The challenge for SEO’s in 2018 is not just to get your content found on page one, but to get it found in as many places as possible.
There are three factors that make up SEO (Search Engine Optimisation)
Technical SEO
Put simply, this is the process of optimising to make sure search engines can crawl and index your site.
On Page SEO
On Page SEO refers to everything that the user can see on your page. The structure and relevancy of the text, your images, video and audio.
Off page SEO
As the name suggests, Off Page SEO relates to anything that it is not on your site but mostly boils down to creating trust and authority.
Trust with Google is gained by showing that your site is authoritative and popular. If you write great content and it’s shared across Social Media, you are, in effect creating a web of links that Google likes. When your content is shared, more and more people see it and you increase the likelihood of an authoritative site linking back to you. User generated content on review sites will also help establish trust both from your visitors and from the search engines.
Search is changing and it’s now more personal than ever.
Google is looking at the intent of the search query to decide which landing pages to present to the user and Webmasters and business owners should be too. The rule of thumb is that the more specific the search query, the higher the intent. If you enter any search term and study the top three results that Google gives you back, it will help you understand what Google deems as relevant to your particular query and will help inform your SEO strategy.
The way in which Google presents results to us changes regularly. It will continue to test different variations of results based on user intent for as long as the way people use search evolves.
The days of three adverts at the top and seven organic listings underneath are long gone. Depending on where you are and what you’re searching for, you may see a carousel, news articles, social media snippets, local results pages, featured snippets and answer boxes and of course the knowledge panel! Then, there may be room for a few organic results somewhere towards the bottom of the page.
Remember that nobody’s first page is the same anymore. As I keep saying, Google wants to make your search results so relevant to the intent of your query that you don’t even need to click through to a website. Be aware of how Google is presenting information and use it to your advantage. If you’d like a chat about how to get your website appearing in as many places as possible, please get in touch.
