Google has made several updates in the past 10 years to enhance the search experience for mobile users. These updates include a mobile-friendly algorithm update in 2015, mobile-first indexing in 2019, continuous scrolling on mobile in 2021, and constant scrolling for desktop search results in 2022.
The continuous scroll feature is a search engine tool enabling users to browse search results without clicking on different pages. Instead, as the user scrolls down, additional results appear at the bottom of the page. This feature has changed how users interact with search results, and it has had a significant impact on organic traffic.
It has been interesting to see how continuous desktop scrolling would affect organic traffic. If the results in the first few search results do not match user interest, would this increase the number of searches into deeper pages, or would users prefer to change their search terms? Jason Tabeling of Search Engine Land examined organic traffic data over 30 days before and after the continuous scroll change to learn the answer.
According to his analysis, very few users click the results listed after the first page of the Search Engine Results Pages (SERPs). With 88 percent of clicks going to the top three spots, the first page typically receives more than 50 percent of impressions. That shows how continuous scrolling may cause some impressions and users to move deeper to click on other results.
However, the majority of traffic is still from the top three listings. Only four percent of all clicks fall outside of the first six positions. It underlines how crucial it is to rank highly for relevant search terms.
One of the main effects of continuous scrolling on organic traffic is that users are less likely to click on additional pages to find what they are searching for. It has led to increased competition for the top spots in search results.
With fewer clicks on the second and third pages, websites that are ranked lower have a much smaller chance of being found by users. As a result, website owners have had to work harder to optimize their content and improve their rankings to get more traffic.
Another impact of continuous scrolling on organic traffic is that it has changed how users interact with search results pages. Users are now more likely to scan through the results quickly rather than take the time to read every result page. It means that websites with eye-catching titles and descriptions can better catch a user’s attention and get clicked on.
Continuous scrolling has also led to an increased emphasis on mobile optimization. With many more users accessing the internet through mobile devices, it is now essential for websites to be optimized for mobile viewing. Only mobile-optimized websites may display correctly on smaller screens, which can lead to a poor user experience and lower click-through rates from desktop users.
Continuous scrolling has also made it more challenging for website owners to track their organic traffic. Since users are no longer clicking through to different pages, it can be more challenging to determine which pages are getting the most traffic and which ones are not. To better understand how users interact with their website, website owners may need to rely on other metrics, like bounce rates and time on page.
“Google’s continuous scroll feature has led to increased competition for the top spots in search results and an increased emphasis on mobile optimization and local SEO,” says Bill Fukui, Senior Vice President of Business Development at MedShark Digital. Website owners who understand the impact of continuous scrolling on organic traffic and adjust their strategies accordingly can reap the rewards of increased visibility and traffic.
