Top 11 SEO Trends for 2022 That Will Affect Your Website Ranking

Digital marketing agencies and marketers have to always be alert and be in tune with the pulse of search engine algorithms. While many may think that algorithms are merely a bunch of fixed rules, most algorithms are in constant flux. It is, therefore, very important to capitalize on new and emerging SEO trends that can give your webpage the impetus it needs to rank on the first search engine result page. Listed below are 11 search engine optimization trends that reputed SEO company Phoenix believes could affect your company’s web ranking in 2021.

Advancements in Artificial Intelligence

There has been a surge in the implementation of AI in search engine optimization in recent years. For example, the RankBrain algorithm was integrated into Google Search in the year 2015. This helps push relevant search results to the top pages based on the search intent of the user. This algorithm implements machine learning in order to understand the relationship between the words used in a user’s search query. Algorithms such as RankBrain despite having a subscription fee is bound to revolutionize the way search engines work. By the use of artificial intelligence in SEO, there will no longer be the need to “optimize” for search using nifty algorithm satisfying methods. In the years to come, more focus will be laid on the quality and relevance of the website’s content as inferior and poorly written content will be weeded out by AI.

Voice Search Is the New Future

Voice search is yet another concept that has become increasingly popular in the last couple of years. This could be due to the rise in popularity and use of smart devices integrated with Google Assistant. Therefore, it would be good for forward-thinking SEO Companies in san jose to optimize search results for not just how speakers would type but also speak. Google voice searches are generally long-tail search terms for instance, where to get a tattoo in Dallas or where to buy baking powder in Plano. In most cases, long-tail searchers are way past the informational stages and are generally in the phase wherein they are considering making a purchase. This means, if the content on your website is optimized for hyper-specific search content, you have a high likelihood of converting the search to a sale.

Incorporate Featured Snippets

Including featured snippets can change the way your website performs on Google SERP. Featured snippets in layman terms are bite-sized summaries of articles or blogs that appear on the top of a SERP. These snippets can dramatically increase total traffic to your website. Good content with featured snippets is all you need to boost traffic volume to your website. The key to getting a featured snippet calls for two steps. Firstly, you have to rank on the first page by creating high-quality content with numerous high-authority backlinks. Secondly, you will need to answer a user’s query in the very first 70 words of your article in simple and easy-to-understand working. If you can achieve this, Google will use this direct quotation in a featured snippet that is bound to increase the footfall to your website.

Videos Are Here to Stay

While some SEO services in houston opine that videos are a story of the past, quality content with embedded videos tend to rank on the first SERP as opposed to plain text with a few pictures. Videos have proven to increase organic traffic and hence are valuable to take to give your website the visibility it deserves. Content is King, but in the years to come, it will be no surprise if video content is crowned the new king. Nothing ever does command the attention that an entertaining or informative video does. In fact, the recent years have seen that Google’s search algorithm rewards sites that have original and relevant video clips on their pages.

Prioritize Mobile SEO

It is speculated that Google plans to announce mobile-first indexing in the months to come. This indexing will be across all properties on the web. In layman’s terms, Google will begin to analyze a website’s mobile content in order to ascertain its ranking across various device types. Until now, most websites were indexed according to how their content rendered or displayed on desktop devices as opposed to mobile devices. This change has come to be, owing to an increasing number of users accessing the web on handheld devices. Therefore, Google is focusing on optimizing the web for mobile users. It has been reported that the majority of all web traffic now comes from handheld tech and not the good ol’ desktop computers. Therefore, all SEO services must pay heed to how a website’s content reads on a mobile device. It is also important to prioritize how content renders and appears on a mobile browser before looking into desktop rendering.

Improve Search Intent Analysis

In the last few years, Google has changed its algorithms numerous times. Google strives hard to improve user experience and to better connect with a user’s query or intent. In fact, the company has become more sophisticated and dynamic in the way they blend and render results to user intent. Therefore, it is of paramount importance to integrate intent analysis in the keyword search. Doing so will help identify the structure, type, and format of the content that needs to be created in order to draw more users. By analyzing search intent, a company can leverage search features and satisfy user queries which is bound to improve SERP and organic traffic to the website.

