Top 10 SEO trends to Ace SERP Rankings in 2023
In the Gargantaun digital marketing domain, SEO beholds an indispensable space, which nothing can replace, truth be told! As we all know, SEO is a volatile and dynamic set that changes colors in the blink of an eye. That said, learning about the latest SEO trends is beyond necessitated to fight for the top spot on the SERP.
Long since SEO or Search Engine Optimization has been on the minds of all marketers to put forward their content across the target audience. That said, being open to the updated and unpredictable SEO trends is the replication of a true digital marketer.
Through the route of this article, we will enlighten you about the excellent SEO trends that are working wonders in the market at present. Springing with a posthaste introduction, we will steer you across the adroit alley of the SEO trends that will surely spur your rankings and business growth.
So, let’s get on the trail.
What is SEO?
SEO expands for Search Engine Optimization. SEO conforms to the necessitated processes and steps taken to elevate the rankings of websites and web pages on the search engine. In simpler terms, SEO helps a website to rank on the top page of Google SERP. Now, who doesn’t want to get there?
As per the Moz stats, Google’s first page captures more than 71% of search traffic clicks. Further, it reports being beyond 92% in recent years. Contrastingly, the second-page click-through rate falls to as low as 6% of all website clicks. Do you see the difference here?
Google and SEO together have made this ranking race a cut-throat competitive marathon, where nobody pays heed to the second-runner; thus, being on the first page is not a choice but a necessity.
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Types of SEO
On the face of it, SEO is a much broader term that disseminates into four types of SEO, which are listed as follows:
On-page SEO
The first and foremost type of SEO that is known to many is On-page SEO. As the name suggests, on-page SEO wields through the optimization tactics that work on the page. Keyword density optimization, metadata, alt images, inbound and outbound links are few factors that come under the purview of on-page SEO.
In the simplest terms, on-page SEO attributes to all steps you take on the content of your article. Indeed, these tad steps play a big game in assisting Google to recognize your content as an informative piece.
You may be interested in On-site SEO Practices to Increase Website Traffic
Off-page SEO
Off-page SEO is all that doesn’t happen on your website. Are you confused? Off-page SEO is anything and everything that you do to enhance the trust and credibility of your website. All of it ultimately results in more visitors and sales.
In brief, off-page SEO is grounded on link-building practices. Now, what in the world is link-building? When you get the other legitimate websites with high domain authority to link back to you, Google entreats to value it. This whole process of getting backlinks from reputable sites is known as link-building.
Pitching articles, competitor research, and aiding reporters who appreciate your expertise and quotes on their websites- are a few ways to mount backlinks.
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Technical SEO
The name itself resonates with the technicality of this type of SEO. Technical SEO configures the complex algorithms to help search engines crawl your website, thereby validating user experience (UX). The golden rule, user experience is the bedrock of SEO and other types of marketing.
As Google and other search engines intermittently update their algorithms, Technical SEO becomes a dynamic subject that you must follow. A few components of Technical SEO include Site speed, mobile-friendliness, and site structure.
Local SEO
Local SEO is a term that confides in the growth of small businesses to focus their attention on a specific area; instead of targeting nationwide people. For instance, a small salon outlet would want to attract customers from around the locality and not across the nation. The philosophy behind this is simple- a person wouldn’t travel miles to get a haircut or buy a cake.
This local online marketing works through Google My Business (GMB) listing, where you affirm to Google your presence online. It often introduces addresses, directions, timings, descriptions, reviews, and photos, which sequentially help the local people find you.
As a matter of fact, search engines give preferences according to proximity, relevance, and prominence as per the search query. If your GMB profile matches the precise results of the three combined factors, your website tops the charts. As simple as it is!
Now that you know a lot about SEO and its types, it’s time to get on the cruise of the rhetorical SEO trends that really makes a difference!
Top SEO trends that help you reign the SERP rankings
Featured Snippets
Featured snippets, also named rich snippets, are the vogue of the SEO world. In layman’s terms, rich snippets are the attributes that specify precise answers to search queries. These rich snippets come down as a signal to Google to index the most vital elements of the article.
Elaborating on how it works, prominent search engines like Google, Bing, and more spurred a schema markup organization. Using this schema markup, many schemas such as FAQS, How-to, event, product, job posting, recipe, the most common being the FAQs.
Adroitly, these schemas are technical codes that the schema generator generates for Google to find the exact answers. The truth is Google spiders cannot understand your text language; it works through code language. That’s what Schema markup produces.
Let’s understand this with an example, which you may have come across many times.
When you type in a search query on the search engines, hardly below 2-3 results, you see a People Also Ask section. Have you ever paid heed to it? These are the frequently asked questions or FAQs that are pertinent to your search query. If you click on any of those questions, the search engine shows the most precise answer to that question.
Now, even if you don’t rank for the search query, you may have the chance to rank on Page 1 as the FAQ answers work as a conduit to your ranking. That said, Schema has become one of the most successful SEO trends in the market today.
