Search engine optimization, which is only a about a decade into its existence as a serious discipline, is already undergoing some big changes. It used to be that writing a few articles, changing a few heading tags, and getting a couple of links to your site was enough to see your site crawl towards the top of Google or Yahoo. These days, though, that just doesn’t cut it. Online marketers have gotten smarter and more sophisticated, so your company will have to be, too.
Even more, the changes that are taking place have big implications for all areas of marketing, not just SEO. Here are four trends to look out for, and what they mean to your business:
The rise of the long tail. Searchers aren’t just looking for basic keywords anymore; increasingly, they’re trying longer strings – hoping to find exactly what they’re looking for, rather than something close. That means your landing pages should be specific, and informative, or you’re running the risk of leaking visitors.
More emphasis on social media. Facebook, Twitter, and other social networking sites are factoring more strongly into search algorithms, meaning that searchers are as likely to find your social profiles as they are your home page. Keep that in mind, and use your accounts to not only enhance your SEO, but add a soft marketing tint.
Video results gaining in popularity. Google, YouTube, and others are making video more important than ever – even outside of normal “video sharing” sites. Be sure you’re using clips as part of your marketing mix, especially for your most important key phrases and themes.
Higher pay-per-click costs. More advertisers, especially in the high-traffic keyword areas, are driving up click prices. That doesn’t mean you have to abandon PPC – for the most part, paid traffic still converts at a higher rate – but that you have to be smart about it. Setting up your PPC account and ignoring it is the recipe for a lot of wasted time and money.
