Google has added a new section to the search results to help searchers research a product they are looking for. This new section is similar to the top stories style search feature, but instead uses it to highlight articles relevant to someone researching the search query. However, it does have some failings.
Here it is for the search term “bbq grills.”
One thing that stands out, and which can come across as a negative for Google, is that the first article in the set of three is one from 2016. Now, for someone researching a product that changes year to year, this one is particularly outdated at almost two years old. The Consumer Reports example is from May 2017, so it is more up to date, but the searcher cannot see the complete date, which could lead to a lower CTR. The second example is merely a landing page that requires further clicks to actually learn more.
I think this is an interesting addition, but definitely could use some tweaks to ensure that the articles they pull out are more current – such as under a year old – as well as ensuring what is linked to is useful. And it could serve as a great resource in the future for searchers, especially for those who are trying to get this type of information from third parties rather than from the retailers.
This appears to be only active in the US at this time.
Thank you to Dr. Pete Meyers for sending the screenshot.
Jennifer Slegg
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