We have been talking about SEO trends in 2017 for almost a year now. it is time to look ahead and find out what type of impact the recent changes will have in 2018. As far as the rules go, they keep changing more frequently than one would like. Getting found is not as simple as it used to be. There are many variables that can influence your efforts.
These are some of the key trends of SEO for 2018 –
1. Focus on user experience – There is nothing new with the notion of sleek and functional websites that offer valuable information. While these are not necessarily always search engine toppers, the importance of generating a favorable user experience cannot be understated.
Users should be able to navigate easily and find necessary information fast. The experience should be uniformly great across all platforms and devices. Loading speeds and site layouts must be stressed on apart from other basics.
2. The rise and rise of voice search – Voice search is definitely becoming more prevalent among most of the users, as mobile platforms are dominant today. Search queries tend to differ for voice searches as compared to typed text searches. At companies like SandCrestSEO, professionals are creating strategies to deal with the rising trend of voice searches. The sooner you realize and act upon this, the better are your chances of getting found.
Voice search terms are generally more conversational, i.e., there is more resemblance to a sentence than just random relevant words. One can perform specific niche-based searches to find out the likely questions being asked by their potential customers.
3. Are you really mobile-friendly? – If you are still not working with mobile-friendly websites, you are on the losing side. Many organizations work on developing content quality, design themes and more, but fall flat due to the lack of fluid mobile experiences. It is time to wake up to the fact that more than half of global searches are from mobile.
Invest effort into implementing Accelerated Mobile Pages (AMP) codes on your pages. AMP ensures lower bounce rates and better experiences that impact search rankings.
4. Engines are personalizing results – This is one of the most eye-opening things to notice, but is also quite expected, due to the recent developments in algorithms. It means that Google or any other engine will provide SERPs based on the browsing histories, interests and geographical location of searchers. So, if a visitor clicks on your website through one search query, they will see your site above others for similar/related queries.
Once again, website owners and SEO professionals have to focus on the user experience on their pages. Try to utilize more search engine features like, Featured results, and quick answers if possible.
These trends and much more that are to come will leave their mark on the SEO fortunes of your site. It is a given that some of the focus areas are set to change in 2018.