In a twist that surprised the search marketing community, Google announced the end of infinite scrolling in search results, opting to return to the classic pagination system. This change, according to Google, aims to speed up the presentation of search results, but experts and professionals in the field question this justification, raising doubts about the true motivations behind this decision.
The End of Infinite Scrolling
Until recently, infinite scrolling allowed users to continuously scroll through search results on Google, especially on mobile devices, displaying up to four pages of results before prompting them to take action to see more. This functionality was initially enthusiastically received by website owners and SEO professionals as it increased the chances of exposure in search results.
However, as reported by The Verge, Google chose to remove this functionality, claiming that such a change would facilitate faster delivery of search results. The change will affect desktop search results first, with changes planned for mobile devices in the near future.
The Real Implications of Change
Despite Google’s claims about speed of results, many in the digital marketing community view this explanation with skepticism. Revelations from the US Department of Justice indicate internal discussions at Google about ways to increase the display of ads in search results, fueling speculation about the company’s intentions.
Brett Tabke, founder of the Pubcon conference and creator of the acronym SERPs (Search Engine Results Pages), suggests that this change will mainly benefit Google ads and owned properties, relegating organic results to a secondary level. He speculates that this strategy is part of a larger move by Google to transform itself into a portal, moving away from traditional organic results.
Divided Opinions in the Community
While some professionals express disbelief in Google’s motivations and predict negative impacts for clicks on ads lower down or beyond the first page, others acknowledge that infinite scrolling may not be an ideal solution for all types of sites. Kevin Indig pointed out on X (formerly Twitter) that, although useful for social networks, infinite scrolling can provide a poor user experience in other contexts, such as informational sites or e-commerce.
Final considerations
Google’s decision to return to classic pagination in search results is multifaceted and raises important questions about usability, content strategy, and underlying intent. While the digital community debates the implications of this change, it remains to be seen how it will affect the user experience and online visibility of websites. The measure was justified by the improvement in the speed of results delivered to users; however, the implications for organic visibility and click distribution remain a subject of intense speculation.
In this dynamic and ever-evolving context of digital marketing, only time will tell whether this change will be beneficial to the web ecosystem as a whole or will only benefit a chosen few within Google’s own sphere of influence.
