How serious are you about maximizing the ability to harness the dynamic power of Search Engine Optimization? I called it dynamic because SEO is ever-evolving. So, just like the game theory, your Search engine optimization should be preeminent and ever-evolving.
The urge to increase Google rankings is overwhelming businesses, especially in 2024. It is becoming increasingly essential for marketers and businesses. Those that are bound to increase their Google rankings in 2024 are including organic search as a critical element of their marketing strategy. 60% of marketers now believe that Search Engine Optimization is the leading source of leads. This article explains how you can increase your google rankings.
Importance of Google Rankings
Search Engine Optimization was once a highly marginalized task relegated to the back rooms of website development teams. Today, it stands as one of the mainstream digital marketing strategies. The large traffic volume has majorly spearheaded its dramatic rise to relevance that search engines drive to websites. Searchers are now associating quality, trustworthiness, and trust with websites that rank high in search engines.
Several benefits come with having your website rank high in search engines. First, you will increase your organic traffic. It would help if you understood that your potential customers depend upon search engines to find your website. If your website is not visible, you cannot expect to hit your revenue targets, unlike when you rank high in search engines.
High rankings are associated with a better reputation, good image, and strong business brand. High rankings also increase conversion rates, a high volume of potential customers, and an increase in Investment.
Now that you know the significance of high rankings to your business, you probably wonder how you can ensure that you appear on the first pages. Worry not. Below are some of the best SEO trends that you should embrace to increase your ranks in search engines.
Trend #1: Shift of Attention to User + Search Intent
Internet search has become an integral fabric of today’s society. Up to this time of the year (April 2024), there have been close to 900 billion searches. The high increase in the number of searches will continue because people can now get information in seconds, the same information that, twenty years ago, one would need to travel to the library to access.
This dramatic shift in search behaviour calls for content creators and website owners to ensure they develop content that appears prominently in the search engines when searchers are looking for the products and services that the business is providing.
The burden lies on you, the website owner, to develop a relevant search experience. The website content must fulfil the user’s intent. If your searchers are looking for information, ensure that you give them the correct information. If they want to buy from you, ensure that you provide them with the very best products.
Optimizing your content and product pages with commercial keywords is the right way to go. It can be a bit difficult to know what the searcher’s intent might be. You might consider asking your visitors directly about their expectations. They might give you valuable insights into their intent.
Trend #2: Data Analytics and Behavioral Statistics
Data analytics are revolutionizing SEO. 2018, 26% of businesses globally now see data analytics as a game-changer like industry-wide competition.
Data analytics play a very significant role in Search Engine Optimization. It will help you know how well your Search Engine Optimization strategies are performing, generating traffic, what is derailing traffic generation, and where you need to invest your time and money.
Most digital marketers invest in Analytics, data, and behavioural statistics to understand whether search engine optimization strategies generate a Return on Investment. Data analytics will also track the amount of traffic you receive and also tell the source of traffic.
Additionally, data analytics will help you tell what exact keywords to use. The first step to achieve this is by integrating Google Search Console, which will reveal the exact keywords that your searchers are using to find you.
Google Analytics will also help track your progress as far as SEO is concerned and help you develop efficient insights that will help optimize your SEO strategies. If you are to enhance your rankings in 2024, then you should fully embrace data analytics.
Trend #3: Knowledge Graphs & Entities
This is a screenshot from a random search- “Which year was SSL Certificate introduced?” I did on Google. It is a perfect example of a knowledge graph. The knowledge graph is created on top of an existing database to link data and information through the help of intelligent machine learning algorithms. It helps searchers to get more relevant results while harnessing traffic to the deserving content. When I searched the web for which year the SSL certificate was introduced, Google scoured the web to pull the information I was looking for.
Knowledge graphs have a significant impact on Search Engine Optimization and Google rankings. It is, therefore, a positive thing for SEO. Rather than being a tool to search for sites online, a knowledge graph is a tool for finding direct information, changing the scope of SEO. The best way to reap big from the benefits that knowledge graphs will have to your SEO is by adding yourself to the knowledge graphs and featuring them in the knowledge panels.
Trend #4: Page Experience Optimization
Google has updated its algorithm to include page experience as one of its SEO ranking factors. This change aims to improve customer experience. With this update, it is now essential that you have a clear understanding of the metrics of page experience and how you can optimize your website for each one of them.
