Search engine optimization (SEO) evolves quickly. One moment there’s a new SEO trending topic or practice, and the next, it disappears. In essence, whatever worked in the past to boost your site’s search ranking might not get you through this year.
Let’s face it: you must stay up-to-date with the latest emerging SEO trends. Though it can be a challenge, it’s worth the effort. Some sobering SEO statistics reveal that 28% of organic searches convert, leading to customers purchasing a product or service.
If you’re trying to promote your content or run a business, earning a top spot in the search ranking is pivotal to your success. But the competition is aggressive for those top rankings. That’s why figuring out the biggest SEO trends to focus on will gain you an edge.
So, what are some of the SEO trends you should focus on today?
1. Core Web Vitals Optimization
Let’s begin with Core Web Vitals optimization. In 2021, Google officially announced the page experience update. This algorithm integrates multiple Core Web Vitals performance metrics into Google’s “page experience.”
For the uninitiated, Core Web Vitals measure and evaluate your site’s visual stability, responsiveness, and speed. At the same time, Google’s page experience is a set of metrics that measure how users interact with web pages on your site.
So which are these so-called Core Web Vitals performance metrics?
- Largest Contentful Paint (LCP). This user-centric metric represents how quickly the content on your web page loads. More specifically, LCP measures the loading time of your website’s most significant visual element.
- First Input Delay (FID). This essential metric measures the first time users interact with the website you’ve built. Usually, FID measures when users tap a button, use a JavaScript-powered control or click a link and more-related actions.
- Cumulative Layout Shift (CLS). The CLS metric measures your website’s visual stability. It also measures how content moves around on your web page after rendering. The lower the CLS score, the better performance of your site.
Improve Core Web Vitals metrics across your web pages to secure a top spot on the search engine results pages (SERPs). You may require the services of a skilled web developer to help you execute these metrics.
Alternatively, use free tools (think Google Search Console and PageSpeed Insights) to identify where your website’s web pages may need some quick improvement.
Google Search Console
A Google Search Console account comes with an “experience” feature.
This feature lets you identify which web pages meet your Core Web Vitals requirements. Best of all, it also details (in list form) pertinent issues affecting your site’s web pages.
PageSpeed Insights
Alongside the Core Web Vitals, the PageSpeed Insights report reveals your web pages’ performance when users interact with them.
If you’re an SEO service provider or SEO agency, it’s essential to include Core Web Vitals optimization and page experience in your service offers.
2. People Also Ask Feature
Want your content to gain more visibility at the top of the SERPs? Use the coveted Google’s “People also ask” feature. With its prominent position (right above the search results pages), everyone jostles to get their content ranking in this feature.
The best way to get your content featured in Google’s “People also ask” is to provide quick and precise answers to common questions in your content.
Where to find the questions? Look for long-tail question keywords among your audience and then answer them in your H2s and H3s, as well as in the frequently asked questions (FAQs) section.
But how do you find these question keywords?
Consider using a reliable keyword tool like Answer The Public to find the best SEO trending target keywords. Or better, look to the SERPs for relevant questions to answer.
3. Keyword Clusters
Keyword research is the mainstay of SEO and, of course, the first step of any SEO campaign. However, effective keyword targeting has proved a complex process thanks to the advancement of Google’s natural language processing (NLP) technology.
You no longer need to optimize your blog posts and landing pages for a single keyword target because Google will do that for you, anyway. The all-knowing, almighty search engine ranks landing pages for multiple keywords every day.
So what you should focus on is keyword clustering instead — a more advanced keyword strategy that levels up your SEO content creation strategy. For context, keyword clustering involves taking similar, relevant keywords and clustering them into groups.
Let’s say your main keyword is “interview scheduling software.” So you decide to run it through a keyword research tool, and bam! Out comes a list of tens and hundreds of long-tail keyword ideas that spin your head.
If you decide to rank for the main keyword, you may limit your market share (assuming you’re trying to sell the interview scheduling software as a service).
But if you get your web page ranking for the multiple long-tail keywords related to your main keyword, your web page will rank higher on the SERPs and increase your traffic.
Managing keywords, creating content outlines, and tracking their performance can be a challenging task. Using SEO project management tools can help you ease your work.
4. Artificial Intelligence Content Tools
Another SEO trend that continues to gain massive traction is AI-generated SEO content. Artificial intelligence helps you create more SEO content. And best of all, it also ensures your content is highly optimized for search engines.
Last year, a machine learning model, GPT-3 (or the third-generation Generative Pre-trained Transformer), made a public debut through OpenAI — giving rise to other AI-assisted SEO content tools such as Jarvis, Headline, CopyAi, and more.
These tools come in handy when generating SEO trending topics, paragraphs, meta tags, titles, and even entire articles with little to no human effort. However, you still need to evaluate and edit the AI-generated content for originality and quality.
Here’s an example of AI content on SearchAtlas: a blog content generation tool.
Some of the best ways to utilize an AI-generating content tool include:
- Generating outlines/first drafts. Use AI content tools as a starting point to generate first drafts to save you time and produce optimized content quickly.
- Generating meta tags. AI copywriting tools can instantly help you generate boatloads of meta descriptions and unique page titles.
- Generating titles/topics. Want to brainstorm ideas faster for your content? An AI tool will help you generate topics and titles for your posts.
Avoid over-relying on robots (AI tools give themselves away as robots) to create your content. That said, AI-generated content should be a starting point for anyone who wants to improve their SEO content strategy.
