As the world becomes increasingly digitized, businesses of all sizes are struggling to keep up with the competition. In order to stay afloat and in front of consumers, many have turned to search engine optimization (SEO). While there is no one-size-fits-all approach to SEO, some of the most successful brands have developed successful strategies that can be adapted for your business.
Among the many marketing subgenres, SEO is perhaps the most amorphous. Appeasing the algorithm to boost your brand’s search page rankings has never been more important for brands.
Experts’ top SEO trends and insights for the year ahead are listed below.
Major SEO Trends to Know for 2023
1. TikTok SEO is here to stay.
TikTok is a mobile app that allows users to make short 15-second video clips. According to a recent study, TikTok surpassed Instagram as the world’s number one app for sharing photos and videos in 2021. By 2022, the number of users is expected to increase 15 percent, reaching 755 million.
As more than 60% of TikTok users are Gen Z, it is no wonder younger users are turning to TikTok instead of Google for discovery. Marketers are also paying attention to TikTok because so much attention is being paid to it. With the right approach, you can take advantage of the hype around TikTok and boost your organic search traffic.
When optimizing TikTok content for SEO, follow these steps:
For example, #TikTok is a hashtag for all TikTok videos. Hashtags allow users to find related posts quickly.
It is easier for your audience to find your content when they search for similar topics when you use hashtags.
When creating your video, be sure to include keywords throughout the description.
“#TikTok #ViralVideo” describes a video that mentions TikTok and uses the keyword phrase “viral video.”
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CREATE VIDEOS WITH RELEVANT CONTENT
Keywords can also be used to create niche-specific videos.
A fitness channel might make a video titled “Best Fitness Tips for Beginners” and talk about the best workout routines for beginners.
Videos of this type are aimed at beginners and provide useful information.
Images and GIFs can help tell a story and engage viewers.
Add a picture of yourself holding a trophy or playing sports to give your video personality.
Thanks to Jon Lightfoot of Strategic SEO Solutions.
2. Always utilize structured data
Structured data is information about web pages that is tagged using machine readable codes such as RDFa, Microdata, JSON-LD, etc. Structured data can help search engines understand what each page contains and how they are related. You can use structured data by adding it to your website’s code.
Search engines need structured data in order to understand what information is available about your website. If you don’t provide them with the right kind of information, they won’t be able to index your site properly. As a result, when someone searches on Google for something, they will find your company rather than another company offering similar products or services.
Thanks to Ivan Lovre Marusic of Game Taco.
3. AI in Marketing is here to stay.
There are several ways to implement artificial intelligence into marketing campaigns today, including chatbots to help customers, email automation, and website personalization. According to a recent study, the market for artificial intelligence (AI) in marketing was estimated in 2021 at 15.84 billion U.S. dollars. According to the source, it is expected to grow to more than 107.5 billion by 2028.
AI marketing has some significant upsides, and with more AI tools on the market, it’s safe to say that AI in marketing won’t disappear anytime soon.
Thanks to Sofia Hamberg of Flightradar UK.
4. Know thy user.
As we enter 2023, understanding user intent and prioritizing the user experience are critical to SEO success.
An individual may search for a local place, a topic they want to learn more about, or a product they want to buy based on their intent.
A user experience is what your audience thinks and feels. How do they react to your website? Your app? Your brand as a whole? Web page speed needs to be optimized, and designers must design with the end user in mind.
As a result of their interconnectedness, user intent and experience should be integrated into internet marketing strategies from the outset. They work towards the same goal: satisfying the user’s needs.
Thanks to Will Copp of Knox Concrete Contractors.
5. Content is still king.
It’s true that we can get into the nitty gritty of data all day, but it’s also true that we wouldn’t have data to analyze if we didn’t create content for our audience to consume. Developing high-quality, updated content is essential for SEO, but it doesn’t end there. The use of images, videos, infographics, and other media will increase your site’s accessibility, engagement, and drive more traffic.
WHAT SHOULD SEO-OPTIMIZED CONTENT INCLUDE?
