6 Essential SEO Trends to Leverage

Preface

My writings primarily focus on preparing for future SEO strategies and tactics rather than addressing current events in the field. The assertions I make are based on my predictions and personal viewpoints about strategic planning for upcoming years.

This approach is crucial in SEO, a field characterized by its dynamic nature and constant evolution. Anticipating changes 2-5 years in advance is essential to effectively navigate and adapt to these shifts.

Points of View

The view from popular SEO magazines and newsletters regarding SEO trends highlight a range of evolving technologies, largely influenced by advancements in artificial intelligence and a more profound understanding of user behavior.

Technologies like SGE and AI represent significant shifts rather than mere trends. These innovations are crucial in shaping effective SEO strategies for the future.

When reading SEO magazines and newsletters, it’s important to consider the source. Google directly influences these publications, providing information crafted by its Public Relations team to shape perceptions. Remember, Google is not entirely transparent and operates with its own set of goals and objectives regarding public news.

When you come across “Google’s PR” mentioned below, take it as Google’s preferred narrative, which may not encompass the entire truth. “Non-Google PR” refers to the SEO community’s interpretation, often presenting a perspective that diverges from Google’s official stance.

Google’s Voice vs Reality

Google Has All The Answers Right?

SGE will increase paid search ad revenue for Google and improve user experience. **It will reduce organic search traffic.**

SEO Shift #1: Search Generative Experience (SGE): Google’s PR – “Google is advancing its AI-driven Search Generative Experience, which provides succinct answers to complex queries directly in search results. This feature aims to supplement rather than replace traffic to full articles, suggesting a shift rather than a decline in traffic for well-ranking content.”【Source: Backlinko】

WARNING: While Google PR (Public Relations) feeds publishers the above calming story about SGE, the implications for high-ranking organic content is negative. This shift will particularly impact websites that rely heavily on traffic for ad revenues.

Google’s Culture = Mathematics for Profit

Google rigorously tests any changes it plans to implement, undergoing hundreds of iterations and ensuring that these changes are likely to increase profits when released to the public.

While they might occasionally make errors, encounter problems, or cause inconveniences for various stakeholders including their own employees, they are adept at resolving these issues efficiently. Ultimately, Google has the capability to smooth out any issues and significantly impact the digital landscape.

Google’s search operations heavily focus on mathematics, particularly in optimizing their algorithms to maximize revenue from paid search advertising.

By cannibalizing organic search traffic, SGE aims to boost Google’s paid search advertising revenue and enhance user experience, which benefits Google. However, SGE presents challenges for organic search traffic and is likely to significantly impact SEO strategies in the future.

Presenting comprehensive answers directly on the search results page, SGE will undoubtedly reduce the need for users to click through to external websites.

This leads to an inevitable decline in organic search traffic for sites that previously benefited from high rankings, as users obtain the information they need directly from Google’s SGE summaries.

~ SGE will cannibalize organic search traffic ~

Moreover, even though “SGE aims to supplement,” the reality is that if a user’s query is fully answered in the search results, the motivation to pursue further detail diminishes.

While SGE will undoubtedly make searches more efficient for users, it’s essential for SEOs and strategists to enhance the depth and engagement of their content. This will involve focusing on creating killer content to entice users to seek more in-depth information, thus countering the decline in direct organic traffic from search results.

Note: If you are subscribed to a monthly recurring SEO plan, it’s wise to review and reassess it at the end of each month before deciding to continue. Ensure that the SEO services meet your specific needs effectively. The introduction of Search Generative Experience (SGE) and the uncertainty it brings will impact stability for a period that remains undetermined.

Note: If you’re an SEO professional with recurring client fees, your role involves continuously adapting to daily changes in the field to deliver consistent monthly results. In light of the SGE launch, you might consider introducing upcoming innovative services as upsells to offset any potential disruptions. It’s also crucial to maintain open and transparent communication with your clients throughout these changes.

