Usman Raza — November 13, 2019 Keeping abreast of changes is always a challenge and it’s no different with search engine optimization. Technology is an ever-changing environment and to stay ahead, you must be ready to change with it. As we move into the final quarter of 2019, we look ahead to what next year brings and what that means for business growth and brand promotion. SEO is on the move again in new and exciting ways from and if you’re ready to gain momentum, now is the time to seek out what 2020 has in store.
Know Your Audience
Gone are the days of publishing content for the sake of promoting, ranking, and link-building with the hope of enticing your customers along the way. Today’s audience is looking for a more personal connection with brands with the number of content “shares,” “engagement time,” and “comments” rank the highest for overall audience engagement. Take the extra time to know your audience to boost your success rate and improve your ROI.
When you know and understand your audience, you can create content that speaks to their needs and anticipates their questions. Your expertise and influence matter. For example, if you are a brand like Nano hearing technologies, your expertise and influence should clearly be shown on all social media channels as well as on your official site.
Micro- and Nano-Influencer Marketing
Influencer marketing is about cultivating relationships with influencers – small, mid-sized, large and sometimes even mega to build rapport and a following for your brand. However, mega-influencers (celebrities) aren’t always the answer. Today’s brands are honing in on micro- and nano-influencers to get their word out instead.
Micro-influencers are influencers with a loyal following of 1,000 to 100,000 and they project a high level of authenticity with their audience. Nano-influencers have under 1,000 followers, usually, focus on a very narrow market, and are seen as reputable and trusted among their followers. This works because today’s audience places more emphasis on trust over-popularity. In other words, bigger isn’t always better. With that in mind, micro- and nano-influencers are gaining traction with brands and will continue to do so throughout 2020, but don’t neglect your content. Why? The quality of your content matters, too.
Content Quality Matters
The need for content hasn’t changed, but what has changed is the type of quality content you publish. Today’s consumers are looking for more value-driven content than ever before. So, find a compromise between content that speaks to your industry expertise and brand, and delivers content that gives your audience what they demand. It’s a challenge, but not an impossible one. It’s all about the approach you take.
No, you don’t need to apply the “everything but the kitchen sink” model. Instead, center your content around the problems your customers face while providing the right solutions to meet those challenges. From there, power pack your content with SEO, backlinks, and keywords in seamless fashion when and where appropriate. It’s far better to provide high-quality content done right than it is to risk everything for the sake of perceived rankings. The same holds true for other ways to implement SEO, like voice searches.
Mobile UX
Creating a rock solid user experience for mobile platforms is a challenge. Setting up your website is not a one-stop-shop when today’s users are more mobile than ever with an estimated 81% of Americans owning a smartphone. Keeping that in mind, building a mobile adaptable website is more important than ever and there are several key factors to consider for mobile UX.
- Limit font sizes and types
- Limit palette to two or three colors
- Consider a sticky menu
- Skip dividers – use white space to separate pages
- Speed is essential
- Keep forms short and simple
- Make buttons “thumb-clickable”
- Offer the option to switch between desktop and mobile view
- Finally, test your mobile site
Mobile UX is about making things easier, faster and more efficient for your consumers and becoming more accessible on their mobile devices for technological SEO enhancement.
Blockchain
Move over bitcoin. It’s time to make room for SEO on the blockchain express. That’s right. Blockchain, the incorruptible virtual ledger that is most commonly associated with your cryptocurrency is now moving in the direction of SEO.
Although we normally might not consider blockchain as a tool for SEO, it’s all in how you view it. Blockchain would give SEO marketers and advertisers the ability to cut out the middleman while enhancing security. It offers you the ability to verify users for click-through advertising with 100% accuracy.
Augmented Reality
With all this talk about tech with blockchain, we can’t end without touching base on augmented reality – the new kid on the SEO block, as well. Augmented reality is beaming with possibilities for businesses everywhere. Since most people today own and carry a smart device like a smartphone or tablet, they already have the means to receive your AR promotions, advertisements, and notifications. The AR space is primed and ready, but it does require some audience research and a dab of SEO know-how to pair the right audience-centered content and local SEO keywords to meet your customers. Unlike other forms of SEO, AR primarily relies on user-generated content. So, positive, but genuine reviews and geo-location will play a big role.
Keeping up with SEO is ever-changing. As with technology, each year is power-packed with expectations and new beginnings. Although we can’t predict everything, staying on top of upcoming changes takes your business and marketing efforts to the next level. Are you ready to outshine the competition and engage with your customers in new and exciting ways? It’s time to Seek Momentum.
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