The SEO Trends of 2019 To Boost Business.
You cannot deny that SEO is a vital tool to enable your business to be found by your customers. Not being on Google, and not having your website performing its best, is the equivalent to being on a deserted island. Nobody’s going to find you.
In the latest data reported by Internet Live, there is an average of 3.5 billion Google searches a day globally, and 64% of people use Google to influence their ‘I-want-to-buy’ moment. Yes, implementing and strategising SEO can be a long and arduous task, but get your SEO right on point and you’ll be watching your business skyrocket in sales and leads.
While Google may have now become an adjective rather than just a brand of search engine, it does have a tendency to keep us on our toes. And this is understandable, it wants to be the best search engine available to users, so it’s no wonder it wants us to consistently improve our websites and ensure we’re offering users exactly what they want. With this in mind, each year there are new SEO trends to consider, new updates that we need to know and need to implement. 2019 is no different, but the wonderful thing about these trends is they will enable your business and your brand to sit above the rest.
Take note of these top SEO trends and your 2019 may be one of your most successful.
User Intent
How well do you know your audience?
Many businesses are blissfully unaware of the specifics around their audience. This includes the type of content they may like to consume, the device they use for searching, and the social platforms they prefer. In 2019, it’s a digital tragedy if you don’t know who you’re talking to or what problem your product or service is solving.
By understanding what your audience wants to find when they search for keywords and phrases, you can ensure you’re answering them in the simplest way possible and making your website useful. User intent is where this SEO trend forces you to think about your audience. What are they searching for, and why? Do you understand the reason behind their search? There have been too many websites reeling people in, only for them to discover the website doesn’t offer what they’re actually looking for. Much of this trend will encourage you to do much deeper keyword research, but this will ultimately enable you to improve your website content and find yourself in a much better position in the SERP’s.
The belief in 2019 is that your website should be written for its audience, and this is a critical part of your SEO.
Voice Search
Voice Search Admittedly voice search has a long way to go. You only need to have an Amazon Alexa or Google Home to realise these devices are by no means perfect. But just because voice search is still in its adolescence doesn’t mean we should ignore it, quite the opposite. A review by Gartner has revealed that by 2020, 30% of internet browsing will be done without a screen. This is staggering considering that mobile phones were around for at least two decades before they began utilising internet functionalities. Technology moves fast in our modern world, and getting to grips with voice search will begin to play a large role in how we design our websites, the content we write, and the way we optimise our websites for this style of search. To understand how to optimise and be found for voice search you have to understand that most users are currently asking questions and requiring answers, rather than looking for specific products or services.
Voice is still not ideal for researching products or services before a purchase. For example, when comparing products or trying to find the best price, but it can help us improve our current website content.
Through voice search keyword research we can discover the questions people are asking and ensure our websites have these answers and the relevant content. For many businesses, this can be a real game-changer in their SEO strategy.
Quality Content
‘Content is King’ is the most well-known SEO phrase in the world, but despite its overuse, it rings true.
Good quality content has been impacting SEO trends since Google’s Panda algorithm came into play and started rewarding websites that created great content. It may be a sweeping statement, but great content isn’t hard, it’s just that there have been too many websites doing it badly and not really understanding the consequences. In reality, when you put it into literal terms, favouring good content makes rational sense. As humans we love reading stories, watching movies and enjoying a good book, so why wouldn’t we expect the same journey and motivation from our online experience? Our human nature calls us to be storytellers, and Google is simply making sure we act human when it comes to SEO.
In 2019, the focus on content may be nothing new, but it’s about taking your content up a level.
If you’ve purely been blogging to just make your blog look up to date and active, now’s the time to rethink your strategy. It’s not just Google that wants more from you, its people! Many studies, including ones by industry specialists such as Neil Patel and Moz, have shown that websites with exceptional in-depth content, that is useful to a user, has soared in rankings. While websites with weaker content suffered in comparison.
Be the solution to people’s problem, and create content that is useful. Perhaps even forget the SEO part of it. Just do good things for other people and the rewards will come.
Video Dominance
Video may be nothing shocking when it comes to SEO trends for 2019, but you only need to look at the video explosion that took place in 2018 to understand that if you’re not using video you need to keep up. From Facebook Live to Instagram TV; Video content is booming, and this trend doesn’t look like it’s going to stop in 2019. According to Cisco, it’s predicted that video will become a magnet for 75% of internet traffic by 2020. And with 60% of users watching more than 2 minutes of video content it seems that video is a now or never strategy you should be harnessing. From adding video content to product pages to how-to guides and tutorials; you can create engaging and fun content no matter the product or service you provide. Think of it from a users perspective. We’re all busy, and video is just such an easy way to consume content without putting in any extra effort.
Why does this matter in terms of your SEO?
Well think about it, if people are favouring websites that contain video content, Google will also ensure you start rising in the rankings.
Optimise for Local
This may seem like such an obvious SEO trend, but localised optimisation is something many businesses forget about.
Ensuring your website is optimised locally can help you capture customers in your area, and ultimately be found for localised terms. In research conducted by Google, it found that 50% of consumers who conducted a local search on their smartphone visited a store within a day. Of course, this makes sense, we’re all often searching for something that’s in our local area as it just makes life easier. And with 46% of all searches on Google seeking local information, it begs to ask why so few are not taking advantage of this insight? The trend is continuing with more brands adopting local enhancements to improve their ranks. From adding a live inventory of stock to encourage customers to visit the store or purchase online and collect.
It’s no longer just about adding the right location phrases and setting up your My Google Business Page, it’s now about adding features to your website that can enhance that local search.
Mobile Matters
Since March 2018 Google has been in the process of migrating sites to their mobile-first index. Ultimately this means that the mobile version of your website will be used for indexing and ranking. This will have a bigger effect on your SEO in 2019 than in 2018 because now will be the time when those who have really been working on mobile optimisation will see the fruits of their labour. If your website has already been indexed for mobile, you should be notified by Google in your Search Console. If you haven’t started to think about how your website looks and reacts on mobile devices, you need to take some quick and strong action to ensure you can remain in a strong position for 2019.
Mobile matters, and without it you will be on the back foot in terms of your SEO. As mobile responsiveness is now a ranking factor, it will matter more than ever when it comes to everything you do on your website; from the layout, the page speed, the way content can be consumed. There are many factors to consider.
Amongst all these SEO trends for 2019, we’d highly recommend making mobile your priority if you haven’t done so already.