The year-end is a great time to introspect and innovate. Not just in our personal lives but also our professional lives. As the end of 2019 draws close, it’s time to revise and revamp your SEO strategies, and prepare for 2020 and beyond.
Here, in this post, we offer insights into what we think the future of SEO holds and what needs to be done to stay relevant.
SEO is rapidly Evolving
It’s no secret that SEO is fast changing. Techniques that work today can disappear overnight. Google and other search engines are changing the rules of the game rapidly, and the biggest challenge is that you can no longer rely on Google to learn the rules.
Popular SEO techniques of yesteryears like – keyword volume, link building has become less relevant. Today, to stay ahead of the SEO race, marketers must focus on creativity, cross-collaboration, and innovativeness to design successful and sustainable SEO strategies.
SEO is not just about increasing page ranks on Google and other search engines. It has evolved to encompass all media operations while driving organic traffic to websites. It’s no more about getting people to your site. It’s about getting them to stay – therein lies the real challenge.
What’s the Reason behind SEO’s Paradigm Shift?
It’s difficult to pinpoint a single cause. Instead, it’s a result of several changes like modern technology, changes in the way users consume content online, the interconnectivity of SEO across platforms, digital marketing, and more.
To phrase it in a nutshell, the brand must deliver what the searcher is looking. The digital message and image of a brand must resonate with the intent and mindset of the user. Meeting these requirements helps a brand build a sustainable SEO strategy, which works in the long-run.
What does this all mean for SEO Professionals?
Simply put, an SEO expert must be able to deliver the right content to the right user at the right time.
Brands that get the right message across to users are the ones that stand tall in today’s hyper-competitive SEO arena. The future of SEO is not about targeting the right keywords or focusing on building relevant links. It’s about understanding user intent. SEO experts have to transform from technologists to psychologists who understand what the user is searching for, can empathize with the user, and better understand their behaviour.
SEO professionals must have a clear understanding of their target audience – learn the differences between different segments of customers, understand customer intent and behaviour, to create compelling customer journeys that engage and hook in the audience.
Blueprint for SEO Professionals for 2020 and Beyond
Here are a few strategies that SEO pros need to work on to stay relevant in the future:
- Brands need to build a strong message and awareness to get customers to visit the site. Understand consumer needs and wants, their intents, what drives them, and their values. Deliver a complete package – a robust website, quality branding, and useful content – to win loyal customers and build brand equity.
- Expect a reduction in text-based search and increase in voice and keyboard-less searches. SEO experts have to adapt their content to create creative campaigns that work with new technologies like AI and voice-based searches.
- The user is at the centre of all online marketing campaigns, and SEO strategies have to be personalized to connect and engage with different sets of target audiences.
- SEO strategies that think like a machine, but understand human emotions are the future. SEO experts have to cater to both Google’s intelligent bots and savvy end-user.
- Certain aspects of SEO never fall out of favour like – trust-building by brands and delivering the best experience to the end-user.
To wrap up, SEO experts have to look beyond search engine rankings and focus on:
- Conveying a bigger brand story that connects with human emotions and is sincere
- Inspire new generations of audiences
- Make companies look humanized in an increasingly mechanized and automated world
As audiences mature, SEO experts have to transform their fundamental perspectives to create sustainable brands that not only drive traffic but win customer trust and loyalty.
