If ever there was an argument for why SEO is important then this is possibly it: an Ofcom study into media literacy has revealed that some kids believe sites ranked higher in search engines are more ‘truthful’!

“Among children aged 12-15 who use the internet, almost all have experience of using search engine websites (94%).

“Those who use search engine sites were shown a list of options and were asked to say which, if any, apply in terms of the way results are shown on search engine sites.

“There is no clear consensus among search engine users, but 12-15s are more likely to respond that results are ranked on their usefulness or relevance (37%) or their truthfulness (32%) than they are to respond that websites pay money to be at the top of the list (14%).”

With the rise of importance of search engines and the power they now hold, this is perhaps hardly surprising. SEO is a complex art; I wonder how many adults would be able to explain exactly how sites are ranked.

But then again, as long as they find what they are looking for, does it really matter and does anyone really care?

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