Let’s just start by saying that we have all typed our names on the Google search bar at some point. Sometimes, we’ve Googled our brands. If you’ve Googled your company name recently, you’ve probably seen the Knowledge Graph at work at the right side of the search results page.

Recently, frequent Google users may have witnessed a sudden change in its format in the past month. Now, the local Google My Business knowledge panels in the search results have a share icon, so users can share the panel on social media directly from the Google search page.

The share icon is located on the left of the company logo at the right side of the knowledge panel. Here is a screenshot of how it looks:

Amazon - Share Icon

 

A click on the share icon will take you to a pop-up share menu. This allows you to share the panel on Google+, Facebook, Twitter, through e-mail, or a short link to copy and paste:

Share

Share on Facebook

 

The Good and The Bad: What the Share Feature Means for Businesses

As a Threat

The new feature poses a certain downside to businesses. By sharing the panel, you allow Google and social media sites to “scrape” your content, and in turn, steal your link juice and traffic. And unless you remove all your content from the Internet, you can’t do anything about it.

As an Opportunity

The good news is that the knowledge panel is still linking to the original source of the information, as seen here:

knowledge panel

That means even though Facebook, Twitter, or Google+ gets most of your traffic, you still generate trust and credibility for your brand. In addition, other brands are competing for those shares, too. It’s nice to be the source singled out as a trusted site for information. The panel also helps bury ads, which are typically from competitors.

And of course, these knowledge panels are a powerful commentary for businesses. Buyers tend to trust information from third parties, especially Google.

What You Can Do

Again, we can’t really stop Google from doing what it does. What you can do is to simply improve your chances of having a knowledge panel—with your brand name on it— shared across other sites.

Optimize your site and make content simple—something simple that will help users get from Point A to Point B. Simple content is what users are looking for, and taking advantage of this will make Google notice you.

Do not be discouraged if your changes will not make a difference overnight. Sometimes, knowledge panels can take weeks to months to show up—sometimes not at all, especially if the site does not have enough signals to tell Google that the brand is relevant. At RefractROI, one of the leading experts in Denver SEO, can help. With our expertise, we will help you dominate the search results, take advantage of the Google My Business knowledge panels, and achieve online supremacy.

Call RefractROI for a consultation and our team will be more than happy to help you.

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