Google Is the Top Source of Internet Traffic: What Should I Do?
It should come as no surprise that Google is the gateway to the internet for most users. Google accounts for over 90% of all queries on search engines. That means being able to be easily found on Google is crucial. But what does it mean to be found? Two decades ago that meant being a top search result, but now the search engine results page (SERP) has become increasingly filled with all manner of ads, maps, boxes, featured snippets, frequently asked questions, and more. All of this complexity puts small businesses, like many funeral homes, in the unenviable position of having to navigate an increasingly confusing and ever-changing online environment.
This guide will address the current state of Google search, what funeral homes need to be doing to succeed in this environment, and what the growth of AI means for the future of search. The world of search can be excessively opaque and technical, but we’ll provide plain-language, actionable steps to help your business thrive online.
The Current State of Google Search
Trillions of Google searches are performed each year, meaning millions are done each and every minute. Google is the undisputed leader in search. So what do all these searches lead to? It turns out a lot of searches still lead to clicks on organic results. According to Tom Capper, Senior Search Scientist at Moz and Stat, roughly 45% of all clicks go to organic results. (Those are the unpaid results that aren’t marked as sponsored.) That means the other half of clicks is going to ads and other types of paid features.
This has important implications for your ad spending and search engine optimization (SEO). That means with Google Ads, while highly effective, you can only capture roughly 55% of all clicks or leads. The rest is captured by clicks on Google Business Profiles and clicks to your website. Completely dominating the ads front can mean that you’re still missing out on almost half of all leads.
Key Takeaways
It is important to consider where traffic is coming from when budgeting for SEO and Google Ads. For funeral homes, Google Ads often has a significantly higher budget despite the fact that SEO can capture almost half the clicks without paying for the click.
The long-term ROI for SEO is almost always in favor of SEO over Google Ads. That’s because SEO builds your site’s authority and visibility over time. And these things don’t go away immediately when you stop working on SEO. Any competitor can come in tomorrow and outcompete you on the ads front. This type of quick takeover is much more difficult on the SEO side. (As an analogy, Google Ads is like renting an apartment, and SEO is like buying a house. The apartment is cheaper up front, but you can never stop paying for it. Buying a home is more expensive upfront, but in the long run it can be your most valuable asset. Investing in SEO is like building equity.)
The reality is that businesses need to be present on ads and organic results (SEO) if they want to capture as much traffic as possible. Google is the dominant channel, so getting as much traffic as possible from Google is a truly critical component of any funeral home’s digital strategy.
But What About AI?
AI is the elephant in the room in every discussion these days about the future of search. AI will absolutely change how people search for information and how that information will be presented to them. I would be lying if I tried to predict the future with any confidence. However, there are a few things that we can be sure of.
Search Advertising Isn’t Going Away
Google had over $200 billion last year in advertising revenue. Google and their AI-focused competitors know there is a ton of money to be made by selling digital ads. Nobody wants to give up this revenue, and everybody wants a piece of the pie.
The exact nature of these ads will likely be different from the current state of digital ads. But this has always been the case. New technologies create new types of advertising. AI might create completely custom ads for each user. (This is actually not that different from what Google Ads currently does.) We might get sponsored AI chatbots for voice search or user-specific, AI-generated video ads on YouTube. If you can think of it, somebody will find a way to turn into a source of advertising revenue.
Organic Results Will Change
In order to provide results, AI needs data and lots of it. This is not novel, but what is new is where this data might be pulled from. Even though Google never says much about how its search algorithm works, data scientists and SEO professionals have a solid understanding of most of what goes into search rankings. This is not the case for AI. Some models are transparent about what data they crawl for their models; others are not. Some AI companies have licensing agreements to train their models on specific websites, like Google’s deal with Reddit or OpenAI’s with Time.
This poses a problem for those who are trying to get their information in front of the right people. For example, Google has tons of data from Google Business Profiles that allows them to generate accurate results about your business, its location, services, reviews, and so forth. This is great if people are using Google’s Gemini for AI answers. But what if they’re using Perplexity? They recently signed a deal with Yelp to provide up to date information for their AI tool. That means if your funeral home doesn’t have a robust and accurate Yelp profile, some users may not even know you exist. (This is currently the case for users of Apple Maps which draws heavily from Yelp reviews.)
This uncertainty can be scary. The best advice I can give right now is to be visible everywhere online. Listings management has always been an important part of local SEO, but the uncertainty of AI has made this even more critical. It’s possible that Google’s Gemini will become the industry standard and having a strong presence on Google will be good enough. It’s also possible that ChatGPT, Perplexity, Brave, Komo, Llama, or some other AI service you’ve never heard of could take over. All of these models draw on somewhat different data sets and generate answers in slightly different ways. If your funeral home has a strong presence on Google, Facebook, Yelp, and maybe even Reddit and TikTok you’ll be well-positioned to ride the next wave of AI search disruption.
Conclusion: Maximize Your Google Results While Preparing for the Future
Google search is still dominant. Organic and paid results each get about half of all clicks. That means making the necessary investment in both SEO and Google Ads is the best way to make sure you’re not letting valuable leads slip away. Google is still the primary way at-need families look for funeral homes online. Ranking well and having effective ads are both key ways to maintain a steady influx of new leads.
AI is in the process of changing how people search for information. There is a lot of uncertainty as to how exactly this will affect visibility and discoverability of local businesses. The best hedge against this uncertainty is to make your funeral home’s web presence as robust as possible across all the leading sites and social media platforms. Don’t forget about your own website. This is the only part of the internet you have complete control over; it should act as a hub for your entire online presence. This is good for your business now, and it will help you in a changing future.