With the advancement in AI and other technologies, the world has forever changed. It’s vital to know these SEO trends to stay ahead of the competition. Give this a read and by the end, I’ll let you in on my SEO strategy to always be relevant in the game.

Using Google Search Generative Experience (SGE) as a quick way to the top

If you had used Chrome recently you would have come across this new layout for the search results page. Where google gives you the exact answers you’re looking for without the need to click on numerous blogs.

The section at the top is the Google Search Generative Experience (SGE). 

So does this mean the blogs you spent your time on wouldn’t get clicks anymore?

Certainly not! Google would compile the information available on the SERP to give concise answers to the users. The sources of those results are however from your blogs, and Google links those blogs it used at the side.

If anything this actually positively affects SEO as if you’re able to make your blog rank on the SGE it would definitely increase your traffic.

How do you rank on Google Search Generative Experience (SGE)?

It’s quite simple actually, you write high-quality content that directly addresses the user’s queries. You can do so by making your content conversational and using long-tail keywords in the form of quires.

Let’s say you are writing about the best buffet restaurants in Chennai. You can make the content conversational and use questions like “So what are the best buffet restaurants in Chennai to go with your family?”

If you want another example just look at what I did above I simply used the query ‘How do you rank on Google Search Generative Experience (SGE)? 🤫

Answer Engine Optimization (AEO) to go beyond SERP

We humans aren’t the only ones taking advantage of AI, Search engines do this as well. Search engines like Google and Bing use AI to answer user queries in a concise manner.

So how do you take advantage of the Answe Engine Optimization SEO trend?

You now optimize not for humans and search engines the normal way rather you optimize your content for AI tools that use NLP (natural language processing).

You can do so by creating high-value content with all the answers to a search query that you are targeting.

Understanding the user’s search intent and crafting content that concisely answers the user’s query helps take advantage of AEO. Additionally, if you focus on optimizing your content for featured snippets it increases your chance of being the first thing a user sees.

For example, if someone is searching for the best football drills to increase agility, precisely giving the simple answer that can be featured in a snippet can increase your traffic.

Video SEO to maximize traffic

Since the days of engaging social media content, our attention span and patience have declined. Let me give you an example, when I face a technical issue with my computer I google the possible fixes for it. 

So Google’s AI gives me a short answer with SGE, and there are plenty of blogs with a step-by-step guide in the SERP. Even with all this, I switch to the video tab to watch a YouTube tutorial for a fix.

Don’t get me wrong I sometimes read the blogs as well especially the ones with detailed screenshots of every step to fix my issue.

So how do you take advantage of this video SEO trend as an SEO specialist?

It’s obvious to try to make the best of both worlds. 

What I mean is, If I’m trying to rank for a keyword ‘how to send bulk messages on Whatsapp’ I would make a high-quality optimized video with an inviting thumbnail, to capture the users on the video SERP.

I would also target the same keyword and create a highly personalized blog with clear screenshots of each step so it ranks on the regular SERP. This means I get increased traffic both via my videos and Blogs.

Optimizing for voice and visual search

I recently went out for a movie with my friends, and while on the way back we were craving some shawarma. So I just pulled out my phone used the voice search and asked my Google Assistant for the ‘best Shwarma near me’.

It pulled up a list of restaurants that serve shawarma. Similarly, I have been using Visual search a lot lately, I saw a cool shoe on Instagram reels, so I took a screenshot and used Google Lens to find the name and price of the shoe online, and ordered it.

This isn’t just me 50% of consumers like using voice search to discover local businesses while 36% of people have used visual search and over half say that visual search is more important than text when shopping online.

So how do you take advantage of this SEO trend?

You can optimize your content for visual and voice searches. Enlisting and optimizing your local business on Google My Business can help increase your visibility for local searches and using a conversational tone in your blogs makes them snippet-worthy and is much more likely to be on the voice search results.

When it comes to visual searches having optimized images with alt text, optimized meta titles, and multiple high-quality images on your website can help. If you have a description along with the image it can be a huge advantage as Google displays visual search results with images and their accompanying text.

Local search SEO for maximum value for money

If you are a local business looking to make the most out of your geographical location optimizing for local searches is your best bet to reach your goals. Local search SEO is one of the most successful and cost-effective SEO trends for local businesses.

Let’s say you were out jogging, and by the end, you feel thirsty so you wanna have some fresh juice. You wouldn’t do a Google search to read blogs to find the best place for fresh juices in your city, right?

You would Simply take your phone and search for ‘fresh juice near me’ either on Chrome or on Maps. This would show a list of local fresh juice businesses near you.

As a local business, your aim would be to appear on the top of this list and it is important to make a good first impression. 

How do you do it?

Let me tell you, you first list and optimize your business on Google business profile. This would make your shop appear on local searches on Chrome and Maps. 

