Abstract
- Intent over keywords. SEO now prioritizes user intent and context over traditional keyword density.
- Emphasis on multi-platform. An effective SEO strategy requires a presence beyond Google and an embrace of diverse digital platforms.
- User experience key. Optimizing user experience like Core Web Vitals is critical to modern SEO success.
With the evolution of SEO strategies, SEO is also changing. Apart from Google's nth algorithmic twist, changes in shopper behavior and advances in AI will have a major impact on search as we know it. What should she prioritize to ensure that her hard-earned SEO funds go to the right efforts?
Five SEO experts share their thoughts on the five big ideas to prioritize in 2024.
But before we begin, there's one big idea to rule them all. Let's call it “InCore”.
All content must pass tests of intent, context, and relevance. period.
Appearing on page 1 is no longer automatically associated with increased traffic or high-intent traffic, and content visibility on search engine results pages (SERPs) is now just the tip of the iceberg. I don't know. Increasingly intelligent search engines can determine that a user's intent or context is different, shifting him up the SERP in unexpected ways.
As a result, your SEO strategy no longer focuses solely on specific keywords. Today's search engine algorithms are able to interpret what users are looking for and why they are searching, and are more focused on user engagement with content than on keyword matching. Alignment with “context” (the user's search intent behind the search query) is now a key factor in SEO success, he says, senior vice president of audience growth at creator-led ad management company Raptive. Hank Azarian said.
That's why 2024 will be about building content richness with a deeper understanding of how intent, context, and relevance shape search results, says SEO consultant Gabe Gayhart.
So how do you get there? 5 experts suggest his 5 key areas to level up your SEO game.
SEO Strategy No. 1: Forget the traditional way of thinking about “keywords”
Instead, rewire your approach to keyword research.
Traditional keyword style SEO is over. As Google normalizes quality content as “content that targets user intent,” SEO professionals need to change the way they incorporate keyword analysis and mapping into the asset creation process, Gayhart said. say. SEO today is about understanding user intent based on any questions or related topics that arise during the research process, adds Dave Taylor, chief marketing officer of his platform Impartner.
Erika Varangouli, head of SEO branding at keyword research tool SEMRush, agrees. “Keyword strategies that focus on monthly search volume, keyword research that is only done on one platform (such as Google), viewing the primary role of keywords as components of page titles, using keyword density calculations, etc. All are restrictive practices from a bygone era.”
However, she warns that while keyword-driven search strategies may be on the decline, keyword research itself isn't going anywhere anytime soon. User queries today are more conversational and occur on a variety of platforms other than Google. Keyword research provides a solid framework for marketers to understand their audience's challenges and topics of interest, but it elevates it to a “multi-platform keyword research approach.” This includes researching keywords/hashtags/topics from various context-relevant platforms like TikTok, Amazon, Reddit, Skyscanner, etc. to create the most effective strategy.
Related Article: The State of Search: Top SEO Strategies for 2023
SEO Strategy No. 2: Incorporate InCoRe into your content creation
Forget silos. It's all now part of your audience engagement strategy.
Understanding keywords and key phrases means understanding your audience, their needs and challenges, and how your service can satisfy them. To that extent, keywords are never irrelevant, says Eric Hines, director of digital marketing at online building materials company DecksDirect. However, since BERT and EEAT, the focus has shifted to entities that provide search engines with the proper context and relationships between words in a search.
Search engines that are sophisticated enough to recognize user intent in a given context will prioritize content that best matches that intent and context. Therefore, successful content is optimized around highly relevant entities for the user's query, rather than keywords with the highest search volume, and provides thorough coverage of topics that address what the user is looking for. is needed.
Marketers also need to better understand both “topic clusters” and “semantic search.” Semantically rich content is more adaptable to different contexts, covers related topics, and links entities more comprehensively.
Incorporating InCoRe into your content strategy also leads to what Varangouli calls “holistic content marketing.” SEO is no longer “just” SEO. Marketers need to collaborate across content, SEO, community, product development, sales, PR, social media, and other teams to align common audience engagement strategies based on user search intent, context, and relevance. Collaboration needs to be more intentional.
Related article: 4 latest SEO trends to help improve your rankings
SEO Strategy #3: Build a diverse search strategy
Search remains important for shoppers and buyers. However, Search > Google.
