Introduction
“Google it”
Google is the unrivaled king when it comes to finding information on the internet.
At least, that’s how it has been till now.
But the recent emergence of ChatGPT and its integration with Bing is threatening to unsettle the status-quo.
Anybody who is not living under a rock knows that ChatGPT is a large language model (LLM) chatbot developed by OpenAI. It is trained on a massive dataset of text and code, and can be used to generate search summaries, translate languages, write different kinds of creative content, and answer your questions in an informative way. ChatGPT is still under development, but it has learned to perform many kinds of tasks, including generating text in a variety of styles, including fiction, nonfiction, and poetry. It can also generate code, scripts, musical pieces, email, letters, and other types of creative content.
So, there are essentially three capabilities of ChatGPT that we (and Google) are concerned with:
1. It can search and generate a summary of results in a single direct answer. Whereas Google’s search engine doesn’t give you a direct answer, instead it returns a listing of multiple web pages that resonate with the keywords given. Now it’s your job to find out which website has the answer you are looking for. (this is a direct challenge to Google search engine);
2. It can generate content on multiple subjects in a creative and engaging manner. To do the same with Google you have to go through multiple pieces of content and heavy brainstorming to create a single piece of content.; and
3. ChatGPT is a natural language processing tool that can take user inquiries and understand user intent with high accuracy and human-like responsiveness. It can challenge the dominance of businesses like Google in the search advertising market by enabling more precise targeting and individualized advertising experiences for users (challenge to Google advertising industry).
These capabilities lead us (and probably Google too) to the question of whether AI can replace Google and its search-based services and advertising.
Google was so intimidated by ChatGPT that it launched its own AI model, ‘BARD’ rather hastily, and initially it pulled a lot of criticism for giving absurd, and wrong answers.
However, Google managed to solve those initial hiccups, and currently Bard is available in more than 180 countries.
In this Review, we dig deep into the present and future impacts of ChatGPT on search-based services such as SEO and advertisements, and overall dominance of Google as the #1 search engine.
Will Bing emerge as the main Search Engine?
Well even a few months ago the most die-hard Bing fans (if there were any) would not have dared to place their bets on Bing. But now that ChatGPT is here and Microsoft has unveiled a new Bing search engine with ChatGPT-4 integration, people have enough reason to make a different decision.
Microsoft CEO Satya Nadela also hinted at the same saying,
“This technology is going to reshape pretty much every software category.”
In the new Bing, users can toggle the Bing chat mode on and off and tap the bot to chat, compose emails, and write text. The new Bing uses a more sophisticated OpenAI language known as ChatGPT-4. The AI-based Bing, which can summarize web pages and respond to queries conversationally, is an addition to the new Edge browser.
Now the question of becoming the main player in search engines unequivocally redirects to Google’s supremacy in the field. Google CEO Sundar Pichai also seems to be concerned – he declared ‘code red’ in Google and called back founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin to help with the situation.
But becoming the ‘main player’ in the search engine industry is still an uphill task for Bing. Though Bing is listed as the second largest search engine worldwide, it holds only 2.71% market share compared to 84.69% of Google. Google has an astonishing over 1 billion daily active users.
However, Bing has experienced some upsurge in its users since the launch of AI-powered Bing Chat which has attracted more than 1 million preview users and boosted its daily active users to 100 million worldwide. Bing also benefits from being integrated with Microsoft Edge browser and other Microsoft products and services.
Therefore, Bing may emerge as a main player in the search engine market, but it will likely take time and effort to catch up with Google or challenge its dominance. But for now, Google is hallucinating Grim Reaper due to the emergence of Microsoft funded ChatGPT.
Is SEO in Danger?
We asked this question to the ‘Grim Reaper’ itself, and this is the reply we received:
“No, the search-based model for both SEO and Paid Ads is not in danger after the development of Chat GPT. Chat GPT can even improve the effectiveness of these models.”
