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Does Google Instant Mark the End of SEO?

By Chris Crum

A reporter attending Google's Q&A about Google Instant pointed out that the new search feature tends to favor big brands. This isn't really surprising, as it is these brands that are more likely to be searched for most often. After all, they're big because people know them.



Google Instant doesn't necessarily make things any easier on small businesses, but it's showing big brands in cases where Google probably would've suggested big brands anyway. If users do a lot of local searches, it's possible that Google could show more local results (including small businesses) for those users.

Steve Rubel says that Google Instant makes SEO irrelevant. "Here's what this means," he says. "No two people will see the same web. Once a single search would do the trick - and everyone saw the same results. That's what made search engine optimization work. Now, with this, everyone is going to start tweaking their searches in real-time. The reason this is a game changer is feedback. When you get feedback, you change your behaviors."

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