Dominating the web isn’t easy anymore, not only because of the competition but because the SEO tactics that used to work before have drastically changed in the last few years. Gone are the days when just stuffing keywords in the content used to help rank up on Google. Surprisingly, many of the SEO tips that used to work until a year ago are obsolete now. The key is to keep up with the pace at which the SEO trends are changing. One of the latest SEO techniques that have been gaining consistent results is using guest posting services. In this ever-changing domain, it becomes very important for you to have all the latest knowledge related to SEO. If not done properly, it can even backfire ultimately, deteriorating your ranking.

In this article, we will discuss some of the SEO 2020 trends that seem to be taking over the industry and changing industry standards as we know it. 

Authority Link-Building

Link Building

Gone are the days when spamming links in private blog networks and directories used to rank the website up in SERPs. Google has changed its algorithm dramatically in the last few years to bring relevant and deserving results to its users. The domain and page authority that links back to you matters, and that’s why having a few backlinks on high authority online publications and blogs is better than tons of irrelevant links on petty directories and new blogs. Moreover, the theme of the blog that links back to you must be relevant and related. You can’t have an automotive website link back to you when you deal with female clothing. It makes no sense to the readers, and Google may even penalize such spamming techniques. Using guest posting services can help you get backlinks from high-authority blogs with the content that resonates with your target audience.

Top Ranking Isn’t Enough

For years, companies trying to make their mark online have been fighting for the top spot on search engine rankings. The first page is ridden with so many things like snippets, infoboxes, sponsored ads, and so on, that the top organic spot might not be rewarded as expected. That said, higher rankings still matter, but the focus should be equally concentrated on higher click-through rates. Trying out different page titles, headlines, keyword phrases, and impactful meta descriptions would help make your site more clickable on the search results. Moreover, using Google Adwords and Facebook Ads can give you an in-depth view of what would work and what wouldn’t. 

Write for Your Audience

Previously, SEO content was all about keywords and impressing the search engine crawlers. The companies used to focus on search engines first and then the readers. Google has caught up with this malpractice to ensure that websites offer value to readers first. The theme for SEO has now changed to “Quality over Quantity.” Your content needs to stand out from what is already available in the market to offer value to the readers. Whether you are using blogger outreach service or guest post outreach services for backlinks, content is an integral part of the exchange. Make sure the content is appealing and authoritative. Content that is full of fluff and tons of keywords won’t work anymore. In short, impress your readers, and Google will be impressed automatically. 

Mobile First

Almost half of the searches conducted online are through mobile phones. It was only natural for Google to align its algorithm and give importance to mobile-first indexing. Now, websites have to be mobile-friendly as well if they want to rank higher. Google is focusing on providing the readers with a seamless experience on their mobile phones, and if your site isn’t responsive or performing poorly on mobile phones, brace yourself for the demotion in rankings. The determining factors are page loading speed, readability, and navigability on mobile phones. More than 87 percent of internet users use their mobile phones for browsing online, and 43 percent of all product research is conducted online by consumers. Not only that, more than 40 percent of all online sales happen through mobile phones. If your business/portfolio website is not mobile-friendly, it will lose its edge to the competition. 

Voice Search 

Voice Search

Voice search has gained popularity in recent years, primarily due to the mobile-first indexing policy of Google. Just like more and more people are using their mobile phones for browsing online, more people are shifting to voice search as well. Using phones while driving and multitasking are common, and that is where voice search plays an active role. It is one of the SEO 2020 trends that would continue to remain relevant in the years to come. You have to create content that is conducive for the voice search because people don’t do voice searches with the same words as they type when searching. Even today, 15 percent of all search queries posted on Google is never asked before. Voice search optimization of your website would help you develop content that contains words that users might ask when conducting a voice search. 

Local SEO

Local SEO

While it is natural for companies to reap the benefits that the internet has to offer to reach out to global clients, one should not completely discard local SEO. Around 46 percent of the search queries online are local searches. Local SEO would help the company show up in the map pack and search results when a potential customer nearby makes a related search query. Local SEO additionally helps to bring in qualified leads for the business and increases the revenue drastically. It is a useful SEO tip that has been used by online marketing consultants and companies for a while now and would continue to trend going forward. 

Read More: Top 5 SEO Tips for Blogging Content

Visual Search

Just like voice search, one of the SEO 2020 trends is visual search. Google Lens has been used nearly one billion times since its launch, and Pinterest handles more than 600 million queries of visual searches monthly. Even though it is not as popular as voice or type search methods, it is gradually picking up pace. Google Lens has progressively developed since the time it was launched and can recognize close to one billion objects today. The way to optimize visual search on your site is to use high-quality images on your site and ensure each one has descriptive text and alt text. Moreover, featuring the image on the top of the page is considered to gain more traction. 

Long and In-Depth Content

The popularity of long-form blogs has already sky-rocketed in the SEO world. Don’t post half-hearted content on your website anymore for the sake of posting it. The content you post should go deep into the topic to cover everything there is on the subject and must justify its title while providing readers with accurate answers to the questions they have in mind. Quality and well-researched content are rewarded by the readers, and Google pulls up what users prefer. 

The above-mentioned information is what you can call your SEO guide for 2020. Following the trends mentioned here would help you keep up with the fast pace of changing dynamics in the SEO world. The key is to ensure that you keep a close watch on the latest SEO trends to know what needs to be done to maximize ROI from your SEO campaign. Irrespective of the SEO practices and trends you follow and implement, the key is to emphasize quality over quantity and get the desired results. 

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