Luckily for you, Google announced the rudiments which you should factor in to improve user page experience. The first one is the core web vitals, three significant metrics that Google considers essential in the overall web page user experience. The three metrics are; First Input Delay, Largest Contentful Paint, and Cumulative Layout Shift.
The second fundamental rudiment is mobile-friendliness which refers to how simple it is for your visitors to use your site. Google also wants to ensure that web users are safe from security threats such as malware attacks, phishing attacks, and privacy intrusions. Web visitors are advised to have an SSL certificate that gives a website HTTPS status and allows for safe browsing.
All websites and businesses should prioritize these factors to ensure that they beat their competitors’ search engine results pages. You should ensure that you optimize the web page speed, secure your website, and optimize your images to give your users the best experience and earn high rankings in results pages.
Trend #5: Incorporating Voice-Friendly SEO
To be honest, it’s faster and easier to ask queries orally rather than wasting precious time typing them down on the search bar. As per the findings of research conducted by Gartner, almost 32% of consumers are interested in utilizing hands-free technology that would put a limit on the spread of contaminants. This is more than necessary in the current times of pandemics that we are experiencing. While drafting a kickass SEO strategy you cannot afford to ignore the voice-friendliness factor. Begin with understanding your consumer and device persona, features, and move on to other intricacies such as curating personalized content, focusing on conversational long-tail keywords. You should be good to go!
Trend #6: More Automation
Let’s face it, most SEO tasks are not just a walk in the park, especially when they are carried out manually. Most SEO strategies will require a massive amount of time and resources. The fact remains, time is money, and automation of SEO tasks can save you a significant amount of time. There are several automation tools that you can use to automate your SEO tasks and see your rankings in search engines improve.
Trend #7: SERP Layout & Functionality Changes
Google will always have something for you. From RankBrain AI to frequent algorithm changes and now the changes in the Search Engine Results Pages. How search engines show, its results have changed. For instance, you will realize that organic listings have slightly moved down, featured snippets are dominating the SERPS, and voice searches are taking over.
All these trends have an impact on SEO. They are a wake-up call for all SEO specialists to rethink their strategies, reconsider their keywords, optimize sites for voice searches, and incorporate snippets. Following these trends will ensure that you rank high in search engines.
Trend #8: Long-Form Content
One trend that is helping sites rank high in search engines is publishing long-form content. There is a high chance that a 2000-word blog will outperform a 1000-word blog in rankings. This trend is still being witnessed in 2024 and will continue even in the future. It is easy to predict that soon; a 2500 and above word blog will rank high in the search engine results pages. You know what to do, follow the trend.
Trend #9: SEO Scalability
If you are aiming to outshine your competitors in the results pages, then you should build scalability. To do so, you should start by listing all the tasks and SEO processes that you follow and determine which tasks can be automated. You should then install an alert system that monitors ranking changes, page content, and URL changes. For those tasks that cannot be automated, you can create a Standard Operating Procedure to avoid wasting time reinventing how you perform the tasks each time the tasks need to be performed.
In 2024 or coming years, you can optimize your SEO strategies according to the Nine Peaks guide for digital marketers. The goal is to improve your website’s page experience. This can be done by creating engaging and well-designed content, improving site navigation, and optimizing your loading speed. Look for an SEO Company Seattle to help you reach your goals. These factors will help you rank higher in search engine results pages (SERPs).
In addition, focus on voice search optimization and creating content for featured snippets. These are two emerging trends that will have a big impact on SEO in the coming year. By staying up-to-date with the latest trends and optimizing your website accordingly, you can stay ahead of the competition and drive more traffic to your site.
Conclusion
Search Engine Optimization could be said to be both an art and a science. Its artistic part requires you to be dynamically creative and intuitive. As more and more strategies continue to pour in, ensure that you incorporate all of them in your SEO plan. The scientific aspect requires analyzing data, challenging assumptions, making observations, and drawing conclusions about various SEO strategies. A lot has changed over the past years as far as SEO is concerned.
However, that could be the tip of the iceberg. Expect more changes. And in the fast-evolving internet world, those bound to enjoy the first pages of search engines are the early adopters. As you plan to incorporate the SEO trends mentioned in this article, always remain vigilant and watch for new ranking tricks. That is what will keep you at the summit!
