": These SERPs display a Knowledge Card with a "Show all results" button and no additional organic results or SERP features. Even though the answer is definitive (there is one factual answer to this question), Google displays a rich Knowledge Card plus a full set of organic SERPs. On mobile, though, that Knowledge Card dominates results. If the basic information is all I need, and if I trust Google as a source for that information, why would I need to even click at this point? If the answer is enough for voice and mobile, maybe it's enough for desktop. Where the data suggests that one answer is enough, we may only see one answer, at the cost of organic results. The vast majority of searches are never going to have one definitive answer, and some queries aren't even questions, in the traditional sense. still shows organic results, but the Knowledge Card gives us a definitive answer... Think of these searches as "open informational" searches. Where Google can answer a question, they will try to answer that question, and if organic results add no measurable value (regardless of whether you agree with how Google measures value), they will continue to shrink.
On Wednesday, Google launched a large-scale experiment, removing organic results from a small set of searches with definitive answers such as this one for “What time is it in Seattle?”:
These SERPs display a Knowledge Card with a “Show all results” button and no additional organic results or SERP features. Danny Sullivan wrote on Twitter that this is currently limited to a small set of answers, including calculators, unit conversions, and some time/date queries. Here’s another one, converting yesterday’s MozCast temperature (“108 degrees in celsius”):
At first glance, this is a startling development, but it shouldn’t be entirely surprising. So, let’s get to the hard questions — is this a sign of things to come, and how quickly do we need to adapt?
For today, don’t panic
First off, preliminary data suggests that these really are isolated cases. Across the 10,000 searches that MozCast tracks daily, one search (0.01%) currently displays zero results: “1 gigabit to gigabyte.” This change is not impacting most high-volume, competitive queries or even the vast majority of results with Knowledge Cards.
Second, we have to face the reality that Knowledge Cards, even paired with organic results, already dramatically impact search user behavior. Thanks to Russ Jones, we’ve pulled some data from an internal CTR study we’re currently working on at Moz. In that study, SERPs with 10 blue links have a roughly 79% organic click-through rate (overall). Add just a Knowledge Card, with no other features, and that drops to 25%. That’s a 68% drop-off, a loss of over two-thirds of organic clicks. Google has tested this change and likely found that showing organic links on these particular searches provided very little additional value.
This isn’t new (part 1)
I’m going to argue that this change is one that we in the industry should’ve seen coming, and I’m going to do it in two parts. First, we know that Knowledge Cards and other answers (including Featured Snippets) power SERPs on devices where screen size is at a minimum or non-existent.
Take for example, a search for “Where was Stephen Hawking born?” Even though the answer is definitive (there is one factual answer to this question), Google displays a rich Knowledge Card plus a full set of organic SERPs. On mobile, though, that Knowledge Card dominates results. Here’s a full-screen image:
The Knowledge Card extends below the fold and dominates the mobile screen. This assumes I see the SERP at all. Even as I was typing the question, Google tried to give me the answer…
If the basic information is all I need, and if I trust Google as a source for that information, why would I need to even click at this point?
On mobile, I at least have the option to peruse organic results. On Google Home, if I ask the same question (“Where was Stephen Hawking born?”), I get no SERP at all, just the answer:
“Stephen Hawking was born in Oxford, United Kingdom.”
Obviously, this is born…
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