/serp/ - SERP Analysis

everyone is obsessed with tracking rankings but we are ignoring the fact that the top result is becoming a dead end. between the massive zero-click snippets and the integrated shopping widgets, there is almost no reason for a user to actually leave the search page. it feels like we are just optimizing for visibility rather than actual traffic anymore.
>the new reality of seo
we used to fight for the number one spot to drive site visits, but now that spot might as well be a billboard for someone else's product . if you aren't monitoring how much data is being extracted via the snippet itself, your analytics are basically useless. it is getting harder to justify a budget when the search engine becomes the final destination instead of a gateway.