User-centric content
Use-centricity has become tangible more than ever in 2021. For Google, user intent has always been the center of the world. As users’ and customers’ search processes and queries change, Google transverses the algorithms to fit their needs.
Likewise, businesses have to usher their websites within the user confines to serve them valuable information. That’s the way to rank on Google SERPs. Are you wondering how to make the best use of user intent? Let us see how!
Astute keyword research as per people’s search queries, competitor analysis, and creating unique, informative content is the key to unlock higher rankings. In contrast, websites exploiting black hat techniques will continue to lose rankings and traffic.
Apart from these, buyer personas can help you navigate the users’ minds and what they seek. Once you have an invisible mannequin of a buyer persona, curating content for user satisfaction becomes an easy play. And as Google worships users’ intent, it will value and serve your content.
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Core Web Vitals
Google introduced core web vitals to quantify the UX experience of websites. That said, the better UX metrics, the better will be the page experience scores.
For the most part, core web vitals stands aloft on three points: largest contentful paint, first input delay, and cumulative layout shift. In simpler terms, it connotes page loading, user interaction with webpage, and page stability while it is loading.
Let’s break down each jargon to help you understand Google core web vitals.
LCP navigates the loading time as per the actual user experience. From the moment the user clicks on the link to the point where most of the content appears on the screen brings the timestamp for LCP. Thus, it gauges the overall loading time or site speed.
Next comes FID, which measures user interaction with your webpage. How much time does it take for the user to click in their first input at your webpage? These interactions can be gauged on the following basis:
. Click an option on the menu
. Click on a link
. Putting up your email id in the box
Google prioritizes FID as it configures how users interact with the webpage.
The last important factor comes in as CLS. Do your webpage shift and loads haphazardly? Well, then Google and users both will discard it. When the elements of the webpage fly around here and there, that denotes high CLS, which generates a poor user experience. As per google core web vitals, the webpage must load with poise and stability for better configuration and user experience of the general public.
Read How SEO can Drive sales for your Business?
Google BERT algorithm
Google BERT (Bidirectional Encoder Representations from Transformers) update puts Google one step closer to human touch. Using machine learning and natural language processing (NLP), Google BERT lets Google catch the search intent to serve the most suitable content.
With Google BERT, Google search engine bots have gained the ability to understand language just like a human brain. Subsequently, Google bots have become more conversational so as to interpret the intent of the search query.
How does it become a necessitated aspect of SEO trends? Let’s find out!
Search intent is the real reason behind a particular keyword that a searcher types in the search engine. Are they searching for an answer to the problem? Are they looking for a list of opportunities? Do they want a how-to guide for something? Do they want to read reviews before making a choice? Whatever be the questions, there is always an innate intent behind the scene.
Keeping this in mind, Google emphasizes the importance of keyword and intent match to render precise explanations. Take, for example, a person searching for SEO trends who wants to know about SEO tactics. However, a search query “SEO services” points out the search for services to get their SEO work done. In that light, SEO trends are informative content, while SEO services are for commercials.
Now, how can you leverage it to your benefit?
While writing any content, search for the keyword on Google and learn about the intent behind that keyword. In this manner, you will have a better chance of meeting the search intent requirements and a correspondingly better chance for top rankings.
Explore these Top 15 Chrome Extensions for Digital Marketing and SEO
Mobile SEO
Even more than a laptop or any other gadget, the device which stays beside people 24*7 is mobile. Nobody can deny that fact! To back it up, here is a quick sneak-peak into the statistics.
As per Statista, worldwide mobile phone users expect to exceed 1.5 billion users in 2040.
Huge yet true!!
Keeping the stats in mind, mobile SEO is one of the sought-after SEO trends in the digital market. Not only does Google favors mobile-friendly sites, but also it amplifies site traffic.
As many as 58% of Google searches are a result of mobile surfing. That glorifies the importance of Mobile SEO as an SEO trend. Now, the thing that pops into the mind is how to optimize your sites for Mobile SEO? Here’s how!
Among the umpteen ways for mobile optimization, let us have a look over some most significant ones:
- Mobile site speed. You can use Google’s Pagespeed Insights tools for better suggestions on how to master site speed.
- Easy readability and understandability by using big, bold, and clear content.
- Put Viewport tag to adjust the dimensions as per the user’s device.
- Debunk large header images.
- Keep negative space (space between texts, buttons, images)
- For ease of sharing purposes, put share buttons on the top bar.
Go through This detailed Guide to Become an SEO expert
Voice search
The next big thing in the SEO trends market is the Voice Search that has taken precedence over the years.
Do you know???
As per Google, 27% of the population is already using voice search on their mobile phones.
A dominant share of this percentage goes to the teenagers who are more inclined and adapted to the staggering features of the new technology. Here is a thing about voice searches, these queries are long-tail and highly specific.
In fact, while using voice searches, most users are looking for specific and targeted queries, coveting quick answers. Moreover, such users are in the consideration funnel and have high chances of converting into potential customers.