Heed to BERT Update

In December 2019, Google rolled out the BERT update and many websites saw a dip in traffic as well as ranking due to the new update. As per this update, Google will now focus on quality of the content as opposed to keyword density. Websites will now have to prioritize content relevancy as well as user intent. This update doesn’t call for any major changes or optimization. In order to stay in compliance with BERT, your website must provide its target audience with high-quality content that directly answers their questions or search query. With this update, a company will no longer be able to fool search engines with keyword stuffing. BERT will also check content for phrases and sentences which means that the website owner must back his webpage with relevant content that satisfies the searcher.

UI/UX Factors

Most companies focus only on SEO and overlook the technical aspects of their website. Whilst these may seem like small factors, ignoring them could hinder the performance of a website. It is, therefore, important to focus on making your website look fresh using good UI/UX practices. Ensure that the design of your web page must be in accordance with the structure of the site. This will make your webpage pleasing to the eye and user-friendly.  Whilst improvising on your web design to make it more user-friendly, it is also important to analyze bounce rate. Common reasons for a bounce are low loading speed, page errors, and the use of unrelated keywords. Working on these problem areas will improve the performance of your website. As long as your website has a bounce rate in the range of 26 and 40, you have nothing to worry about. You will also do good in crafting headings that will urge a user to read further. Other tips include designing your site’s navigation via a simple search bar and menu.

Improve Loading Speeds

This one is a no-brainer. The first impression is always the best impression. A website with low loading speeds is bound to frustrate a user. It is therefore important to optimize loading speeds. You could use tools such as PageSpeedInsights from Google to analyze your current load speeds. Optimizing images, distributing content delivery load, and improving server response times are a few ways you can improve the loading speed of your website.

Link Building

No matter whether we are in 2017 or 2021, link building is the key to improving search engine ranking and boosting organic traffic. It is a timeless technique that can help you reach the first page on Google. However, in order to build quality links, quality content is quintessential. Link building can be done in two ways. External link building allows you to link your website with other websites. This takes time and patience. You will also have to comply with Google’s ever-changing algorithms while building external links. You can also use influencers to improve your brand image. However, remember relevancy matters. Internal linking is simple, quick, and free. The best part is that you have total control when it comes to internal links. In order to get the best results from internal linking, be sure to place links on relevant anchor texts or phrases. Also, the pages that are internally linked must contain relevant and meaningful information.

Be Armed for Evolving SERPs

SERPs keep changing. Period. And there is nothing you can do about it, except be prepared to incorporate changes that comply with the latest updates. In recent years, Google has incorporated many changes. If you are aware of SEO practices, you are likely to have seen an increase in the percentage of ad share. In fact, featured snippets and answer boxes are getting a huge share in the SERPs. Another visible change is that Google has begun to give importance to sections such as FAQs. Due to the integration of these new features, getting traffic via organic clicks will become very difficult. It is speculated that in 2021, SEO will focus on zero-click searches. This simply means a site owner will have to shift his focus to providing important and relevant information to searchers on the SERPs themselves.

A foolproof way to maintain consistent traffic to the website is to focus on long-tail keywords. This will also help in voice search. If you wish to rank high in SERPs in 2021, it would be smart to invest in conversational queries. It is also highly recommended to keep SEO strategies and content flexible and ready for a change in the constantly evolving web practices. Also, update your content so that it has the latest and in-season trivia. You may use tools such as Google Trends to do so.

Take Your SEO Strategy to the Next Level

The success of your marketing efforts lies in your ability to be a step ahead of your competitors. It is, therefore, important that your SEO strategy complies with the latest rules, remains value-oriented, incorporates videos, and includes featured snippets. If you can master these simple SEO elements, the odds are your company will feature and remain on the first page on SERPs.

If you are looking for a reliable and knowledgeable Phoenix digital agency that can help your website rank, Autus Digital is a name you can trust. Contact Autus Digital Agency today.