AI Content Strategy
The SEO Paradigm Shift

SEO Shift #2: Content Strategies Leveraging AI: Non-Google PR – “With AI tools becoming more sophisticated, there’s a push towards using these technologies not just for creating content but for planning and strategizing. AI can help quickly map out content needs across various topics, facilitating a more structured approach to content creation.”【Source: Wordstream】

What GOOG will not say and what SEOs need to understand is, AI Content Strategy is the beginning of a paradigm shift. It will get very interesting and prove to be extremely useful for SEOs. Google not so much. As with most new things, it’ll take several iterations over time to get it right.

Enterprise brands with development teams dedicated to SEO will lead this shift. To consider what it may look like in 2030 read this post, Quantum Content Strategies – Go Big, Dream Big, or Go Home .

Authority is a Signal – Look for the **Entity**

SEO Shift #3: Author Entities and Content Credibility: Non-Google PR -“Search engines are increasingly valuing content tied to credible authors. Establishing author entities helps enhance content trustworthiness and authority, especially in the wake of AI-generated content which poses challenges for maintaining quality and authenticity.”【Source: Backlinko】

Author Entities in relation to SEO refers to the identification and representation of authors as distinct entities in search engines. It began to gain importance in 2011 with Google’s Authorship markup.

This feature allowed authors to link content they published on a specific domain to their Google+ profile, helping Google to identify and associate content with its author.

Officially launched in 2011 it was aimed at potentially receiving better visibility in search results. Google discontinued this feature in 2014, citing low adoption rates and minimal value to search results.

Despite the end of the Google Authorship program, the idea of recognizing authors as entities has persisted in SEO and content strategies. Search engines continue to develop more sophisticated ways to recognize individual authors and their contributions to various fields, which can affect rankings and visibility.

So, while the specific feature of Google Authorship was short-lived, the broader concept of author entities and their importance in web design and SEO remains quiet relevant.

Enter Entity SEO (Entity Level Authority)

Author Entities is the tip of the iceberg.

Entity SEO is a very real thing, offering real results. You are wise to consider more research in the area of entity SEO, and to help you get started visit InLinks – Entity SEO Tools.

SEO Shift #4: Engagement and User Experience: Google PR – “The user’s interaction with content is becoming as crucial as the content itself. Strategies should increasingly focus on creating meaningful experiences through personalized content and engagement that aligns with the user’s intent and journey.”【Source: Search Engine Land】

Website designers and SEOs have consistently advocated for this since 2005, and it will remain true no matter the year. Engagement and User Experience will undoubtedly become a part of SEO Shift #2: Content Strategies Leveraging AI.

SEO Shift #5: Topical Authority: Non-Google PR – “Establishing authority in a particular niche requires comprehensive coverage of relevant subtopics, demonstrating both breadth and depth. This can be supported by internal linking strategies and high-quality backlinks that signal your site’s relevance and authority to search engines.”【Source: Wordstream】

SEOs have been preaching internal linking strategies and high-quality backlinks for the last 20 years. Topical Authority will undoubtedly become a part of SEO Shift #3: Author Entities and Content Credibility.

SEO Shift #6: Multichannel and Personalized SEO: Non-Google PR – “A growing trend is the emphasis on multichannel strategies that encompass various types of content, including videos, images, and FAQs, to optimize the customer journey across different platforms. Personalization also plays a key role, with SEO strategies needing to integrate with customer data platforms for more tailored content delivery.”【Search Engine Land】

If you’re an enterprise brand with dedicated SEO and development teams, you will have the opportunity to go for it. This is an expensive investment requiring a significant commitment. There’s a point of diminishing returns for small to medium size companies. Allocating the proper amount of resources to multichannel and personalized SEO will be critical path to this shift. Multichannel and personalized SEO will undoubtedly become a part of SEO Shift #2: Content Strategies Leveraging AI.

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