You’d be forgiven if you forgot about Google’s technology unveiling in May thanks to FIVE algorithm updates over ~30 days. Hopefully, you have a strong SEO strategy in place and came out like a champion in the algorithm olympics.
But this post isn’t about the past. That’s where you’ll find articles about RankBrian and BERT, the building blocks that helped pave the way for Google’s new AI: MUM.
What is Google MUM?
MUM, or Multitask Unified Model, is Google’s newest AI technology aimed at handling complex tasks. Google’s announcement claims MUM is “1,000 times more powerful than BERT” and was “trained across 75 different languages,” showing the incredible potential of the world’s most-trafficked website.
The aforementioned BERT, MUM’s predecessor, was a huge step forward as it allowed Google to consider the context of search terms together to find the searcher’s actual intent. BERT is there to help determine whether you needed a doctor or a hammer when you searched for “removing a nail.”
MUM takes this to a new level. While BERT will continue to help figure out what a searcher wants, MUM will take that understanding and set about building the most complete answer possible from across the Internet.
What Does MUM Mean for Google?
Users have complex needs, and Google’s goal is to be able to answer nuanced questions as if a user was speaking to a subject-matter expert. Thus, Google strives to cover the full scope of a user’s search, not just the first step.
That’s what makes MUM so powerful. It not only understands the context of web assets, it can create its own connections. Plus, MUM will be able to find and create that context across various informational formats like text, images, and eventually videos, bridging the gap across mediums and languages.
Once MUM is truly harnessed, users won’t need a set of specific and nuanced searches to find every little answer. Google will be able to serve comprehensive search results that satisfy the complete searcher’s journey with fewer searches.
What Does This Mean for You?
Most marketers understand the concept of a buyer’s journey. A potential client or customer goes through a number of different stages and informational content before deciding to pull the trigger on that purchase, demo, or retainer.
In this case, Google is trying to shorten the searcher’s journey. And just like a buyer’s journey, there’s more than one way for MUM to get the job done.
Google’s example of “hiking Mt. Fuji” started with gathering information like the climate, trail difficulty, and the right gear for the journey. Normally, getting all of that information would take multiple searches looking for those specific details, but MUM will eventually allow Google to surface all of that relevant information with one search.
To show how far Google sees MUM advancing the search engine’s capabilities, the example ended with the user taking a picture of their hiking boots and uploading them to Google with the question, “Can I use these to hike Mt. Fuji?”
These fantasies aren’t reality yet. In fact, they may not be available for quite some time as Google tests, verifies, and conscientiously rolls out MUM across various platforms on Google (e.g. maps and images).
But we can get to work right away.
Google’s goal for MUM shows that content diversification and repurposing is necessary to not only meet users where they are, but to provide the answers Google needs fill out a searcher’s journey. And we can tie back each piece to our internally mapped buyer’s journey.
Plus, the benefits available today from diversification and repurposing will continue to stand when MUM rolls out. You’ll get more ROI from your research by replicating its findings across numerous mediums. You’ll also raise your authority in that niche to increase that content topic’s chance for success on both journeys.
If Google’s constant changes have you worried about your content, let Digital Current be your search engine sherpa. We’ve been around for over 17 years and know how to climb the digital marketing mountain. Start your prosperous journey today by talking to one of our experts.
