results internet users are seeking, you really need to step up your SEO.

Example 1: Big business

One major consequence of real-time search is that news spreads even faster. The spread of gossip on the net has been as fast as lightning for a while now, but only in certain circles. Unless you are constantly logged on to Facebook, or have Twitter messages delivered to your mobile phone, it’s likely that it will take a few hours for the latest juicy piece of news to hit.

This changes if your business makes the news. News results are one area in which Google’s real-time efforts have proven effective. This can mean big things for big business. Any time a corporate finance scandal is announced or a CEO makes a blunder at a news conference, the world is going to know in a matter of minutes. This means that reputation management for big businesses needs to be stepped up a notch and we may soon see big business invest in full-time reputation monitors.

For smaller businesses, this isn’t as big an issue – unless a major scandal hits your industry. Past experience has shown that industries affect individual businesses and your reaction to ‘motorised toy kills eight-year-old child’ needs to be swift. You can talk to us at SEO Consult about working reputation management into your SEO plan.

Example 2: Mobile technologies

Businesses both big and small are being affected by the rise in use of mobile technologies for browsing. The growth of mobile browsing is directly driven by the average internet user’s need for instant results. This area is still growing, but so swiftly as to outrun most business’ plans. If your site isn’t ready for instant mobile browsing, you could be in some degree of trouble.

Again, this will only have an impact on certain industries at certain times, but there are more businesses involved than you might think. Any business that could be damaged by a bad review or whose competitors are concentrating on real-time search should be concerned.

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