We have seen how, in the SEO world (Search Engine Optimization), many webmasters and SEO professionals have passed extremely critical but also successful moments. Google, the world’s largest search engine, continues to innovate and improve its algorithm so that it is less and less artificial and more similar to a human. Therefore, in this post, you can see the central SEO trends in 2020.

These changes inevitably cause SEO strategy changes, traffic drops, and increases and, most importantly, a need for constant attention by SEO professionals.

The User Experience, Pillar of an SEO Strategy

The first of our SEO trends is the user experience, which remains one of the most significant objectives that Google pursues. Offering users the content they are looking for, without distractions and in the most original and fastest way possible, has always been their primary objective. Websites that meet the requirements and guidelines of Google, gain in terms of SEO positioning in the organic rankings.

Search Intent

The SEO expert and consultant, Jayson Lux, states, “The importance of search intent is going to be substantially greater. Google will understand more clearly if a page responds or not to the search user’s objective.” According to Lux, the optimization of content focused on search intention is vital to rank any project.

“Rich data is increasingly more vital, and it will be reflected in SERPs, occupying the zero position, and also the first results,” he adds.

He continues talking about SERPs and how knowing very precisely the role that the web plays in search engines. Their goal is to provide the best value for the spaces it lends.

We must continue working on the paradigm shift that involves not only trying to position by a keyword to analyze the SERPs and check what Google interprets the user needs.

Voice search will continue to be an SEO trend that, as in previous years, will have a lot of weight, and with the current trajectory, it will go further. The value and relevancy of referring domains will be critical in the popularity and off-page part of a project.

Attention to Loading Speed

Lux states that in 2020, Google will continue to place particular emphasis on the loading speed of websites. In fact, it has even recently included a report dedicated to this topic in its Search Console tool. Also, they have announced that they are studying slow lagging websites and letting users know about it in Google Chrome.

Other factors that will continue to have an impact in 2020 SEO Trends are tracking and indexing. For medium to large-sized sites, it is essential to optimize size, since they are directly related to the resources that Google has to allocate and, therefore, optimize internally.

We have to choose well the URLs on our website; we want the bot to track so as not to waste the resources that Google gives us.

Voice Searches

2020 presents us with significant challenges in SEO and professionals who design and manage digital marketing and paid media (PPC) strategies. Focus on the rise of voice searches and the increase in the consumption of visual multimedia pieces, and the opportunity it offers to us to create more visual marketing campaigns.

There are more and more voice searches, either directly from the search engine or from smart speakers like Echo or Google Home. This change and trend in search habits require that campaigns be adapted to more semantic phrases and the use of longtail keywords. Also, adding a conversational tone in-text ads.

The increasingly substantial intrusion of voice assistants is causing brands to adapt content to search micro-moments that users perform to these attendees to gain more visibility.

Here you have to work hard on the simple question-answer format with short phrases. Work longtail keywords and local searches.

Google Discover

Google Discover is an excellent source of organic traffic. It is an exclusive mobile feature that adds content to the user’s feeds or to the application according to the user’s interests or browsing. How to appear in Google Discover, it is essential to have an AMP version (although it is not mandatory) and manage Google News for Publisher.

AMP Stories

AMP is a new Google format that will gain a lot of weight throughout 2020. The idea is similar to stories on Instagram or Facebook but in Google search results. Now it is in the beta phase, and you have to request to enter the experimental program and adopt AMP technology.

More Multimedia Content

Marketing is increasingly visual. As the quality of mobile screens improves, the use and consumption of multimedia and animated pieces will increase (videos, infographics, animated images, etc.). Google has access to information regarding the method that will allow optimizing display campaigns. Hence, an increase in the investment in display campaigns and the offer at a cost per conversion model.

New BERT Algorithm

For years, Google has been using learning algorithms to improve the experience for its users with search and help to avoid websites full of keywords. Now, this will be more important than ever with the latest Google algorithm called BERT.

Google has three pillars: first is Neural Matching, which discovers the meaning of the query. The second is RankBrain, which adjusts the SERP based on the data collected on user behavior. The third, BERT, recently implemented, is the algorithm used to analyze the structure of a search to better understand the context in which the keywords are used.

Are you ready to implement all these SEO trends? If you want to introduce SEO into your Digital Marketing plan and increase your visibility and control, the organic positioning in search engines by the professionals who helped create these trends. Call us at Lux Inbound.