Some ways to optimize your site for Voice Search:
- Provide compelling persona-based content
- Target long-tail SEO keywords
- Provisions for context using schema markup
- Focus on local pages
- Downsize website loading time
- Write scannable and skimmable content
Do explore the options for the Top 12 SEO Courses in Bangalore
Video marketing
Do you know? YouTube is the first-runner up after Google in the search engine race with over 1 billion users. So, it’s high time that you put a considerate focus on Video marketing.
At this moment in time, you must be pondering how to optimize for video marketing? You can emanate with optimizing your channel name and description. But wait here, don’t overstuff the information with the keywords. Instead, write a user-friendly natural portrayal of what your channel is all about.
In case you find yourself out of ideas, you can leverage YouTube’s autocomplete feature. As soon as you type in your video’s topic, the attribute will showcase some suggestions, which you can choose as per your context. These complementary keywords assist you in reaching your target audience.
In a nutshell, the reasoned impact of video on SEO is bound to increase in the coming years. That said, video marketing is one of the sure-shot SEO trends today and in the offing.
Artificial Intelligence
AI has penetrated almost every other industry, and SEO is no different. For this fact, AI outlines the personalizations in marketing, rendering an enhanced user experience. Hence, it counts as one of the best SEO trends in 2021.
Not to overlook, Google itself uses AI to offer the best possible results to the searchers.
How can AI help you with building SEO strategies?
Understanding the convoluted algorithms is a hard-core task, which might take years. Correspondingly, creating strategies may take forever. Here comes the game-changing AI into action. With AI and machine learning, you can decode and decipher the intricacies of algorithms to weave successful strategies around them. Plus point, all of this happens in no time as compared to eternal former methods.
Herewith, incorporating AI chatbots and other features befitting the frame of your website and UI/UX experience can be your best bet. These personalized and bespoke interactions and solutions will speak directly to your visitors down to happy customers.
EAT and Branding
When Google comes to ranking, quality is an indispensable feature. But does Google pays attention to only quality? Hell, no! Then, what is it?
EAT!
Google prevails EAT principle that stands for Expertise, Authoritativeness, and Trustworthiness.
In the new SEO league, the brand is the showstopper. Brand authority, brand recognition, and brand awareness together interplay to help Google analyze your online presence. The more authentic and renowned your brand is, the better will be the rankings on Google.
Now, as SEO doesn’t draw instant results, you won’t notice it at an instant. Whatsoever, in the long run, you will see the magic of your Brand building tactics.
So, if you haven’t invested in building your brand till now, you must strategize right away. Put brand reputation at the zenith position of your SEO trends in 2021. For that purpose, use brand search queries as a means to create brand awareness and become the talk of the town. Brand queries are the secretive ingredient for top rankings.
Bonus Tip :
Another thing to create a difference is to publish long-form original content that holds pivotal space in the Google ranking algorithms. Despite outstripping changes, one thing that remains constant for ranking resolution is the originality and uniqueness of content. Indeed, Google never displaces the useability and worth of content.
Know the difference SEO vs SEM: Which is better for your Brand?
Qualitative Backlinks
Enough of on-page SEO techniques! As mentioned earlier, off-page techniques are equally essential. In comparison to innumerable low-quality links, one high-quality link from a world-class news site holds much more value and worth.
What it means is that PR links take precedence over the traditional SEO practice of generating countless low-quality links. Thus, try to connect with PR agencies, foster good relations, and figure out ways to grasp qualitative backlinks. The more high-quality links you will have, the better your chances at top positions of SERP rankings.
Besides, you can also work out a deal with influencers to acquire high-quality links. Over the top, if you are new to the field, guest blogging is again an excellent option to harness good-quality backlinks.
The perfect combo of media relations and technical SEO is the best approach for SEO trends to make your content rank. Don’t compromise on these SEO trends if you want to take full throttle into top rankings.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q1. Is SEO still relevant in 2021?
Yes, SEO has become more than ever important in 2021. Undoubtedly, SEO is the most effective digital marketing strategies to drive persistent results. Thus, SEO remains relevant in the years to come.
Q2. What will be the trending SEO technique in 2021?
Brand authority and brand awareness are the most trending technique in 2021. Creating brand awareness through brand queries is a high-ranking factor that can bag you the top place on Google rankings.
Q3. Is SEO really necessary?
SEO is an essential ranking factor. SEO determines your website visibility, which drives more traffic and possibilities to transform visitors into customers.
Final Words
With a deluge of websites and content generated each day, Google is compelled to work out more tangible SEO trends to help serve the user best. Being an associate of the digital industry, one can’t help but remain updated with the latest SEO trends.
If you can’t bond with SEO, there is no place for you in this demanding industry, as simple as it sounds. To keep you in sync with the latest SEO trends, we have curated this list of the best SEO trends that are reigning in the digital market.
Use them to the best of your interest to make your website credible, authentic, authoritative, and trustworthy in the eyes of search engines. For sure, it will harness positive results and sell your content like hotcakes.
