Is Google Search Still at the Top of the Funnel?

Intro

For years, a Google search was the gateway to discovering new information. However, in 2022, Google disclosed that, based on its internal data, nearly 40% of Gen Z would rather use TikTok and Instagram for a search than Google. Three years later, this trend has continued to rise, and Google is losing its footing as the preferred search engine for younger audiences.

Within Gen Z, Google ranks third after Instagram and TikTok. Is this a clear shift in dominance that everyone in marketing should consider? Or is this just a contextual shift, and Google is at the top of the funnel in other circumstances?

The evolution of zero-click searches

Before even getting into the shift to social media platforms as preferred search engines, Google itself is experiencing a great shift in the display of results. Once upon a time, a Google search would definitely result in you clicking on a website to get the full information. However, today, Google is prioritizing giving users the information needed directly on the Search Engine Results Page. This reduces the information-searching journey, makes Google the destination and no longer the bridge, and retains users.

However, the evolution to the current zero-click searches did not happen overnight. It is important to appreciate the journey to predict the future. Here is a summarized breakdown of how Google has evolved with the world, generations, and technology to remain relevant.

• 2014

Marked the onset of Google's shift to displaying answers on the Search Engine Results Page. The first innovative tool was Featured Snippets, which showed concise answers and eliminated the need for a user to visit the website.

• 2015

The People Also Ask feature was introduced. The feature answers related questions, enabling users to collect relevant information without needing to perform searches or visit multiple websites.

The Local Map feature was introduced to give users contact information and directions to local businesses on the results page. This feature made the information journey end at Google instead of at a business website.

• 2019

The Buy on Google feature went live, allowing users to purchase without leaving the results page. This was Google's first shift to capitalize on zero-click searches for product-related searches.

• 2023

The visibility of FAQ & How-To pages on websites was significantly reduced on Google, forcing website developers to focus on content that could be easily displayed on Featured Snippets and People Also Ask boxes. This further advanced the shift to zero-click searches.

• 2024

The introduction of the AI Overviews enabled the tool to summarize information from multiple sources, delivering a comprehensive answer to a query. This has significantly reduced the need for users to click through multiple websites to piece information together.

Google’s losing ground

While Google is making a significant effort to remain at the top of the funnel, it is losing ground in certain contexts:

* AI Assistants & Chatbots

It is undeniable that tools like ChatGPT, Microsoft Copilot, and Perplexity are becoming the go-to source for top-funnel queries. Their provision of summarized and conversational responses is more appealing, and they are steadily taking up the spot that belonged to Google.

* Product Search

While the Buy on Google feature has been well-received by users since 2019, platforms such as Amazon, Alibaba, and other trading platforms have successfully taken over the majority of traffic for product-related queries. Users today go directly to such platforms instead of starting with a Google search that would direct them to these websites.

* Community-driven insights

When it comes to seeking out opinions or peer-review searches, community forums take the crown today. Today, users will more easily get on forums such as Reddit, Quora, or Discord directly to make queries.

* Gen Z behavior

The younger generations, led by Gen Z, are shifting the beginning of the discovery journey on the internet. While the journey began on Google for millennials and older generations, Gen Zs are beginning their discovery journey on other platforms such as TikTok, Instagram, and YouTube. This trend is especially true when it comes to lifestyle, fashion, food, and STEM content.

Google's winning ground

Despite this growing competition from social platforms and AI assistants, Google still dominates in certain contexts. When users are keen on trust, speed, and completeness of information, Google is the go-to destination.

Users looking to learn something entirely new and gather as much information as possible will start their discovery journey on Google. This is because of the platform’s long-form delivery of educational content through blog posts, explainer articles, research papers, and documentation.

Today, Google remains the go-to source for fast, accurate answers to direct questions. Google is where users look to run utility tasks, such as converting an amount of EUR to USD or recommending credible domains, such as a website that rates top casinos. Besides, when it comes to B2B research, Google remains the most trusted TOFU channel to surface analyst reports, case studies, vendor comparisons, and white papers embedded within corporate websites. In these contexts, Google remains unbeatable and will remain so in the foreseeable future.

Google still holds the top spot when it comes to searches on evergreen content. The engine's ability to pull quality information from credible domains that deliver expertise, experience, authoritativeness, and trustworthiness is unmatched. The search for how-to guides, tips, best practices, product reviews, definitions, and glossaries all begin on Google.

Transactional and navigational queries rank as Google's highest uses. This makes Google the final gateway to a conversion for most local businesses, service providers, and retailers. Google has numerous tools that aid in translating user searches to actual sales. From direct calls to actions such as Reserve with Google for hotels, to displayed reviews and ratings, to integration of Google Maps.

While Google continues to face stiff competition, Google searches remain extremely relevant in the customer's journey. It will take a number of years before it is bumped off from dominating the top of the funnel.