SEO has changed in the past 10 years or so; back in the day, it was enough if we had relevant keywords, if we had many links (and backlinks) on the site and naturally if people shared our content around.
2017 is going to be different, because it focuses more about the user experience, where apps play a super crucial part as more and more people opt for a mobile solution, hence the success of article formats such as AMP for mobile web.
Mobile
Indexing of apps correctly for discovery is growing as people spend most of their time on their mobiles, meaning that a smart marketer who has recently developed an app should make sure one follows the right rules for success.
AMP will stay for keeps if Google would know how to leverage its power and keep the fire burning here, which for the time being happens as Google gives way to AMP over any other format for mobile web.
Social and eCommerce
Social is increasingly becoming a rival to traditional eCommerce (as covered on our latest blogpost), as giants such as Facebook, Google and Pinterest are showing more and more options for consumers to buy through their new marketplaces, based on the user’s personal taste which if not observed and act on, could be the demise of known eCommerce titans.
AI and SEO
Backlinks still play a vital role in a site’s discovery and rank factor, but it is a mix of good linking, good content and mobile friendliness that helps a site gain the proper exposure it desperately needs.
Keywords are becoming secondary as the Google algorithm now converts content into vectors, looking for relevant structures as opposed to relevant keywords in showing first on search results.
It is more work for the SEO marketer, no doubt, but it’s worth it in the long run as the user experience triumphs over all.