These are the 16 most important SEO developments to watch for in 2022 and 2023.
You've likely heard about Google's imminent core search upgrade if you're a webmaster or have even the slightest interest in search engine optimization. If you haven't already heard, here's what you should know: It's true, in the year 2022, Google will release a substantial upgrade to its search algorithm. This major revision to Google Search will be released in May of 2022. As one of the final major upgrades before the next big thing (the end of life as we know it), this revision is crucial.
With the release of IndexNow in May 2022, Microsoft Bing aimed to make it easy to see how well your site performed in Bing search results (and also to make the lives of SEOs easier). Simply said, the tool reveals whether or not a certain page has been indexed by Bing. It's simple: if IndexNow reports that Bingbot has crawled and indexed your website, then you may consider it to be live on the web.
In the event that you're having difficulties with certain URLs on your site not being crawled or indexed, this information might be very helpful. For example, one of your clients warns you that they observe issues when they click over from another page on your site into one of yours (maybe it brings them immediately back home instead of onto the intended page) (maybe it takes them directly back home instead of onto the desired page). Before moving on, you should verify that the specified URL was successfully crawled. The next step in the debugging process would be to determine whether the pages' overall optimization or the stacks' hosting locations are at fault (eCommerce platforms tend not to be very friendly towards dynamic content).
Simply put, "mobile usability metrics" (or "MUM" for short) are the data that will show Google how effectively a site is optimised for mobile use. Take notice of them immediately if you want to remain ahead of the curve.
So, explain this to me, please.
Instantaneousness of page loading (how fast your website loads)
The Intensity of Advertisements (how many ads are on your page)
A content strategy based on lazy loading (when content loads only after scrolling).
The innovative method of indexing known as "Passage Indexing" Changes to SEO that have been in the works at Google for years are now here.
To help search engines better comprehend the content of your web pages, you may employ a technique called "Passage Indexing," which involves feeding text through an algorithm that turns it into structured data. Because the system improves with each user's interaction, material that has been passage-indexed will offer better search results and more accurate replies.
Google's search algorithms have evolved in many ways, but one of the most notable is that it no longer takes queries at face value.
Historically, keywords were the only building blocks of search engine optimization. You implemented them throughout your content and website, giving search engines a clear picture of how you wished to be indexed. People were abusing the system by employing generic versions of popular keywords to artificially boost their website's traffic.
Even with its many flaws, the concept was that a large enough net could be used to capture at least some fish.
Search engines have evolved to become far more sophisticated in recent years. Keywords are no longer the only criterion for determining which material should be returned in response to a search. As an alternative, they provide outcomes based on intent by analysing a range of indicators and user behaviour. They generally have a good sense of when a user is seeking for answers, tools, or information and can tailor their output appropriately.
Finding your target consumer and anticipating their online behaviour is a key SEO trend for 2023.
The first consideration for search engine optimization should be user intent. Find out how visitors are searching for material so you can tailor your own efforts to meet their needs.
Google Analytics is the finest tool for deciphering user intent. Find out what visitors are looking for on your site by utilising this tool, and then utilise that information as inspiration for future content creation. If you want to know what kinds of content will appeal to your target audience, you can utilise services like BuzzSumo and SEMRush to find out what people are talking about online (and thus improve search rankings.)
There's no denying that implementing local SEO is a hassle. Submitting a website and waiting for results used to be sufficient, but in today's market, companies must make extra efforts. Indeed, there is solid cause for this. Local search traffic has increased by 45% between 2013 and 2018, thus it's no surprise that your rivals are also putting in long hours perfecting their own local search engine optimization techniques.
Given the significance of this issue for SMBs, let's dive further into the current state of local SEO and examine why it matters so much in the year 2022.
The amount of searches on mobile devices has doubled since 2013 (to 80%). Today, mobile devices make up 66% of all eCommerce sales. You should get started right away on making your site mobile-friendly.
Local search engine optimization (SEO) may be a major pain in the you know what. It used to be that you could simply submit your website and sit back, but today, companies need to go above and above if they want to see results. And with good cause! It's no surprise that everyone wants a piece of the localised search traffic pie (increasing 45% from 2013 to 2018), including your rivals, who are likely working hard every day on their own local SEO tactics.
Given the significance of this issue for SMBs, let's dive further into the current state of local SEO and examine why it matters so much in the year 2022.
Over half of all searches will be local by 2020, and that number is only expected to rise.
It's estimated that by 2019, smartphone searches will account for 80% of all searches. 66% of all eCommerce transactions are now made on mobile devices. So if you’re not having your site optimised for mobile yet, get working ASAP!
Google is starting to prioritise the video SEO industry. The company's mission is to improve search results by increasing the visibility of films that are relevant to users' searches.
With the use of structured data markup on the films themselves, this may be accomplished. While the current VideoObject schema type can accommodate a wide variety of video material, Google plans to expand the schema this year to include two additional kinds, Movie and TV Show. Both will want more information on what’s in your video as well as where it’s housed (if you’re streaming it online).
