The technicalities and details of SEO have changed significantly within the last 5 years. Black hat tactics have gone to the wayside while white hat SEO is becoming more complicated yet fruitful. By taking the time to read this guide, you’ll learn ways you can boost your rankings and visibility and have a successful campaign in 2020.
Mobile & Voice Search
During the last few years, there has been a significant shift within the search volume on Desktop and Mobile platforms. In 2018 alone, 58% of the total search traffic on Google came from mobile devices - this percentage is more than half of the total audience. We have slowly become a mobile-first world with the introduction of smartphones, tablets, and smartwatches. When building SEO campaigns in the year 2020, it is important to keep in mind the overtaking of mobile searches and to make sure that your campaign is catered to the mobile world.
Recently, Google added something called the ‘Mobile-First Index’ meaning that the mobile version of any website page will determine how it is indexed and ranked. That being said, maintaining good standing in the mobile sector is more important than ever including aspects like user experience, page speed, and friendly formatting to stay ahead of the curve.
With mobile and smart technology coming to the forefront, there is also a spike in voice searches. Users are asking their smart devices simple questions like “What’s the weather today?” but also using them for more important searches like “Where is the closest doctor?” or potentially “What’s the best SEO company near me?”. It is believed by the year 2020 that nearly one-third of all Google searches will be screenless (voice commanded). To compete in the voice search world, optimizing your site for short, concise, informative featured snippets that are catered to the best queries will help your chances of appearing during a voice search. This is because voice searches are usually done on-the-go and need to provide quick information to the user.
BERT SEO Optimization
Throughout the year of 2019, there was a multitude of updates and algorithms implemented by Google. Out of all these updates, BERT caught the most attention. We are all wondering exactly how to curate content and optimization to service the needs of BERT.
The general idea behind this Google update is creating a more streamlined approach to delivering intent matching when it comes to searches. This idea is building a better user experience by giving them direct answers to their questions and resources that will concentrate on their specific needs. This gives sites the opportunity to truly target a particular audience if they are catering their content and site structure to them.
It’s not so much about complementing the structure of the BERT algorithm as much as it is really understanding user-focused optimization and the technical delivery of content. Knowing the true mechanics of how something is indexed, crawled and served in a variety of search environments will help SEO agencies to grasp the real details of what their users are looking for.
Zero Click Searches
As of June 2019, the vast majority of Google searches resulted in no clicks. This is because the Search Engine Results Pages (SERP) information being displayed is so detailed and concise that it leaves no need for the user to click the link as they have already gotten the information they need. This phenomenon comes from well-written meta titles and descriptions as well as carefully curated rich or featured snippets.
When it comes down to it, SEO performance isn’t necessarily based on the number of clicks received for a particular page (unless it is a paid campaign) - it is more so about the keyword search volume and positioning of your site. Many times users are simply looking for phone numbers, emails or addresses to connect with the business they are interested in, which means they may never actually have a need to enter the site.
This can be a source of panic for some business as clicking leads to conversions for them. No need to worry, there is a simple way to make sure you’re getting the clicks you need. You can start by taking a moment to identify the best keywords that present ‘click’ opportunities for your business. This will save time and make sure that you are ranking for the right terms that lead to conversions. SEO campaigns in 2020 need to focus on small details that show up on SERP more than ever with the awakening of zero-click searches.
Secure Website Experiences
When users enter a ‘spammy’ looking site or one that their browser warns them about, it can take a heavy toll on organic user metrics. The specific metric of concern is the bounce rate of the site. Bounce rate refers to the percentage of users that leave the site after viewing a single page. Although bounce rate seems like a small detail, it can have large impacts on rankings and potential conversions.
To secure a site, you must enable the HTTPS protocol. The HTTPS offers a safe, secure connection that is authenticated and encrypted. This gives users a sense of comfort knowing that their data and information is protected on your site which will encourage more traffic. Implementing the HTTPS protocol to your site may only boost your SEO campaign a small amount but it can have a notable influence on organic traffic.
High Quality Content
The quality of content on a site has always been an important aspect of SEO, though, it may have more significance now more than ever before. With the introduction of the BERT update mentioned above and the amount of wasted ad spend, offering informative, concise, and easily readable content will play a much larger role in 2020.
Companies and SEO agencies alike will have to begin taking their content to the next level to maintain their rankings and to continue proving their authority, expertise, and trustworthiness to Google. This feeds into the ‘EAT’ method that is mentioned in our “Everything You Need to Know About Google’s Latest Medic Update” blog.
The days of keyword stuffing, duplicate content and short content are long gone with the new wave of internet intelligence. Content will need to be extremely relevant and well-written to boost your SEO in 2020.
Conclusion - 5 SEO Trends for 2020
SEO trends and tactics are constantly evolving with the changes in Google. We are seeing shifts into a new age of internet use which is becoming smarter and more detailed every day. It is important to keep up with these trends to maintain the results of your campaign and ensure online success for your business. Partnering with a detail-oriented SEO agency that keeps up with these trends and changes is your best bet to getting great results. Peaks Digital Marketing is a Denver-based SEO firm specializing in the latest trusted SEO trends and techniques. For more information about how we can improve your rankings in 2020 contact with a digital sherpa and call (720) 432-7115 or contact us.
