In a modern economy where gaining a competitive advantage is more important than ever, companies across the globe are looking to enhance every facet of their marketing operations. Search engine optimisation (SEO) has become one of the most powerful marketing tools of the past decade, and this trend looks set to continue long into the future. Because of the need to constantly compete more effectively and efficiently than ever before, SEO is a rapidly evolving marketing method, and 2018 has been no different. With that in mind, here are just a few of the most exciting SEO trends of 2018 that we’ve seen gather pace and that you should watch out for as their impact becomes more dominant.
1) Increased use of voice searching
Data released by Google has shown that 20 per cent of all searches are already derived from voice-activated smart software. With the rise of smart speaker products such as Amazon Echo, this SEO trend only looks to continue far into the future. Unsurprisingly, this is having an effect on the way that SEO is being utilised. Rather than taking a scatter gun approach to creating a list of keywords, the rise of voice searches is leading to a greater focus on long-form keywords, and words used in everyday conversation. Moreover, creating content that is more focused on answering specific everyday questions can help to increase visibility on search engines.
2) The rise of featured snippets
In a similar way to the increased use of voice searching, the rise of featured snippets (a format which provides visitors with a concise, direct answer to their questions directly on the search results page, without having to click through to a specific result) is transforming the SEO landscape. Google has revealed that almost one-third of all search queries are answered by featured snippets, making this SEO trend a must for all companies. Focussing on providing short, concise answers to long-tail search queries (longer, more specific keyword phrases that visitors are more likely to use when they’re closer to a point-of-purchase or when they’re using voice search), a company can increase their market presence by formulating a large quantity of content that answers a wide range of questions. Moreover, creating well-structured content will ensure that search engines will be able to more easily pull information for use in featured snippets.
3) Growing importance of mobile
Google’s new mobile-first index, which started rolling out earlier this year, has seen pages ranked based on the mobile version of the page, which is seeing a move away from the relevance of traditional desktop formats. This is unsurprising, considering that over 60 per cent of search engine queries are carried out on mobile devices. For SEO, this means that 2018 has seen SEO trends have a growing focus on accelerated mobile pages, and moreover, an increased awareness of the importance of optimisation of the user experience on mobile devices.
SEO trends – where to find out more
SEO changes, updates and evolves on a weekly basis. If you’d like help keeping on top of SEO and maximising your search potential, please get in touch. We manage SEO for many of our clients and have many years experience in this area. SEO can set you apart on Google search results don’t miss out on the opportunities.
Image: Numbers 123 by TeroVesalainen licensed under CC0 Creative Commons