5. Content Optimization Tools
Alongside AI-generating SEO tools, leverage the power of content optimization tools. They can help you create high-quality content that ranks higher in SERPs. And the best part is that they use similar NLP algorithms as Google’s.
With a content optimization tool, you can easily find relevant SEO trending keywords, synonyms, subtopics, and even common questions that search engines look out for when running digital marketing campaigns.
When you use a reliable content optimization tool, expect an immediate impact on your total keywords and higher ranking on the SERPs.
6. Structured Microdata and Rich Featured Snippets
Want to elevate your SEO performance this year? Create more structured data and rich snippets in your web pages. Or, better, add schema markups on your web pages.
A schema markup (read: structured data) is a language that helps search engines like Google to read and understand the content on your site’s web pages.
This language or a vocabulary semantic of data (code) enables your content to appear on SERPs as clickable yet attractive rich snippets.
Having more structured data helps users find relevant content that they’re currently searching for on your web pages. And Google loves structured data in rich snippets because they provide a better user experience.
Every year, Google supports new schema markups — all the more reason to include them in your web pages, as this trend won’t go out of fashion anytime soon.
Most marketers don’t leverage schema markups. And yet, through them, they can gain a competitive edge over their competition. Google’s structured data markup (that Google search supports) can help you find relevant schema markups for your site’s content.
7. Create Longer Content to Improve SERPs
Google appreciates quality content and even ranks it higher on the SERPs. Please note that content length doesn’t affect content ranking. However, there’s a strong link between longer content and better Google ranking, as revealed in a study by SerpIQ.
(The graph below shows the top ten results in search queries by content length.)
To write long-form content, you have to scratch the surface for depth, do some excellent analysis, including original research, and more. Google is after these things.
Why? Because longer content displays the expertise, authoritativeness, and trustworthiness (E-A-T) signals that Google associates with high quality. Google associates the E-A-T principle (see below) with high-quality content:
- In-depth content
- Original research and analysis
- Expert authorship
- Sourcing
Remember, with each update, Google’s NLP algorithms will continue recognizing high-quality content. Make sure to provide detailed information on your target keywords. And, odds are, your keywords will rank higher — same for your position in the SERPs.
8. Video SEO Strategy
Video SEO strategy is an exploding SEO trend (specifically on YouTube).
YouTube says more users spend long hours on the platform than ever before. However, (and this is bad news) as YouTube continually grows and scales its business, the platform is becoming more competitive and highly overcrowded.
So for your video content to get found on YouTube, ensure you optimize it well. This year, work toward enhancing video SEO optimization. It’s the in-thing.
You might be wondering: how can I optimize my videos for SEO?
Like the “normal” SEO, find relevant video keywords to avoid zero-click searches. You can easily find relevant keywords by using YouTube’s autocomplete feature.
Do you have a specific video topic in mind? Great. The next step is to type that topic into YouTube’s search field.
You’ll soon have a healthy list of suggested keywords based on what users currently search on YouTube. So before you create your video, follow these steps. And make sure Google and YouTube will figure out what your video’s main topic is all about.
When you pair this strategy with creative editing using the right software to increase watch time on your videos, you’ll see a real difference in the success of your channel.
9. Search Engine Optimization
Although search engine technology improves with each Google algorithm update, the core principles of SEO remain unchanged. To reap more success this year (and improve your site’s web pages), ensure to focus on these search engine optimization basics:
- Enhance content quality. Create accurate, relevant, original, and in-depth posts on SEO trending keywords targeting a specific audience.
- Improve on-page SEO. Optimize your body text, images, header tags, meta descriptions, and meta titles for Google to understand the content.
- Get high-quality backlinks. You can get high-quality backlinks from other authoritative sites through public relations, guest blogging, and content marketing.
- Create responsive web pages. Ensure you create responsive web pages with fast load speeds using a high-quality user interface (UI) and user experience (UX). Index all the web pages correctly.
- Industry-specific ranking factors. Align your content with specific ranking factors, whether you’re creating content for health care, legal services, credit lending, local businesses, or other related services.
Set up an SEO audit if your website needs to be optimized to rank on Google. It’s the first step to creating an implementation plan with measurable SEO results.
10. Search Intent
Google’s search intent is now a top priority. This piece of news means one thing: Google can bring up search results that perfectly match your search intent.
Search intent (also known as user intent) refers to the results a Google user receives when they type a query into the search engine. The better your content matches a user’s search intent, the higher your optimized content ranks on the SERPs.
Search intent comes in four distinct types:
1. Informational Intent.
Someone with an informational intent is looking for information about a topic or question.
For example, Google understands that someone looking for information about tomato sauce is most likely looking for tomato recipes.
2. Navigational Intent.
Someone with a navigational intent is searching for a specific website. Chances are, they already know where they want to go.
For example, someone searching for search terms like Twitter, Facebook, or Instagram wants to find their way to those websites and nowhere else.
3. Transactional Intent.
Someone with a transactional intent is in a buying mode. Most likely, the individual knows what they want to buy already.
They’re just looking for a place to buy from. Or get to the product page right away and buy what they have in mind.
4. Commercial Intent.
Someone with a commercial intent is looking for a product or service but is still deciding the best solution. In other words, they’re still weighing up their options on what to buy.
Knowing about search intent is half the battle. Ensure your site’s pages align with the right search intent. That way, you won’t struggle to rank for a specific keyword. The goal of creating quality content around search intent is to steer clear of keyword stuffing.
There are plenty of other top SEO trends (such as voice search, passage indexing, high-quality backlinks, etc.), but the cream always rises to the top. These top ten SEO trending topics can help your team save precious time and produce more impactful SEO results.
