In some ways 2015 was a big year for the search engine optimization (SEO) field and in others it was less than exciting. In big news, the move to mobile happened. And in the not-so-big news, a solid SEO foundation is still vital. So, let’s take a big picture look at a summary of SEO trends in 2015.
- Mobile – This was supposed to be a huge move and it did have an impact on websites and the world of SEO, but it was not nearly as earth-shaking as predicted.
- More about mobile – While user experience has been a Google focus for a while, they’ve finally forced us to realize that the real way to SEO in mobile is through the user experience.
- Keywords – Will we ever stop talking about how important it is to have a good keyword foundation and understanding? Nope!
- Establish a good SEO foundation – Keywords, title tags, meta descriptions, and alt attributes all need to be in place. Then review that foundation every year to two to check relevance.
- SEO is Social – The worlds of SEO and social have been bumping into each other for quite some time and the smart companies are now finding a way to merge them and use them together for great benefit.
- Fine tune your SEO – for specific products, campaigns and audiences, and avoid broad reach targeting.
- It’s all about the ROI – The real goal of good SEO is improving your ROI, which means that this concept has to be in the forefront when creating an SEO plan.
- Use SEO Analytics – Learn more about how SEO analytics work or use an outside firm that will help you make analytics a useful tool.
- Google #1 Does Not Exist – In the past, ranking #1 on Google was the end-all/be-all. Now searches are specialized and regionalized so being #1 changes from person to person and place to place.
- Stay Away from Big Promises – As always, but it bears repeating, stay away from any company that offers too much in the realm of SEO. SEO is a tool that helps a company, it is not a miracle.
So our summary of SEO in 2015 teaches us that SEO is becoming more integral to all marketing efforts and is an ongoing process, not a one-hit-wonder. We expect to see that trend continue and the line between SEO and other fields get a bit more blurred in the future. Stay tuned in 2016 for more Trend Updates and SEO How-Tos!
