We have started a new year and a new decade. The beginning of a year is a great time for personal and business reinvention, including the realm of digital marketing. Technology changes rapidly and the world changes with it. That is a principle that you need to keep in mind whenever you’re trying to determine what’s going to change in your industry.
This is important because knowing what’s going to be different in your industry is going to allow you to prepare for change rather than dread a disaster. After all, there isn’t much you can do other than move forward and face the challenges that the future holds because these challenges are also opportunities. So, with that said, what are a few SEO mistakes you need to avoid at all costs this year?
Still Not Having A Mobile-Friendly Website
A website that still isn’t optimized for mobile viewing in 2020 isn’t just going to miss out on a lot of traffic. It’s also going to be penalized because of how Google prioritizes user experience. When a website is unable to make things convenient for mobile viewing, it hurts user experience and this also means that a visitor is more likely to click away from that website. It’s 2020. Almost everyone has a smartphone. The convenience that they bring is undeniable, and they will soon become the main devices used for smart home automation.
Failing To Update Your Website
SEO is a very dynamic field. And this means that changes are going to be rapid and constant. What makes things more difficult is the fact that Google is secretive with its algorithms so no one really knows how Google chooses rankings. However, despite this, experts can read between the lines and infer the things Google is looking for. The only trick is that algorithms change all the time so you need an SEO expert who is on top of changes.
Not Taking Search Intent Into Account
In the coming months, you can expect that there’s going to be a lot of emphasis on artificial intelligence and how it will change our quality of life. The way that AI is going to affect the digital marketing sphere is that it’s going to put a big emphasis on user intent.
Search intent refers to the purpose that the search was made. You need to tailor your content to suit a particular search intent in order for your content to be useful to your visitors. This is particularly important in the coming age of artificial intelligence where search intent will be a prime determining factor in what pages are presented to a user after a search. Search intent can be categorized into: navigational, transactional, and informational.
Using Outdated SEO Techniques
Using outdated methods not only shows a lack of awareness of trends, but they could also potentially cause your website to be de-indexed because these methods are not user experience-friendly. Old techniques like keyword stuffing should be discarded, especially because artificial intelligence is going to make it so that content with a more conversational tone will be prioritized.
Overhauling your SEO campaign is going to take a lot of work. If you plan on hiring an SEO agency, these are some factors you need to weigh when choosing which company to work with.