While search engines remain important for connecting users with content, they are only one aspect of a broader strategy that includes user experience, content relevance, and audience engagement across various digital touchpoints. Azarian said.
Buyers aren't going to stop using Search to find products or solve problems anytime soon. But today's “search” can be done anywhere. Shoppers choose a Search Engine based on the type of Search they are doing. Context determines the channel. These channels can include everything from social networks to private communities like Slack and Discord, forums like Reddit and Quora, podcasts, live events and YouTube comments/chat sections, and even his ChatGPT. There is a gender.
While attribution software may drive a large portion of your traffic to SEO, we all know by now that the “dark funnel” is here to stay. If that's not reason enough, Google's Search Generative Experience (SGE) already shows ChatGPT results and YouTube short videos as top results, so all your expensive blogs and e-books are pushed to the bottom of the page. It's sinking towards me. In addition to blog posts, SERPs increasingly include user-generated content on the first page, such as forum discussions, product reviews, and video introductions.
This is why organic search no longer follows the “write X number of blog posts to rank for Y words,” Varangouli says. A successful search-optimized content strategy goes beyond the traditional formats to include community managers answering threads on Reddit, social media teams launching specific campaigns, and search-optimized videos. can be repurposed on TikTok, Instagram, YouTube, and more to address viewer pain points.
Taylor calls this a “content ecosystem.” This is the substantial and consistent presence of your brand on every platform that might appear in a SERP or that a shopper might search for.
Related article: What the Google search generation experience means for marketers
SEO Strategy 4: Optimize your core web vitals
Today's content is not only optimized for search engines, but also focused on user experience.
According to Azarian, a comprehensive SEO strategy in 2024 should include aspects such as mobile optimization, site and page load speed, user engagement, and even the integration of multimedia elements. The focus is on creating a seamless, engaging experience that makes users want to return to your brand, and as a result, is preferred by search engines that track user engagement behavior. In both B2B and B2C contexts, this requires proper integration of user experience analysis and traditional SEO metrics.
Core Web Vitals (CWV) is a set of metrics that measure the real-world user experience of page load performance, interactivity, and visual stability. Google has already stated that a good CWV is essential to search success as it ensures a better user experience.
In 2024, Gayhart says developers and SEO teams will need to bond over CWV. “If we don't have a water cooler discussion around CWV by the end of Q1, it's time to start changing the developer paradigm to include CWV in all enhancements, fixes, and releases in 2024. Metrics to watch include 'Time to First Byte' (TTFB), 'Interaction Until Next Paint' ('Time to Next Paint'), which will officially replace 'First Input Delay' (FID) by March 2024. INP), and the emerging technology Signed Exchange (SXG). This will allow Google Search to prefetch his website's content and render web pages faster while protecting user privacy.
Related article: How to leverage AI in SEO to enhance your on-page strategy, part 1
SEO Strategy 5: Know the SERP
Knowing keywords is no longer enough. In 2024, get to know the SERPs too.
Thanks to advances in AI and search technology, search results are likely to change with every keystroke, Gayhart says. Shopper search and product discovery behavior can dynamically change SERPs based on how Google determines location, trending product categories, shopping intent signals used, and even the date and day of the week of the query. there is. For example, his SERP for the same query might be different on Thanksgiving weekend, Thursday night, and Sunday night. Or, you might see different results if you buy flowers on Valentine's Day weekend and Memorial Day weekend, even if the user doesn't specify the timing in a string.
SEO success is enhanced by having a deeper understanding of what SERPs appear for search terms and keywords that are relevant to your audience in different contexts and incorporating that into your plan.
Related article: Balancing AI and human insights in modern SEO strategies
SEO optimization is all about users and AI.
It’s no exaggeration to guess that AI for SEO is the most exciting trend of 2024.
According to Gayheart, AI-powered SEO tools can help Google become even more sophisticated and save a lot of time. This impacts everything from schema strategy and internal linking to adjusting content structure to align with Google's focus on user intent and content relevance.
AI-powered search engines better understand searcher intent from complex, descriptive, and often very specific queries. It also continuously learns from user engagement and behavior to interpret and rank content and improve SERPs.
Ultimately, AI-powered search will likely move toward personalized recommendations and predictive search results. Today's Acing “InCoRe” will keep you grounded when that becomes the new normal.