The Most Popular SEO trends of 2021
Despite the fact that the boom in social networks a little over a decade ago made many think that the scenario was going to change, search engines remain the most important battlefield in terms of driving traffic to a website. At first glance, Google may not have changed much since it was born. It is still a white box under the logo and above the button “search Google” and “I’m going to be lucky.” However, the reality is that everything has changed a lot, so today we want to talk about SEO trends for 2021.
Last October, Google launched its new search algorithm, BERT. This was a replacement of BrainRank, which had governed online searches for almost five years, and able to better understand the context of each question.
Voice Search
Google Assistant, Alexa, or Bixby (Samsung’s virtual assistant) have greater prominence every day, especially in new product categories such as smart speakers, wireless headphones, or even smartwatches, with which voice is the most practical way to interact. Most of us speak in a very different way than we write, and that means that long sentences and natural language are going to become more important, almost at the level of the keywords that until now dominated the SEO world. This also means that long-tail searches will become even more important.
Featured Snippets
Surely you have found yourself performing certain searches and the first thing Google shows you is a highlighted box with a fragment of a blog or article that answers the specific question you have asked in the search. They are called ‘featured snippets’ and seek to give a clear and concise answer quickly and comfortably, without the user even having to enter the web (something that can actually go against the web, but who sets the rules here is Google). Achieving this privileged position requires playing well with the H1, H2, and H3 headings, as well as answering very specific questions easily.
EAT Formula
The great secret of Google’s success is that it has been the search engine with the best-known way of offering its users what they are looking for. The Mountain Viewers are going to redouble their bet on what they call the ‘EAT formula,’ which means Expertise, Authority, and Trustworthiness (experience, authority, and trust). Actually, it is a new way of calling something that Google has always valued in its positioning. This includes the quality of the content (length without being overloaded with keywords), online reputation (if you are linked from other websites), and trust (security and loading speed of your website). The novelty, in this case, is that Google will also use artificial intelligence to determine whether a page solves a user’s question.
Local SEO
Talking about mobile-first is something very 2014, but it does not stop being important in 2020 or 2021, especially if your business is a physical place. The vast majority of local searches such as Local SEO Austin, for example, are carried out from a smartphone and, what is more, 76% of those who conduct those searches will often visit the premises within the next 24 hours, making a purchase in 28% of cases. In these cases, it is essential to have ‘Google My Business’ work well, in addition to including keywords such as your city or even the neighborhood in the SEO of your website.
Conclusion
These new SEO trends do not make the old ones lose importance and so be very careful about the loading speed of your page. Make sure that you have all the security certificates and take advantage of the AMP format, taking care of the user experience as much as possible. For help with your SEO, you can hire an agency like MOTOZA SEO.
