There are three possibilities:

1. Google is just trying to emphasize the most relevant result (which is obviously the searched brand’s website)

2. Google is trying to emphasize even further their own property in the SERP

3. Google is trying to de-emphasize the other business directories (competitors to Google Places)

Of course there is a fourth posibility, too – all of the above.

Have tried searches on Barbara Oliver Jewelry and other branded searches on that business and on different businesses. Not seeing the site links surrounded by a box outline.

But as presentation changes are being rolled out my location always seems last to see them.

In some regards I think these are part of the endless volume of presentation changes that google makes vis a vis local businesses. There have been so many over the years.

Regardless of the changes google knows infinitely more about the traffic and click throughs on an aggregate basis and probably more on a business by business basis than do the smb’s and their seo’s and agencies.

In our cases our smb’s now see about 50% “not provided” data from google. Its an enormous volume of traffic.

I for instance tried a couple of different “name” branded searches for barbara oliver. Only one of them, barbara oliver jewelry turned up the result with that level of site links. Other types of branded searches for the smb, ie Barbara Oliver jeweler Buffalo, etc turned up different presentations; some had less web page real estate than the one shown above; ie site links with less page real estate.

If I had searched and clicked on the site while being signed into gmail neither you nor barbara oliver would know what search term I used.

Google would know. As they keep making presentation changes they get all the knowledge.

We get the scraps

Google obviously tests various techniques all the time, however I measured up the boxes from the images above and they are sitting around 277px (give or take). Smells a little like mobile optimization testing to me?

What do you think Mike?