Google’s recent decision to start encrypting search by default for its signed-in users has yielded some shocking results. A new study conducted by Optify revealed that 39 percent of search traffic from Google to websites has search terms withheld. When users affected by Google’s encryption searched for certain omitted terms, a “Not Provided” response appeared instead of the search-specific results. SearchEngineLand.com offered details on the study that scrutinized this search selectivity.
The study included an analysis of more than 400 websites, over 17 million site visits, and in excess of seven million referring keywords. According to the findings, one out of every two-and-a-half visits from organic search appeared as “Not Provided,” which indicated a 171 percent increase in the number of these “Not Provided” results since Google’s search encryption began.
Just as worrisome as individuals denied access to certain websites is the devastating impact upon those omitted businesses. Surprisingly, 64 percent of companies have had one-third to one-half of their traffic from Google halted by this “Not Provided” response. On the high end of the spectrum, approximately 60 percent of search traffic has been withheld to a whopping 13 percent of companies.
While there is no clear answer on whether this withholding is intentional or accidental, Google’s search encryption is an issue that needs to reviewed and resolved in order to ensure the sanctity of search.
To learn more about the power of search marketing, contact MDG Advertising today at 561-338-7797 or visit mdgadvertising.com.
MDG Advertising, a full-service traditional and digital marketing agency with offices in Boca Raton, FL and New York, NY, specializes in developing targeted Internet marketing solutions, exceptional creative executions and solid branding and media buying strategies that give clients a competitive advantage. Our core capabilities include branding, logo design, creative, digital marketing, print advertising, direct mail marketing, media planning and buying, TV and radio, video, digital marketing, Web design and development, email marketing, social media marketing, search marketing, and search engine optimization (SEO).
Read more at SearchEngineLand.com.
Written by Michael Del Gigante
- Social Media is Good Medicine for Healthcare Marketing
- Google Outlines Three Online Advertising Trends
- Print Advertising is Dead? Not So Fast.
- 5 Messaging Strategies of Successful Branding Firms
- Study Shows Organic SEO Significantly Undervalued by Marketers
- In-Store Sales Begin Online
- Dos Equis Gives New Meaning to Mobile Marketing
- Search Marketing Spend Rises Attribution Mobile Analytics Remain Big Concerns
- Facebook Displays New Tools for Developing Audience Network Native Ads
- Old Spice Gives Its Ad Campaign A Fresh Spin
- Surprise! Online Ads Work Like Magazine Ads – Online Advertising
- Twitter Starting to Share New Promoted Video Feature with Brands
- Fifty Shades of Grey Marketing Strategy Positions Novel as Fiction Phenomenon
- Listerine Making News with Refreshing Social Media Strategy for World Cup Sponsorship
- Online Reputation Management 101: What Businesses Need to Know [Infographic]
- Local Search Evolved [Infographic]
- Vacationing the Social Media Way [Infographic]
- The ROI of Social Media [Infographic]
- How Social Media Changed The Ad Game [Infographic]
- Should You Build a Mobile App or Mobile Website? [Infographic]
- It’s All About the Images [Infographic]