Key SEO Trends for 2024
#1 Target high-search-volume, low-competition keywords
The competition for keywords has reached extremely high levels in many areas. New or under-optimized websites may struggle to rank for popular keywords. Targeting high-search-volume, low-competition keywords can help sites quickly attract traffic from Google. When conducting keyword research, start by finding keywords related to your target terms with high search volumes but low competition, and focus on those on your site.
#2 Align content with user intent
Google considers user intent one of the main ranking factors. Aligning your site’s content and pages with user intent will help those pages rank higher in Google search results. User intent refers to the goal behind a user’s search query, what they want to see, and the type of content they expect. For instance, users searching for "iPhone 15" are likely looking to buy, not read blog posts. Therefore, your page should include information on product features, prices, financing options, and delivery.
#3 Optimize your crawl budget
The crawl budget is one of the most important ranking factors for Google. Every website has a crawl budget, which refers to the number of pages Googlebot can crawl and index. Ensuring that this budget is used efficiently is key to your site’s performance. If your site has many 404 errors, duplicate pages, or pages that are hard for Googlebot to find, you’re wasting crawl budget and reducing your overall SEO potential. Regularly clean up broken URLs, improve site structure, and make all pages accessible to Googlebot.
#4 Focus on Google E-E-A-T factors
Google’s E-E-A-T factors (Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, and Trustworthiness) play a critical role in how your site is perceived by Google as a reliable and helpful resource. While E-E-A-T is not a direct ranking factor, it significantly impacts the overall SEO performance of your website. To optimize for E-E-A-T, demonstrate that your business is credible, highlight expert authorship, and improve the quality of your website’s content. Adding customer testimonials, certifications, and accreditation can boost your E-E-A-T score.
#5 Local SEO
Local SEO continues to be a key SEO strategy. The rise in competition has driven more businesses to focus on local search queries. Optimizing your site for local SEO can significantly improve its visibility in Google’s local search results, where competition is often less intense. To optimize for local SEO, incorporate geographic headings, local keywords, and Schema markup. Additionally, optimizing your Google My Business account will further enhance your local SEO strategy.
#6 Updating old content
Many overlook the importance of updating old content in SEO. However, regularly refreshing your content helps improve the SEO performance of your site. By adding new keywords, phrases, and images to content published more than six months ago, you can improve its performance in Google search results. Enhancing existing paragraphs and updating statistics can also lead to better rankings.
#7 Using images and videos
Incorporating relevant images and videos into your site’s content helps enrich the user experience. This trend has gained popularity in recent years, as it has been proven to positively impact SEO performance. To enhance your content, include high-quality images and videos where appropriate.
#8 Ensuring mobile compatibility
Ensuring that your site is mobile-friendly remains one of the most crucial ranking factors in SEO. For several years, Google has assessed websites based on their mobile performance. If your site is not optimized for mobile devices, loads slowly, or has errors in the mobile version, this can directly impact your SEO rankings.
How to Leverage SEO Trends?
SEO trends change each year. Staying up-to-date with these trends and adapting your SEO strategy accordingly is key to maintaining strong SEO performance. It’s important to analyze websites within and outside your industry to understand what SEO strategies they are employing. Additionally, reading up on SEO blogs, including ours, can help you stay informed and learn how to apply these trends effectively.
