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Your Go-To Google Search Guide for 2023

Your Go-To Google Search Guide for 2023

by | Nov 7, 2022

Google is the most visited website in the world. Given the website’s dominance, it’s important to stay updated on the key trends and statistics for the platform every year. We’ve compiled a list of this year’s most important facts so you can stay at the top of your Google search game.

Google Search Traffic

Google search is an incredibly powerful way to boost your brand recognition. Credit: Shutterstock

People visited Google 84.7 billion times in August 2022 alone. That’s 10.6 times more than the world’s population. 

92.7% of all searches are done through Google. The next most popular search engine, Bing, accounts for 2.8 percent of total searches. 

63% of Google’s US organic traffic comes from mobile devices. Google also has a mobile-first SEO policy, which means that your site will be ranked based on your mobile results rather than desktop results. Now more than ever, it’s important to adopt a mobile-first marketing strategy. 

Search Engine Marketing Statistics

Search Engine Marketing
Google search statistics should inform your search engine marketing strategy. Credit: Shutterstock

Since Google is such a dominant player, it’s a great platform for search engine marketing (SEM). It’s important to understand how users interact with Google’s results so that you can build your SEM strategy effectively. 

Google users click on the very first search result 39.6% of the time. You can optimize your SEO and invest in Google Search ads so that your business appears first. 

Importantly, organic search results still pay dividends. 65% of people click on organic links rather than sponsored links on Google. Make sure to write clear and engaging title tags and meta descriptions so that users will want to click on your content. 

91% of websites have no organic traffic on Google, however. This is because the vast majority of users stop scrolling after the first page of Google results. Check if your site shows up on the first page of results for your target keywords. If not, it would be smart to invest in some SEO development. 

Google Ads can bring your site to the first results page quickly. 19% of searchers click on a Google Ad during their search. If you want to make your site stand out quickly, Google Ads are the way to go. 

Moreover, Google Ads have an $8 return on investment for every $1 spent. This return on investment (ROI) can vary widely depending on how your Google Ads campaign is implemented, though. As a result, it’s best to enlist an employee or an agency with expertise on Google Ads when you decide to invest in them. 

It’s clear that Google is the dominant presence in all things digital advertising. It has endless potential to grow your business, and it’s important to be informed and intentional as you craft your Google presence.

Libby Foster is a Marketing Specialist at Purplegator. She’s currently getting her master’s in advertising and public relations at the University of Alabama.

The Power of Viral Marketing: Grow Your Brand Organically

The Power of Viral Marketing: Grow Your Brand Organically

by | Oct 21, 2022

Viral media marketing is one of the hottest trends in communications strategy, and for good reason. Viral posts make your brand stand out in the saturated digital marketing space. Moreover, they are a low-cost and organic way to grow your audience and customer base. At Purplegator, we know how to turn your engagement from 0 to 100 with viral marketing.

Gone viral
Let’s go viral together! Source: Shutterstock

Viral marketing is especially important because it has the potential to grow small businesses’ engagement exponentially. Whether you are a multinational corporation or a mom and pop shop, you can create content that resonates and reaches virality.

F & O’s: a Viral Marketing Success

Purplegator created a viral post for Felix and Oscar’s, or F&O’s, in 2021. We used specific strategies to maximize the post’s engagement, which we’ll outline throughout this article.

F&O’s is a well known deep dish pizza restaurant in Des Moines, Iowa. Founded in 1975, it’s one of the oldest restaurants in town. Our team recognized that there were many locals who had enjoyed their pizza in the past and needed a push to recall their fond memories at the parlor.

We used viral marketing to bring back those core memories. Initially, F&O’s had 9,000 Facebook followers. We recognized that they regularly engaged with the brand’s Facebook content. All we needed was the perfect post for their engagement to spread.

Local Knowledge Brings Viral Growth

If you’re not from Iowa, you may not know that its state fair is a big deal. It draws over 1 million visitors annually–almost a third of the state’s population. In 2021, the year after the COVID-19 pandemic, the state fair was even more newsworthy. We capitalized off this buzz.

Our post for F&O’s went viral 100% organically.

As you can see, almost 80,000 people viewed this post. Even more impressive, over 26,000 people engaged with it.

Strategies to Go Viral

Here are some reasons the post went viral:

  • Our headline opened the door for engagement. Using a question encouraged people to share their opinion. 
  • Viewers were allowed to comment. When users commented on the post, it was shared with their followers. 
  • The visual invoked emotional responses. The packed Iowa State Fair generated comments and buzz 18 months after the COVID-19 pandemic. 
  • The copy was short and sweet. Our copy was neutral but positive, which prevented users from criticizing F&O’s stance on the fair. 
  • We knew our audience. We used the Iowa State Fair, a statewide tradition, to boost engagement with F&O’s local target audience. 
This could be you next! All you need is a viral marketing strategy.

F&O’s experienced a 153% increase in website traffic after the post. There was also a 25.4% lift in their total customers the following month. Viral marketing pays dividends. 

Amazingly, the engagement with this post was 100% organic. We didn’t pay to boost the post even once. That’s the magic of viral marketing. 

As experts in all things mobile and social, we can make your page viral next. 

Libby Foster is a Marketing Specialist at Purplegator. She’s currently a master’s candidate in Advertising and Public Relations at the University of Alabama.