Quality content is a crucial part of giving your audience a good experience on your website. It ultimately contributes to the audience’s overall experience with the brand. So if your audience wants information on bitcoin, make sure to provide information on bitcoin-related topics prominently on your site. By doing this, you’re showing that you value providing quality content and that you’re always updating your site to ensure that your audience has the best possible experience.
In addition, marketers can take advantage of video content. Video content is simply more engaging than text and graphics. A survey conducted by Wyzowl shows that nearly eight out of every ten users have bought software or apps after watching the brand’s video. Research shows that 53% of consumers want more video content in the future. Not only is video content converting, but consumers also want more video content.
You can use YouTube to market your business by creating an engaging video on your website, which is rewarded by Google with higher search rankings.
Thanks to Sean Philips of Ship Tracking.
6. SERPs have changed—and become more intelligent
Through the implementation of artificial intelligence, Google’s algorithm has become much smarter over the years. This can be seen in the recent update to their BERT algorithm. If you aren’t familiar with SEO, BERT stands for a series of words that would probably break your mind. (Okay, okay, it stands for Bidirectional Encoder Representations from Transformers, for all you overachievers!)
Like earlier updates such as RankBrain, BERT explains why techniques such as keyword stuffing no longer work and will lower your search ranking. It improves Google’s ability to understand the language more efficiently. It is looking for conversational, niche-based content.
To measure up to BERT’s standards (he’s in charge of ranking, after all), measure up to Google’s EAT score: expertise, authority, and trust.
EAT describes what good content means to Google. If you have a business that gives advice or sells products or services that may affect a person’s health, happiness, safety, or financial stability, SEO E-A-T is critical. Goods or information such as YMYL or “Your Money or Your Life” can be known to Google.
To increase your authority in your field, you can create content that is written by experts and is accessible by many people. This will show Google that you are an expert in your field and that others trust you to provide quality information. Additionally, having contact information for the creators of the content will help build trust.
7. Analytics are imperative.
From collection to analysis and insights, brands need to take their data to the next level in 2023.
- Data collection on bounce rates, engagement, and more from mobile traffic
- Understanding what users are looking for when they visit your site and if there is a content or service gap you can fill
- Emulate or update top-performing and underperforming pages
Tools can help you simplify your data collection and analysis so you don’t have to constantly monitor your numbers manually, ensuring that you’ll always be on top of changes in search behavior and able to optimize accordingly.
Thanks to Scout Strickland of MoseWorth.
8. Optimize content for voice searches
In the current SEO landscape, you’re missing out on a large chunk of the market if you don’t optimize for voice search and mobile devices. By optimizing for these mediums, you can rank higher in Google as well as increase your conversion rates.
Over the past few years, voice searches have increased not only because smartphones are more prevalent, but also because digital assistants like Amazon Alexa and Google Assistant are becoming more common. According to current statistics, 41% of adults use voice search on a daily basis, and that number is only expected to grow through 2023.
You should optimize for voice search by targeting keywords in the form of questions. For example, “Where is Don’s Dry Cleaning?” is a long-tail keyword that is typically very specific. You can also use it to come up with any questions a potential customer might have about your business and then write blog posts that answer them.
Thanks to Josh Mullins of Space Vocal.
9. Prioritize a Responsive, Mobile-Friendly Website
Optimizing your website for mobile search makes sense in conjunction with optimizing for voice search. Searches on phones are forecast to increase through 2023 and beyond. If you want to know if your website is mobile-friendly, type “Google Mobile-Friendly Tool” into Google’s search bar. You will be prompted to enter your site’s URL into a Google evaluation box.
If you want your site to perform better on mobile devices, make sure it was built with responsive coding and frameworks so it automatically adapts to the device on which it is accessed. By using a content delivery network (CDN), caching, and compressing images, you will also be able to improve the loading time of your webpage. For mobile-friendly versions of your web pages, use Google’s Accelerated Mobile Pages (AMP) method.
Thanks to Ivan Lovre Marusic of RPG Overload.
Why Do SEO Trends Matter?
SEO has changed surprisingly over the past few years. The Google algorithm has gotten a lot more sophisticated, and what works to rank your site now won’t work as well in the future. To stay ahead of the search results, you need to be up-to-date on SEO trends and how they affect your marketing strategies. Are you looking for some help? We can help with that.
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