Search Engine Optimisation has been an important strategy implemented by many businesses and websites throughout the history of the internet.
This is the process of helping a website appear in search engine results and this task requires constant education on the topic as well as regular updating and refreshing. But with all of work required to stay up-to-date, as well as staying on top of the ever-changing search algorithms, is it worth it?
This article will explore why SEO is still important in 2018 and strategies that can be used to easily stay ahead of the game.
Search engines are the way of the internet
In 2017, white pages are a thing of the past and search engines are the main way people find businesses and answers to questions. Internet searches are used to find quite literally anything and everything.
People no longer go to their grandparents to ask about the war, they simply Google it. Even education systems opt for using web based journals rather than physical books. So why is this important?
Well if everyone is using search engines to find what they want, then it is really important to show up in these searches. To completely give up on search rankings in 2018 could mean having less visibility, potentially getting left behind and allowing competitors to take your search engine spot.
Keywords are crucial
While things are changing when it comes to SEO, relevant and natural keywords are still crucial. Search engines now know when a keyword has been overused in order to attract visibility, so it is important to use them wisely.
Tools like a keyword planner can still be used, and words can be added to titles, headlines and the body of the text, just as long as they don’t sound too forced and read naturally.
As keywords still make a significant difference in search engine visibility, it can be concluded that older search engine stratagems can still be important in 2018.
Long-tail keywords are now in
While keywords are still important, in the past simple words such as ‘health’ were enough. In 2018 long-tail keywords will be trending.
It is important to imagine what someone might be typing into a Google search, such as ‘improving thyroid health naturally’ rather than ‘health’ or even ‘thyroid heal’.
While implementing long-tail keywords does require a little more time and effort, it is known to help improve search engine visibility.
Using location, videos, and images can still help: When creating a webpage, article or blog post, adding a location, video or image can help with both user engagement and search rankings.
Adding a location to a post in the form of a map or with keywords is still an easy way show up on location-based web searches e.g. ‘health companies in Melbourne’. Furthermore, adding relevant images and videos also help improve visibility.
Giving these images and videos carefully selected tags and keywords helps improve your ranking in a natural way. Mixing it all together in the form of a blog post is a great way to stay up-to-date with SEO in 2018.
A written post could include a mix of natural keywords and long-tail keywords, a relevant image and a short video version of the post. Again, a map of the posts location or adding the location into the keywords and tags is super easy and is a strategy that still works to this day.
Mobile friendly is the way of the future
Search engines know that most people use their mobile for everything. Most people have their phone by their side 24 hours a day and it is wise to design internet marketing strategies around this.
A common SEO stratagem is to help a website become more mobile friendly by ensuring that images and text are still visible when a mobile device is used. Many websites include the option to edit the desktop version of a website as well as a tablet version and a mobile version.
It would appear to be wise to ensure that all three versions of a website are looking great to gain the best visibility. It is also important that a website is able to load on all platforms.
Including lots of videos, GIFS and animations may cause a website to not load on a mobile, so it is imperative to make sure that all websites are able to be used easily on a mobile as well as a tablet and desktop.
Find a SEO company
In order to reduce “black hat” techniques such as spam, Google is constantly redesigning it’s algorithms to make sure that the best way to increase rankings is to have a website relevant to searches.
Achieving this can require a lot of time, knowledge and work. Rather than giving up entirely it could be a good idea to reach out to a fresh and up-to-date consultant.
A good company will help ensure that tags on a website are utilised correctly, that relevant web links are used, ensure that your website is mobile friendly and more.
While search engines can seem more overwhelming than ever, it is still important to stay on top of them and finding a great SEO company can be an easy way to do this.
Overall it can be seen that search engines do not make it easy for a website to improve its visibility. But this doesn’t mean that marketing a website or business with SEO should cease completely and it certainly doesn’t mean that the techniques aren’t important.
As discussed, search engines are the main way modern day people seek information, keywords play a huge part in search rankings and long-tail keywords perform even better.
Location services, images, and videos still play their part and mobile friendly strategies are an up and coming trend.
As it is clear that there are still some old strategies that can be used, and new ones emerging, it would be wise to seek out the help of a professional to help implement those strategies. This way, websites and businesses can still stay up to date and relevant with their SEO in 2018.
