Google Launches “People Search Next” in Search Results: What Will It Change?

A new feature called “People search next” has just started appearing in Google’s search results. Is it a help or a headache? What does it change for searchers, and for SEO professionals? Here’s what we know so far, and what to keep an eye on.

Predictive Features on the SERP

“People also ask,” “Related searches,” autocomplete suggestions: Google’s results pages are packed with features of every kind. Their goal is clear: make searching easier and better for users, and also keep them browsing and spending more time on Google.

In February 2022, many SEO professionals started pointing out a new feature that seems to add to that list of predictive tools.

“People search next” aims to steer searchers toward the queries they’re likely to run next, once their first search is done.

To build and refine this feature, Google draws on data about the searches people typically run after a given query.

Where Is “People Search Next” Showing Up?

The feature was spotted recently in Google’s U.S. results.

For now, it appears to be limited to the United States, on mobile, and only for certain queries.

Several people noticed that the feature was triggered by some queries, such as “dentist near me,” but not by others, such as “restaurant near me” or “doctor near me.”

Google responded that the feature is meant to appear on any search where it’s helpful, and is not limited to certain local queries.

In other words, Google appears to be actively developing the feature, and it could expand to more queries, and possibly more countries, in the months or years ahead.

Why You Should Keep an Eye on This Feature

More Help for Searchers

Features like “People search next” will likely please many users. They get one more tool to guide their searches and find answers faster and more easily.

The SEO world, however, probably won’t be as enthusiastic.

Less Room on the SERP

This new feature will appear alongside Related searches, not replace them, so the results page will likely devote yet another section to it.

That means less room to rank a website in Google’s top results, which could inevitably affect a site’s clicks and traffic.

Fewer Visits to Websites

The feature also nudges searchers to keep searching without ever visiting a website. They hop from query to query, follow Google’s suggestions, and find answers without clicking through. It’s the same trend highlighted by the 2019 zero-click search study.

Yet that website might be just as relevant, offering more precise and complete answers, and a direct line to the experts behind them.

A New Source of Ideas

On the plus side, “People search next” could become, like Related searches, a new source of inspiration for relevant content, helping you rank for the queries searchers are likely to run next. Our SEO content writing tips show how to turn those ideas into pages.

It’s a feature still in development, but one worth watching closely, because it could have a real impact on SEO work. We’ll be tracking it for our clients.

At Référenceur, a French-speaking SEO agency from Belgium and Luxembourg, we follow every change in search so we can keep improving our SEO services. We work with U.S. businesses remotely, through video calls, shared screens, and monthly reporting. Want tailored advice? Request a free assessment.