It's expected to be a major factor in search engine optimization next year. You can't make improvements to your SEO campaign if you have no idea how many people are visiting your site, which pages they're most interested in reading, or where they found your site. It is in this context that consumer analytics prove crucial. It's important to track how many people found your site using free, paid, and social search methods. If you're trying to evaluate whether or not to invest heavily in digital marketing efforts vs. other channels like PR or email marketing, this might be a big assist.
Increasing your brand's exposure in search engine results pages (SERPs) is what we call "brand SERP optimization."
Exactly what does this imply? Instead of merely showing up for broad phrases like "SEO," it helps you rank for keywords that are really relevant to your company.
The phrase "knowledge graph" is probably not new to you. Okay, but what are they? Well, you may think of them as a directory for your search engine. They arrange data on certain entities (individuals, locations, or objects) in a manner that facilitates quick scanning and discovery.
If I type in "Kanye West" into Google right now, I'll get a picture of Kanye with his name and some links that take me to stories about him on CNN or Forbes. Rather of leaving Google Search to visit a website, I may just click on the knowledge graph that appears as an entity box underneath each result and be sent directly to the desired page.
The mobile industry has grown beyond a hobby. It's the major way people look for things online, and it's also the future of search engine optimization. When it comes to online marketing and user experience, mobile SEO is the future of search engines since it incorporates everything from voice search to voice assistants like Google Home and chatbots like Slackbot.
There must first be an evaluation of the present SEO strategy before any adjustments or implementations can be made. You may be asking what practical difference this will make for future releases. If there are holes in your strategy or progress is not going as expected, you'll need to determine why.
You Should Analyze and Evaluate Your Current Strategy To begin, let's define "Assess & Understand Your Current Strategy." This includes looking at the material that is presently being created on the site and evaluating its quality (Are there any red flags here?) and determining whether or not the site's aims are in line with your own. In light of the existing state of things in these domains, an assessment of this kind will be useful in deciding whether or not to make adjustments.
The explanation behind this trend is straightforward: individuals want to do the same or more with less effort. Some people, for instance, would like to earn money while they sleep rather than toil away at a desk nine to five. For this reason, electronic messages like emails are replacing more traditional forms of communication like letters and faxes.
Similarly, there has been a rise in the usage of search engine optimization (SEO) automation solutions, which enable users to do other things while still seeing excellent outcomes in terms of website traffic and conversions (more traffic and higher rankings).
Back In 2019, alone, over a hundred new search engine optimization (SEO) solutions have been introduced. The goal here was to demonstrate how many options exist for businesses that want to streamline their online marketing efforts without sacrificing quality control or efficacy, and so we purposely left off content management systems like WordPress and social media management platforms like Hootsuite and Buffer.
You may expect to see a lot of changes to the look and feel of Google's search engine results pages (SERPs) in 2022. They're developing innovative techniques for bringing content and data to the forefront, which implies the present condition of your site will be less crucial than it has been in the past.
Change the appearance and feel of your SERPs anyway you'd like (e.g., more video)
Your search results page may add new features (e.g., Q&A) or give more information about your company, such reviews from other sites or directories
Because of its length, it has a better chance of being read and indexed, as well as being more likely to be shared on social media. In contrast to other forms of content (such infographics or shallow articles), long-form material tends to rank higher in search results (like listicles).
Long-form blog entries are worth the time and effort they take to write if you have the means to do so.
Scaling up SEO is possible, but it is still a challenging task. It's likely that when you think about search engine optimization, the first things that spring to mind are keyword analysis and tweaks to existing content. The aforementioned factors are essential to SEO, but they are simply the tip of the iceberg when it comes to what it takes to develop successful SEO campaigns.
If you want to see results from your SEO strategy, it will take years of hard work on the part of your team and you, the company owner or decision maker. In addition, search engine optimization is expensive because of all the moving parts involved in making your website Google-friendly (and make no mistake about it: optimising for search engines does cost money). Finally, with the right amount of time and effort invested, it is possible to greatly expand the reach of an SEO campaign by adding specialists in related fields, such as pay-per-click advertising or link building.
Google's activity over the last several years has made it quite evident that the company intends to diversify its services outside the realm of "plain old" web searches. Additionally to Gmail and Chrome OS, they have also released Google Shopping and Google Maps. You may have found yourself wondering, "Is organic search doomed in the face of all these new initiatives?" I mean, no. I don't believe we'll see Google cease investing on organic search anytime soon, despite the popularity of its other offerings (and their potential to become enormous money-makers).
Why? There's no reason for them to quit funding the strategy that brought them fame. If you need an example of a company that tries to get away with serving just sponsored advertisements (or even worse, false news), go no further than Facebook. Google's business model relies on using public data freely available through web crawling technology, so I highly doubt that will happen. Unlike social media platforms like Facebook and Twitter, which rely heavily on data from users who voluntarily share personal information about themselves (like photos), Google faces less risk because there are no personally identifiable details attached to each piece of data found on a website indexed by their algorithm.
In a nutshell, content promotion will remain supreme in the realm of search engine optimization. Although I lack a crystal ball, I can speculate about where SEO may be heading beyond the years 2022 and 2023. Being a reliable resource is now just as important as generating highly-ranked material.
