Search Engine Optimisation is a constantly evolving beast. This article from The Verge is a truly excellent breakdown of where SEO has been, and where it might be headed.
Read: The people who ruined the internet
Nobody really knows how AI and the enshittification of the internet will ultimately shape the act of searching for information online. But one thing is pretty much guaranteed: change.
Evolution is a given in Search Engine Optimisation.
I remember learning about solid white hat SEO techniques versus murky black hat SEO techniques when I first started working in SEO in 2012. The Panda and Penguin updates came along and shook up strategies. Results were optimised for mobile searches, and later on Google started using natural language processing to help weed out thin, vague content.
There is another SEO constant: that is, quality.
The one thing that has remained constant in the past decade beyond is that people want to find good information. A search engine is only useful and relevant as long as it delivers useful information to humans. Therefore, the solid SEO strategy moving forward should still be focused on quality.
It means writing from a place of authority as subject matter experts. That means using AI sparingly and thoughtfully, if at all. It means working to understand your particular audience – perhaps using a tool like SparkToro as well as speaking with those who know the audience best – and learning which information will genuinely help solve their problems. It involves using the same language and phrases that the audience uses to find the information they seek.
Because after all, people have always sought human connection, expertise and authority – and there’s a good chance we will continue to do so.
Anyway, please do take a few minutes to read The Verge piece. SEO really does affect practically every sector, and starts almost every search for information for most people.
Read: The people who ruined the internet
And if you require genuine, thoughtful content that pleases the search engine bots – but mostly the humans – get in touch.