I'm not very sure about you, but when I search for something online, I rarely go beyond the first page to find results. Most of the time, if I don't see what I'm looking for on the first page, I refine my search term and then search again.
The world wants everything quickly. Searching for things in a ton of places is such a pain. So going on to page two, three, four and beyond doesn't happen too often. (Now, read my title again!)
Years back, marketers were able to tweak websites in a way that they would jump onto Page 1 without much effort, but over the years, Google has changed its algorithm and this has become impossible. Unfortunately, most people (and companies) don't really know what search engine optimization is or how to optimize their website to rank on Page 1 and so they pay an arm and leg for someone to do it.
Yes, optimizing your website takes a good amount of time and effort, but by following these practices, you will be able to see your website on Page 1 anytime soon.
1. Optimization of meta tags like Meta title, Meta description, Meta Keywords etc.
2. Implementation of SEO-friendly URLs
3. Image optimization - Alt tags, Title tags etc.
4. 100% original content that creates a value for users.
5. Inbound and Outbound Backlinking
6. Increase the Domain Authority (DA) and Page Authority (PA) of your website
7. Implementation of semantic markup
8. H tag optimization
9. Breadcrumb Navigation
10. W3 Validation
11. Website audition to get rid of crawl errors.
And, there are a lot of tasks involved to rank your site on the first page and there is a junk of articles and marketers out there to talk about it.
But, this will never rank your website on the 1st page in the future:
One of the most fast-paced industries right now is SEO which is constantly evolving and it's one of the reasons why I love it so much. While thinking about what the future holds for SEO, the results can be both exciting and frightening.
You read it right. Yes, Artificial intelligence (AI) is not going anywhere and it will create a significant impact on all things marketing. We have already been experiencing the effects of AI in search because of Google's recent algorithm update - RankBrain. RankBrain won't just process the individual word of the query, rather it will understand what users actually want through machine learning and give better results.
So what ranks your website on page 1 in the future?
May the future be SERPless. (SERP - Search Engine Rank Page, literally what we are talking from the beginning - the First page of Google). Google co-founder, Sergey Brin, said in 2013: "My vision when we started Google 15 years ago was that eventually, you wouldn't have to have a search query at all". So, I can't say how exactly the future of search is going to be, but I can assure you by decoding all these technological advancements that "It's not about the words being typed into the search box. It's more about the person and their intentions behind it. Let's focus more on the people behind the searches and less on the searches themselves. Because the future of search is 'CONTEXT'"
Context is into the search already:
Google has been involved in the world of context more and more. Say, for example, Google scans our emails for various information like flight details and notifies us if the flight is delayed or cancelled. Likewise, it is providing us with the personalized search results now, by using our search history, social activity, online behaviour, location, and various other factors, however, limited to activity within Google products.
Contextual understanding is everywhere
When I say about context, limiting it to search and any other app alone is a blunder. We need to think a step further. The possibilities are endless. It's just about mixing and matching permissions across apps and having one interface, smart enough to do that. The future of search can be an integration across all devices and Internet of Things. Search engines are moving ahead to being omnipresent.
What does this mean for search marketers?
As I said already, context is moving into everything. With a single tap, we can integrate the search into any device across anything. Hence, don't just concentrate on Google. There are already players in the search market. Amazon Alexa, Smart Watches, Facebook Search and Apple Spotlight. Who knows, these platforms will integrate a search using AI. Think about them and optimize the content for all types of search.
Let me repeat again - The future of search is 'CONTEXT'. Let's focus on the people behind the searches and less on the searches themselves.
And, yes the title is inspired from the famous quote said by unknown and I would like to give a credit to him.