Episode 3: Standing Out in Google SGE — How Generative Search Changes Local Business Discovery

Key Takeaways

• Google SGE is visually dominant on the page but its real-world impact on consumer behavior remains uncertain
• Local pack results often appear within SGE results
• SGE results lack familiar CTAs like driving directions, click-to-call, and food ordering
• Product search is the category most likely to be disrupted by SGE
• The best preparation for SGE is rich content, quality images and video, strong reviews, and building a brand that customers navigate to directly

Google’s Search Generative Experience (SGE) represented the biggest visual change to search results in years — and the local search community was scrambling to understand what it meant. Would it replace the map pack? Would organic results disappear? Would ads finally face competition for screen real estate?

In this episode of the Local Marketing Beat podcast, host Christian Hustle is joined by Greg Sterling, Co-Founder of Near Media and former VP at Uberall, and Krystal Taing, Director of Global Solutions at Uberall, to break down what SGE actually looks like for local searches, how the map pack and ads coexist with AI results, which categories are most affected, and what location marketers should be doing to prepare.

Timestamps

00:00 Introduction to Google SGE and why it matters for local search

01:44 Last local searches: handyman in Oakland and Instax film near me

02:55 What is SGE? A visual overview of the new search experience

06:55 How SGE displays local results differently from the traditional map pack

09:35 The bear claw, carousels, and inconsistencies in the current beta

13:00 Your Money or Your Life queries: attorneys, healthcare, and SGE

17:00 Where ads fit in the SGE ecosystem — and why they are untouchable

19:00 Product search: the category most likely to be disrupted

22:00 How brands can prepare: video, images, reviews, and building a brand

27:00 Final thoughts and predictions for the SGE rollout

SGE Is Visually Dominant — But Its Impact Is Still Uncertain

“The safe thing to say is that the jury is out. We don’t know yet because this is a very limited release to people who have to opt into a Labs program. Visually it’s a very dominant feature of the page, but that doesn’t mean it’s going to change everything.” — Greg Sterling

Despite the dramatic visual change SGE introduces to search results, its real-world impact on consumer behavior remains unknown.

The beta was limited to users who opted into Google’s Labs program — overwhelmingly SEO professionals and digital marketers, not ordinary consumers. The results appear as a large colored block at the top of the page, sometimes auto-generating, sometimes requiring a click to trigger, and sometimes not appearing at all.

The experience differs significantly between desktop and mobile. On mobile, SGE completely dominates the screen. On desktop, the traditional Local Pack and organic results are often still visible below. For location marketers, the key insight is that SGE does not replace the existing search experience — it layers on top of it, and the traditional Local Pack remains accessible to users who scroll past the AI results.

Local Pack Results Often Appear in Both SGE and the Traditional Pack

“In this particular case, all three of the local pack results are present in the SGE result. It’s often the case that you’ll see two out of the three showing up in both. So there’s a kind of double dip here for those businesses.” — Greg Sterling

One of the most significant findings from early testing: Businesses that rank in the traditional three-pack frequently also appear in the SGE results. Greg notes that in many local searches, two or three of the map pack listings are duplicated in the AI-generated display — creating a double visibility opportunity for those businesses.

However, the SGE results lack the familiar calls to action that make the map pack so effective for conversions. There are no click-to-call buttons, no driving directions, no food ordering links. Users who interact with the SGE results get information but not a clear path to action.

For brands managing Google Business Profiles, this means the traditional map pack may remain more valuable for conversions even as SGE captures visual attention.

Ads Are Untouchable — Nothing Will Interfere with Google’s Revenue

“Ads are the raison d’être for the whole thing. Nothing is going to touch the ads. A circle of protection has been drawn around ads and nothing will harm them.” — Greg Sterling

Google’s ad units are sacrosanct in the SGE experience. Shopping ads appear above SGE results, local service ads maintain their position, and the standard ad placements remain unchanged.

Product searches show Google Shopping carousels above the SGE block, then SGE results, then the standard map pack and organic listings — meaning ads get even more layers of visibility.

For brands investing in both local SEO and paid search, the implication is clear: Paid media is not threatened by SGE. If anything, the increased complexity of the search results page may make paid placements more valuable as a guaranteed visibility mechanism.

The question is whether organic results and the map pack will lose clicks to SGE results — or whether consumers will continue scrolling to the familiar formats they are used to.

Product Search Is the Category Most Likely to Be Disrupted

“Product search is a real area that SGE and AI will have a real impact. Google is so focused on products and retail — one of their biggest ad spending categories — that the SGE result with its horizontal product arrays is going to have an impact.” — Greg Sterling

While the impact on local service queries remains uncertain, Greg identifies product search as the category where SGE will have the most immediate and significant effect.

The AI-generated product displays include pricing, reviews, store availability, and comparison features that go well beyond what traditional organic results offer.

For retailers managing listings and product inventory, this reinforces the importance of connecting to Google Merchant Center, maintaining accurate pricing and availability data, and ensuring product information is complete across all platforms.

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The Best Preparation Is What You Should Already Be Doing

“Build your brand so people navigate directly to your site and don’t worry about ranking. To the extent that you can build a brand in whatever form on whatever platform, you should do it — and then you’ll benefit on Google.” — Greg Sterling

The fundamentals have not changed. Krystal emphasizes that the content and information businesses should already be publishing and optimizing about their locations will be just as relevant in SGE.

She highlights three areas that appear to take more prominence in SGE results: product inventory connected to Google Merchant Center, images and videos (particularly YouTube Shorts), and reviews with detailed ratings.

Greg takes a broader strategic view: The ultimate preparation for SGE — and for any future search change — is building a brand that customers seek out directly. If customers navigate to you by name, Google will be inclined to show you regardless of how the search interface changes.

For multi-location brands, this means investing in customer experience, authentic reputation management, and a consistent presence across every platform where consumers discover businesses.