Did you know that organic traffic is more valuable than any other marketing channel? SEO is the best way to generate organic traffic. The first signs of SEO started right after the dawn of the internet. However, no one could have predicted the impact that SEO would have on businesses a few years later. SEO has developed from a simple, single-celled organism into an adaptive structure that businesses now rely on. Here are a few signs that the SEO evolution is here.
1. The Decline of Keywords
Keywords used to be the foundation of SEO. Search engines would use them to index the content of your page. Back in the day, it would be difficult to find your site if it did not have specific keywords. Previous SEO practices pushed webmasters to stuff their pages with keywords. Even though they promoted high rankings, overuse of keywords affected user experience.
Google rolled a different algorithm for ranking web pages and sites. The algorithm, codenamed ‘Hummingbird,’ analyzed the purpose of a keyword query and not just the semantics. Search engines now use artificial intelligence to determine the relationship between keyword queries and individual words. Google now promotes the use of long-tailed and detailed keyword phrases.
2. Quality Content
The deterioration of keyword emphasis has pushed for the creation of quality content. Brands are investing in quality and helpful content. The goal is to appeal to customers rather than just boosting rankings. Target audiences are likely to keep coming back to a site if it is consistently providing them with useful and relevant content. Good content can only be achieved by understanding your audience and their needs. It is, therefore, wise to work with an SEO services company. They may help you research and understand your audience before creating content. This is especially important in countries that don’t speak English like Israel. Getting SEO services in Israel doesn’t need to be a challenge. There are many marketing agencies that offer exemplary services.
Grammar errors, misspellings, and irrelevant content will bump down the ranking of a page. Google has updated its search algorithm to reward sites with informative and unique content.
3. Mobile Prioritization
Did you know that mobile traffic surpassed desktop traffic by 2014? In the past decade, there has been a significant change from desktop to mobile use. Google is currently trying to focus on the importance of website optimization for mobile devices. The increase in mobile use has forced marketers to change their SEO strategies. They now have to optimize their sites for mobile users. Local mobile searches are likely to surpass desktop searches as search engines have started adjusting. Google has updated its algorithm to penalize the sites that cause errors when opened on mobile devices.
4. The Death of Link Schemes
The contribution of links to your search rank has changed. When a site is linked to your site, it is an indication that it has relevant information for your visitors. It signals search engines and humans that the site is authoritative. The more authoritative and relevant the link is, the more credible your site will be.
However, marketers have been using devious link schemes and manipulating backlinks to help their sites rank better. Buying backlinks and link directories have compromised the integrity of links. The fact that only backlinks from relevant sites matter have made things tricky for SEO marketers. Unfortunately, linking to a site that is not topically relevant to your content could make your site drop in rankings. You may be de-indexed or banned.
In 2012, Google made an algorithm penalty to penalize, de-list, or ban sites if they deploy dubious link tactics. Link-building practices that were initially considered ‘white hat’ were labeled ‘black hat’ in 2013. SEO marketers today must use natural link building and traction to get a better ranking.
5. On-Page Optimization
In the past, SEO experts would map out about three keywords for every URL and optimize body content, headings, title, and other page elements to suit the keywords. However, things have changed now. Machine learning and semantic search mean that pages can rank for various related keywords, not just those that you have optimized a page for. With this evolution, marketers can focus on content that is helpful and relevant to users, and not content that matches certain keywords. It promotes better experiences.
Today, SEO is not just about content creation but also content promotion. Marketers must find the balance between creating new content and meeting the needs of the end-user to rank highly and enforce the brand.
6. Social Sharing
Before the increased popularity of social media, sharing was mostly through instant messaging and email. However, things have changed and most digital marketers now rely on Twitter, Facebook, and other social media sites.
SEO and social media go hand in hand. Digital marketers who fail to appreciate its importance cannot succeed. Social media is great for increasing brand exposure, driving consumer engagement, sharing links, and connecting businesses to their audiences. With social media, it is easy for marketers to distribute their content without spending much. The reputation of a company on social media could make or break it. Establishing yourself as a reputable brand helps you earn the trust of users. They are likely to check out your content and promote your site, leading to better rankings.
7. Expansion of Knowledge
The advent of the internet means that more people are now familiar with words and phrases that weren’t always part of SEO. Today, marketers have to use words and phrases that weren’t popular in the past. The marketing world has evolved and so have the phrases and words. The evolution will keep happening for as long as the internet remains popular.
8. Fast-Moving Content
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One of the most significant ways that the internet has changed is that marketers now have to create fast-moving content. If, for example, there has been a major event, they must be ready to create content that relates to it. If, for example, a company that produces hand sanitizers failed to improve the quality of their content and SEO practices during the pandemic, they would lose out on a lot of revenue. The same applies to global events and major sporting events.
The nature of SEO has changed and is expected to keep evolving in the future. SEO in the late 90s is very different from what it is today. While marketers in the past could get away with overstuffing keywords and creating irrelevant content, the rules are a lot tighter today. The field today is founded on customer experiences and satisfaction.