You then post high-quality images of your shop and products as images are the first thing a user sees on the results page. Remember appearing trustworthy is key to gaining customers, and being transparent by providing details like your contact info, menu, pricing, and open hours can help with this. Then comes the classic, customer reviews, the higher your review is the more likely that people will trust you.

Using AI to write your content drafts

When we talk about future trends I am of course bound to talk about AI. AI has revolutionized almost all industries and the marketing field is no different. With the increase in AI tools, content marketing has been made easier, at least we think so.

Tools like Gemini, and ChatGPT have made content creation a walk in the park, but is it really helping? It’s quite complicated, you see the AI tools create content with ease but they create based on the existing content on the internet.

Now what happens when everyone starts doing it you end up with repetitive content that is of no value to users.

Does it mean you shouldn’t use AI tools for content?

No completely, AI tools are great for speeding up your research and drafting a rough copy of the blog. Since Google now gives importance to human-generated content over AI you can use AI to generate a rough outline and draft and evolve your content from that. 

Adding your personal human touch to the content made by AI is the best strategy possible, In fact, that is what I do.

When I want to write a blog, I ask ChatGPT to write a rough outline for that blog title, then I look at the top competitors for that keyword. Now with this research made easy I start with my blog and get it done in no time.

first-hand experience (EEAT) in the AI era

Keeping the topic of AI and low-value content here is the next SEO trend., giving importance to first-hand experience in content.

Google’s EEAT is a content quality guideline that Google follows to determine high-quality content that would benefit the users. Imagine a mechanic who has experience with cars writing a blog titled‘ How to change your engine oil’ and the same blog written by AI or a person without any knowledge of the subject matter.

The mechanic’s blog is sure to be of more value to readers as he can share his real-world experience and advice which are important to the users. Google values such content written by experts who are trustworthy.

So how do you nail this EEAT (Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, Trustworthiness) to boost your rankings?

It’s quite simple, just check this out.

Enhancing uX based on ‘User Signals’

Here’s the thing, Google loves it when users stay for a long time on your page and interact with it, it’s a sign that users like your content and Google promotes this content through ranking.

Content with positive user signals like a long time on the page, low bounce rates and user interaction with page elements are the ones that are highly likely to win the competition for the first stop on Google SERP.

So how do you make your pages have high and positive user signals?

You make sure your page speed is optimized so users don’t click off, you can make your site Mobile friendly, and if you want a high interaction rate with your page you give the users opportunities to interact with your page. 

Adding elements like quizzes, polls, and videos provide an opportunity for the user to interact with these elements and this interaction is a key component of positive user signals.

Mobile SEO’s dominance

This is a classic if you have been following the latest digital marketing trends you would realize how important it is to optimize your website and campaigns for mobile devices. Mobile devices account for 63 percent of organic search engine visits, so it’s pretty obvious the importance it holds.

So how do you optimize your website’s SEO for mobile devices?

You pretty much follow the basics of SEO and do it right keeping in mind the mobile users. Mobile users often use cellular data so the loading speed of your webpages is a key factor. Your site must fit inside the mobile screen and it must be accessible, so making your site responsive is a must when it comes to mobile SEO.

My SEO philosophy helps you to always stay relevant

So these SEO trends evolve and change from time to time. I believe that no matter the change if you really understand the core of SEO or even digital marketing as a whole you can always stay ahead of your competition.

So here’s my secret SEO strategy, for me I look at marketing to have three people involved. The client, myself ( SEO expert), and Google (Search Engines).

So what do each of us want?

The Client wants their website to rank high on Google SERP to gain traffic which eventually turns into revenue.

I want my client’s website to rank so I get paid for it.

Google wants people to stay on their search engine and they want to keep them engaged with quality content.

As a marketer when you address the needs of Google your needs will automatically be met. Google wants people to keep using their search engine and have a good experience with it. 

Let’s say someone searches for ‘how to make a cake?’. Google wants the most engaging content that is useful to its users, so it promotes the most relevant and useful article to the top of the SERP. What Google needs is quality content that gives a good user experience and value to its users.

What do I and my client need?

To rank on Google, if I just focus on helping people with high-quality content both the user’s and Google’s needs are met. A successful SEO strategy is a win-win situation for everybody.

If you look at all the trends above they have this commonality of Google trying to make sure their users get the maximum value for their time. So, remembering this can help you stay relevant forever in this game.

Choose your SEO trend, implement it, and get the job done!

So what now? I have told you about the latest SEO trends and also let you in on my secret to always stay relevant in this SEO world. It’s now up to you, to choose the trend and strategy that works best in your situation, implement it with precision, monitor for changes, optimize your strategies, and watch your hard work pay off.

Being clear, and simple is always the best when it comes to SEO, remember that and good luck!