As media continues to change, marketing agencies must keep up to date with current practices that will elevate their business. Search engine optimization, also known as SEO, has been a fundamental technique for gaining traffic on websites and specific products since e-commerce has been available. As technology continues to evolve, the way marketers implement SEO needs to.
This article will explore how modern technology and media platforms affect SEO marketing as we know it. Using old SEO techniques on current e-commerce platforms is impossible, and your product performs well. While agencies used to rely on good copy and trending keywords, there is much more to consider now.
What is Search Engine Optimization?
Before we discuss how to incorporate current search engine optimization, let’s define it. SEO can be defined as a set of practices designed to improve the appearance and positioning of web pages in organic search results. This means marketers are attempting to get their website or products to rank on the first page of Google or a relative e-commerce platform, such as Amazon. These practices include incorporating trending keywords into your copywriting & producing copy that gets a consumer’s attention and sells your product or service.
SEO Techniques to Consider to Boost Rankings
While trending keywords and compelling copywriting are still some of the best SEO techniques for ranking high on Google, modern technology and media have changed how we apply these techniques. Below are the four most significant technological developments that impact how we use SEO in media.
1. Voice to Text Feature
One of the most significant changes to media is the addition of voice searches. Not only do platforms like Google and Amazon have their voice search tools, but any consumer using a mobile device also has a voice search option. Rather than opening a laptop and typing in their desired product in a search engine, consumers will ask their mobile device to search for it.
In a way, marketers need to start considering how to apply their SEO techniques to voice searches and digital assistants. Your content needs to be optimized to appeal to searches from a computer, mobile device, voice search, and artificial intelligence. Though this may seem like a lot to account for, it is essential if you are determined to rank high on top e-commerce platforms.
Though voice searches will vary depending on what product or service a consumer is looking for, in general, one can infer these voice searches are likely to appear as questions. For example, someone looking for a place to eat might type into Google “ best pizza near me”, while someone using a digital assistant such as Siri on an iPhone may ask “ what is the best pizza restaurant near me”. The main difference between these two searches; the second is in the form of a question.
This means more questions or specific words that are likely to be asked in the form of a question should be incorporated into your keywords or copy to account for voice searches. On average, agencies that integrate voice search-specific SEO into their content have a 6-10% increase in revenue and a 30% increase in organic traffic. Voice searches are one of the most impactful changes to how we apply SEO.
2. Mobile Friendly Platforms
Everyone nowadays has a smartphone. Whether it’s an iPhone or Samsung, agencies must optimize for mobile devices.
Now searches might not be as different between computers and smartphones, but how a website or product appears on a mobile device can be. A company can have a fantastic website that ranks high among computer users, and the same website can be one of the least visited by consumers on mobile devices. Long story short, if your website is challenging to navigate on a smartphone, consumers will not even try to use it.
This is one of the biggest problems seen today by agencies. A website’s rankings may seem to perform well, but sales are not correlated. Adjusting your website to be mobile-friendly will help to fix this problem by allowing users who use smartphones to be able to purchase a product easily. Updating a website also means modifying keywords and copy to optimize for smartphone users. It is essential to keep in mind that SEO will always vary depending on how a consumer finds your product.
3. Incorporate Links
Another great way to improve traffic and rankings on your website is to incorporate links throughout your copy. While this mainly applies to more long-form copy such as articles or blog posts, using links throughout the post will ensure more visibility to your website. These links should be a mixture of competitor products, news articles, and similar products from your own site.
Incorporating links is one of the best SEO practices for small businesses, as it is an extra boost for search traffic. It is also essential to recognize that more links do not equal more traffic, but adding relevant links can lead to more traffic. Finding relevant links that rank high on Google, then linking them to your website would be way more impactful than linking a random blog post about your product from 2 years ago.
4. Do Not Overuse Keywords
While keywords are essential for SEO, too many can hurt you. Platforms like Google and Amazon recognize when writers cram in too many keywords, and the copy doesn’t make as much sense. In this case, Google’s algorithm pushes your ranking down.
Copywriters must incorporate these keywords in a way that makes sense. Well-written copy with a few keywords is much more impactful than a mediocre copy with every keyword you can find.
It is essential to keep up to date with changes in how consumers purchase products so you can update how to incorporate SEO.