But there may still be some lingering doubts. For example, Artificial intelligence (AI) can automate many aspects of search engine optimization (SEO), including content creation, keyword analysis, and link building. This raises the question of what will happen to SEO if people start using AI-powered chatbots like ChatGPT to get their answers directly, rather than searching through Google. If people spend more time interacting with chatbots and less time on search engines, it could mean the end of SEO as we know it.
We went back to ChatGPT, and here is what it told us:
To summarize, as per ChatGPT, AI will assist SEO with its beneficial features such as NLP and is not detrimental to SEO in any way.
Besides, we believe, it is unlikely that AI will completely destroy the field of SEO.
Search industry is bound to change sooner or later regardless of who (Google, any other search engine, or AI) leads the way. We believe SEO will still be there, because SEO means understanding user intent and aligning business strategies and communication accordingly, and this will not change even if users increasingly rely on AI-based engines. In a future where SEO basics are fused with AI we can expect some exceptional results which will elevate our search experience to a whole new level.
Now, as a matter of fact, human behavior is complex and nuanced. It is influenced by a wide range of factors, including our emotions, our experiences, and our cultural background. This makes it difficult for AI to fully understand human behavior, even with a large amount of data. However, humans have a long history of interacting with each other, and we have developed a deep understanding of human behavior through this experience. This understanding is essential for predicting and understanding human behavior, and it is something that AI cannot yet replicate.
What About Google Ads?
As a tool for natural language processing, ChatGPT can comprehend user inquiries with a high degree of accuracy and human-like responsiveness. As ChatGPT’s capabilities enable more precise targeting and individualized advertising experiences for users, they have the potential to challenge the dominance of businesses like Google in the search advertising market.
For instance, incorporating ChatGPT into search engines can produce advertising campaigns catered to the unique needs and interests of individual users. Additionally, ChatGPT’s capacity to produce text that sounds like human speech will help to produce ads that are more persuasive and engaging.
For example, the famous Hollywood actor and founder of the digital agency and film production company ‘Maximum Effort’ Ryan Reynolds tried his hands at ChatGPT to create an Ad for Mint Mobile. “Eerie”, “mildly terrifying” and “compelling”- this is how he reacts after using it.
The ad developed by AI was successful in increasing brand awareness, audience engagement, and attracting customers.
Does this mean that the contemporary method of advertising is going to change completely?
According to Mukund Olety, CCO of VMLY&R, AI’s applications in the field of advertising and marketing are numerous and include better customer data analysis, and increased personalization. He also added that companies can use the model to develop chatbots or virtual assistants that interact with customers in a more natural and tailored way. ChatGPT can also be used to analyze customer data and provide insights for individualized marketing campaigns. Additionally, it could be used to produce creative for advertisements and marketing campaigns.
In addition, AI cannot replace creativity, especially in its current form. The ability to come up with novel and original ideas constitutes creativity. While AI can be taught to come up with fresh concepts, it lacks the true novelty that only humans possess. While AI can help with creative tasks like coming up with new works of art or music, it cannot take the place of the human element in creativity.
Here’s what ChatGPT has to say about it:
So, humans out there, intuition, emotion, and experience are your most valuable assets. These will help you to be a step ahead of AI, and to use it as a tool to enhance productivity.
Conclusion
Even during the advent of computers, there was fear among people that computer-led automation will erase many industries, professions, and jobs. But that didn’t happen. Rather, it has evolved almost every industry for good and created many new areas of work, such as SEO and search advertisements.
Professionals and businesses can leverage AI by using it as a tool. As far as Google’s supremacy is concerned, its supremacy as a search engine is due to its enormous base of loyal users and its long history of leveraging artificial intelligence (AI) in its search engine. For example, Google has been using AI for years in its RankBrain algorithm, which helps to rank search results more accurately. Google is also constantly improving its AI offerings, such as Bard, and it is likely that we will see even better offerings from Google in the near future.
What do you think?
Let us know in the comment section.
