Thunderbolt Digital are a professional digital agency specialising in SEO Surrey and the local area; our hard-working team are dedicated to helping SMEs manage and market themselves effectively, and expand their online audience. It’s important that any digital agency keeps up to date with the latest developments in the industry, which is why we always like to keep a close eye on the news, especially when it involves Google and any changes to their SERPS.
A recent announcement from Google has revealed that they’re adding yet another dimension to local searches in the form of reviews; Currently, users will already see Google’s ‘knowledge panels’ appear when searching for local services, and these little boxes include contact information, directions, and general business information, allowing users to get a quick insight into a business; Google are adding another way to flesh out this box to help users make more informed choices, this time with reviews from critics and around the web.
In total Google will showcase reviews from three sources: itself, critics and third parties (usually consumers), though which is shown first will depend on ‘relevance’ for a case by case basis though it is unclear what this entails exactly. These reviews are visible on both desktop and mobile searches though they seem to appear far more prominently on mobile due to differences in layout.
All of this is designed to compliment earlier additions to the knowledge panel, including ‘must try’ local businesses and estimated visit duration statistics, and it seems that Google is dedicated to regularly expand upon the information it can give users about local businesses in its search results. The new reviews arriving in the knowledge panels are initially only appearing in US search results but will be rolled out globally shortly, so expect to see these in your local searches soon!