Searching for information online is a way for users to obtain quality content. Moreover, it’s as easy as 1, 2, or 3 since all you’d have to do is type in your request in the search engine bar, press enter, and the internet works for you. With this type of convenience, it’s no wonder that Search Engine Optimization (SEO) has become the lifeblood of websites to generate traffic and obtain profit.
Additionally, SEO has been around since the birth of the search engine itself – organically building up a steady stream of traffic. Not only this, but there have also been a few changes in the SEO world since its creation. So what are these changes, how do these impact you, and how can you use them for your business?
Targeting Local-Specific Data
One SEO change became the addition of local-specific data for internet users. Since people want quick and relevant search results on similar environments and backgrounds, local-specific data rose. This meant that users searched the internet for information targeted to their city or town.
Additionally, adopting an SEO feature of localized searches meant that local businesses reached their target audience more efficiently. With these data types, local businesses can create profiles to increase visibility for local searches, bringing in more foot traffic to your website.
Moreover, content also became more filtered and updated. Search histories and browsing interests became more personalized. You could even expect your search results to have different topics from the person sitting next to you, all by adding your city or town to the search engine bar.
Overall, SEO targeted local-specific data and became more user-end friendly. Doing so has allowed users to look for specific content and local businesses to improve their online visibility. Targeted traffic also became a new option as this change came – making it easier for businesses to boost sales.
With this change, asking local or global experts for anything is possible. In the US, 97% of internet users included location as they searched for local businesses, and 40% of those businesses sought the help of SEO experts.
The same goes for Australians, as 97% of users set their location to check out new businesses. Hence, businesses located in Sydney or its neighboring areas would find it beneficial to hire SEO experts in Sydney by Impressive Digital. That way, they can easily reach out to their target market living in certain locations.
Content Has Become More Influential
The content was highly different when SEO wasn’t as developed as now. The main focus of making SEOs was on the algorithm and its prime purpose of ranking higher than other sites. With this, it leaned more towards keyword building and low-quality content – which would ultimately end up in disappointed users looking for quality content.
However, this changed over the years as content became more influential. Instead of staying focused on algorithms and search engines, SEO became user-friendly and prioritized user needs and wants. Trying to get on top of the search engine results page became less of a must, and user research became the heart of SEO.
Likewise, users became more conscious of what content they wanted to see and consume. Since users can quickly obtain different information on a particular topic, SEO prioritized quality content to filter out the available sources.
Death of Keyword Overload
You’d probably think the more you mention your keyword on your site, the more traffic you generate. However, this isn’t entirely the case since Google adjusted its search engine algorithm – one example being the Google Florida update in 2003.
Just before Christmas, the Florida update happened, changing how links were initially calculated. Here, Google implemented filter mechanisms for specific keywords, which resulted in most sites being called ‘false positives.’ Moreover, some sites lost their rankings in the search engine overnight.
Since then, SEO has diverged from keyword stuffing and prioritized sites that use a more natural keyword placement in their content.
Rise of Knowledge Graphs
Not only has SEO become more meticulous with filter mechanisms, but it has also created a knowledge graph. Knowledge graphs show the entities (tangibles like people, organizations, and places, or intangibles like colors or concepts) and their relationship.
Knowledge graphs help the search engine understand the meaning behind the user’s queries to show the most relevant results ultimately. Since not all people search for direct content, knowledge graphs allow them to go beyond the keywords and show the best results for the search.
Take, for example, you’re searching up “the little green goblin holding a lightsaber.” Although this shows a seemingly disconnected sentence, knowledge graphs understand what you’re looking for by connecting different entities and returning with “Yoda” on your search results.
Mobile Optimization
SEO has become more convenient as it shifted from computer to mobile search traffic. This feature allows websites to account for different screen sizes and page speeds. SEO has become more accessible as it turned towards improving user experience with mobile phones.
Additionally, Google ranks mobile-friendly sites higher to accommodate people browsing on their phones. With this design, your site should be able to account for different site structures and load times to keep people on their phones more and not inadvertently away.
Final Thoughts
The changes SEO has experienced over the years have only pushed it to become more user-friendly, improving internet user experience and putting their needs above site traffic. Moreover, it would help if you considered these changes, implemented them on your site, and pushed your business to success.
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