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Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is crucial for generating leads and converting them into customers. However, it is more than a one-time task you can set up and forget. To benefit from SEO, you need to commit to it and continuously work on improving it. You must also stay up-to-date with the SEP trends 2021 and follow the latest advances.
Search engines like Google constantly strive to enhance the user experience and improve satisfaction. They continually adjust their search engine ranking algorithms, meaning you must keep up with the latest trends to stay caught up in the Google search engine results.
To ensure that your business stays ahead in 2021, it is essential to examine this year’s most significant SEO trends in digital marketing and incorporate them into your SEO strategy.
1. Call Tracking DNI
Most consumers will look up a local business online before contacting it. Around 88% of those consumers will call or visit that business within the next 24 hours.
But how would you know whether a visitor found out about your business through a friend or family member, your newspaper ad, or online, thanks to your SEO efforts?
The only way to know this is through call tracking DNI (dynamic number insertion).
With a DNI, you’d have a unique phone number for every ad source. So, if a caller contacts you on the number listed on your web pages, you’ll know how you generated that lead.
Call tracking DNI will help you monitor leads and prospects online and offline and provide unique insights into how your consumers find out about you.
Review every call you receive and analyze the most common questions and concerns. It will further allow you to improve your online presence with detailed FAQs and guides.
2. Voice Support
AI Voice support is the next big thing in SEO. Over the past few years, consumers have grown accustomed to using devices like Google Home, Amazon Alexa, and even their smartphones to perform convenient voice searches.
Today, over 40% of all internet users in the US rely on voice search for everything from finding directions to booking tickets and ordering food.
It means you must adapt your SEO strategy (and content) to accommodate voice search queries.
They typically consist of particular long-tail keywords.
Instead of using a key phrase such as “best movies 2021”, for example, a user relying on voice search will be more likely to say something like “What are the best movies available on Netflix in 2021?”.
3. WordPress Development
WordPress is the world’s largest CMS (content management system), powering over 43.2% of all online websites.
It has every tool and feature you may need to enhance the quality of your site and improve your user experience and satisfaction.
With WP, you’ll find it easier to improve SEO, optimize your site for mobile, add SSL certificates, enhance site security, take care of your content marketing, and more. So, don’t neglect everything that WordPress has to offer.
4. Machine Learning and AI
Personalization is the name of the game for businesses trying to improve their online presence, and search engines like Google are well aware of that.
91% of consumers are likelier to do business with a brand that offers relevant experiences and personalized recommendations.
So, if you want to stand out and improve your SERP ranking even for local SEO to appear on the first page of the search results, you need to start boosting your personalization efforts, and the only way to do that is with the help of machine learning and AI.
These technologies can help you quickly collect and analyze customer data, allowing you to present more relevant offers to each website visitor.
Machine learning and AI (artificial intelligence) can also help you analyze your performance and gain further insights into improving your SEO.
5. Core Web Vitals
In 2021, Google started using new metrics to measure user experience. The metrics are known as Core Web Vitals, part of the Google algorithm, and they include:
- Loading
- Interactivity
- Visual stability (CLS: cumulative layout shift)
Together, these three metrics measure your page speed—how quickly it loads, becomes interactive, and is stable while loading.
6. Mobile Friendliness and Page Experience
Mobile device optimization isn’t a new SEO trend, but it’s becoming increasingly relevant. As the internet slowly becomes almost entirely mobile, you must ensure a flawless mobile experience.
Fast-loading pages, heightened mobile visibility, smoothly running media, and other features would help you attract smartphone users.
Search engines like Google prioritize mobile-optimized sites on their SERPs with mobile-first indexing, even when users search via PC.
If two or more sites offer the same relevant content and a similarly excellent user experience, a mobile-optimized site will always get a better ranking and conversions.
7. Long-Form Content
Long-form, high-quality content (3,000+ words) gets more views, traffic, shares, and backlinks than shorter content. As a general rule of thumb, it is a much better option.
However, there’s still quite a difference between content quality and quantity. If you rely on outdated techniques like keyword stuffing, you risk being penalized by search engines.
It’s best to focus on keyword research, target audience, and content creation as your ranking factor, create value for your consumers, and deliver quantity second. Use SEO tools for your marketing strategy to help with research and planning.
8. Zero-Click Searches
Search engines have been using zero-click searches for some time, but they became necessary for SERP ranking only in 2020.
In essence, zero-click searches allow users to find the information they want without visiting your page.
Suppose you have relevant information regarding the user’s search query. In that case, Google will scan your site and display it as a top result, allowing the user to enjoy a “zero-click” experience.
To start using zero-click searches, you can use featured snippets, cards, video content, lists, tables, and more.
Final Thoughts on SEO Trends 2021
Search engines are constantly evolving and trying to improve their services, so you must always look for the latest SEO trends.
As mentioned, SEO is a process, not a one-time deal. And if you want to keep benefiting from it and using it to attract leads and loyal customers, you need to keep improving it.
