9 Top SEO Trends For 2021

All of us are aware of the fact that Search Engine Optimization is not a one-time thing. The best practices of SEO will continue to evolve year after year. It is important that you keep up to date with the latest changes and trends to understand the impact of SEO trends. If you are aware of how SEO works, you can prevent possible penalties and plan for the site’s ranking. Here are a few top SEO trends for this year. 

1. Zero-Click Search

Never underestimate the local search listing. It is important to nail local SEO because of the consistent rise of zero-click searches. The top search results will provide answers through the search engine itself. You will find that many zero-click searches are local and it is vital to have a strong backlink profile while you set up the Google My Business Account.

2.  Mobile SEO

Another important SEO trend is mobile SEO. This trend is here to stay as a lot of people are doing the majority of their search through a mobile device. If you work on SEO for desktops and not for mobile, the desktop ranking can be higher but the mobile ranking might be abysmal. It helps to focus on mobile SEO and it is only going to grow in the coming years.

3. Intent content

A major trend that will continue in 2021 is having the best intent content built keeping the user in mind. It is a must in order to rank well. Right from the domain name to the content, there should be enough keywords relevant to the business. We will see websites that use black hat SEO techniques lose rankings and traffic. It helps to do smart keyword research if you want to write about topics that people are looking for. Remember to search the competitors’ content and always look for creating something better.

4. Voice search  

Voice search has changed the way we interact with search engines and it is going to be huge in the coming years. Conversation sampling happens on a regular basis and the AI race to a place where we can have answers to all the questions before we ask them is going to change the SEO landscape. The goal of voice search is to be efficient and it will help grab larger consumer interest. 

5.  Buyer-centric content 

You have already purchased a unique and catchy domain with the help of a domain broker but that is not enough, you need to ensure that the content is focused on the buyer. Other than the technical algorithm shifts which are mostly outside of your control, you must ensure that the content is buy-er-centric and is not solely focused on you or your sales copy. You must be careful that the content addresses the pains the buyer is looking to fix or solve. Instead of trying to outsmart the search engines, you need to focus on the user to ensure that the site performs better and ranks higher. 

6.  Video Content

The impact of YouTube on SEO is consistently rising and it is important to remember that the SEO strategy must have a video element. The videos should be focused on target keywords and optimized for search. It also helps to embed a video on the landing page that targets the same keywords. 

7.  Web Vitals

SEO will focus on the user for many years to come and it is important to focus on the core vitals that help get the ranking. This means you will need to optimize the website for great user experiences which include response times, quick loading, and mobile navigation so as to make it to the top in the search engine results. If you focus more on the website, it will help achieve better SEO results. 

8. Layout shift

If you understand advertising, PR, or marketing, you will be aware of SEO and customer layout shift is a huge change on the horizon in 2021. User experience will change if they have to click several times on the website. It has also become a ranking factor for Google, hence, it will impact the search results so it is something you need to have in mind. 

9.  Show more, tell less

SEO is all about the context and not just word count or keywords. Try to include audio and video creatives and graphics in the content. There is a short attention span and you need to earn the attention of users and nurture it with care. SEO is not only about attention but about the conversion of that attention. With better graphics, you will be able to show more and convert the leads. 

Keep these 9 tips in mind if you want to nail SEO in 2021 or the coming year. The trends continue to evolve and it helps to stay in touch with the same if you want to grow your business.