Can Google Influence the 2016 Presidential Election? Oh, You Bet.

It’s a long way from November 8, 2016, but the race to the White House is in full swing. Whether you turn to your favorite channel and see the campaign ad of a presidential hopeful or load your trusted news site and read about one of the candidate’s most recent gaffes, it seems like everyone is trying to sway your opinion one way or another.However, a recent study from EurekAlert! indicates that Google might be the biggest influencer of them all. At PBJ Marketing, we regularly discuss the ways in which the search engine giant ranks results with its ever-evolving search algorithm, and this study shows that these rankings could have a hugely significant impact on the election.In other words: Google’s ranking algorithm for search results could accidentally steal the presidency“We estimate, based on win margins in national elections around the world,” says Robert Epstein, a psychologist at the American Institute for Behavioral Research and Technology and one of the study’s authors, “that Google could determine the outcome of upwards of 25% of all national elections.”The study, which examined groups of undecided voters, found that Google users who searched for candidates and found positive news stories ranked before negative stories were 45% more likely to vote for that individual.

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This shows just how important Search Engine Optimization and Search Engine Marketing is to your brand, be it presidential or not. One of the most compelling features of SEO is the ability to see what your target audience (or customers) is looking for. Thanks to innovations in online analytics, businesses can make changes as new patterns develop in consumer behavior.