Search engine optimization is one of those things that are never really ‘done.’ Irrespective of how much effort and time you put into SEO, there’ll always be something to learn. This is because search engine optimization is continuously evolving. Lying to yourself that you’ve mastered it will only lead to you falling behind as new optimization trends are continually emerging.

With this in mind, let us look at what to expect in the coming year and go over a few search engine optimization tips for 2020

Need for Speed

While trends tend to change as time goes by, Google’s (News - Alert) focus on its customers is constant. And if there’s one thing Google users always respond to, it is speed. In 2018, Google made speed on mobile a priority – speed for full desktop sites has always been equally important. It is a safe bet to say that speed will continue being relevant.

One of the main things users consider when determining a site’s success is its responsiveness. How fast does it take to load? The longer it takes, the higher the chances the user will click away. Not so long ago, Google published a chart highlighting bounce rates. According to the chart, the longer a site takes to load, the higher the bounce rate. If the load time goes from one-second to three-seconds, the site’s bounce rate jumps by 32 percent. By five-seconds, it increases 90 percent. By the time load speeds reach ten seconds, the bounce rate’s increased by 123 percent.

It is clear to see that prioritizing speed is crucial while developing a site.

Local Focus

Google’s, now more than ever, placing emphasis on growing local products. What does this mean? It means that things that affect your local listing are going to play more significant roles moving forward. As Google continues to promote geo-targeted searches, local search engine optimization will provide you with tons of benefits both now and going into the future.

Reviews

The value of reviews isn’t something new; nevertheless, Google continues to emphasize them. Positive reviews from clients and customers can boost your visibility and bring in new business.

With Google’s focus being on local SEO, reviews are going to play larger roles in a site’s rankings. Coming up with ways to improve and increase customer reviews should be part of your optimization strategy.

Long-tail Keywords

As more sites continue to appear, the need for much longer search query keywords has become increasingly important, especially when it comes to precisely targeting what users are searching for. Over a third of search queries performed on Google today are more than four words long, a trend that’s likely to continue to grow. Good monthly SEO packages will focus on both short and long tail keywords.

Voice Integration

The ever-growing popularity of voice search’s been on such lists as this for the last few years and continues to be something to keep an eye on.

Even though voice search was initially something fun to toy around with, it has now become the standard way to search for things amongst a majority of users — Voice search ties in well with long-tail keywords. With more people performing voice search, there’s less typing involved. As a result, there are lesser abbreviations in search and more of normal conversations. Today, a good percentage search is being conducted using questions instead of entering two or three search terms. Another thing to note about voice search is that it’s a bit more focused on local search queries.

As we go through 2020, it is strongly advised that you consider integrating voice search strategies in your optimization.

Content is Still King

As Google continues to do its best to improve the user’s experience, one thing the company is placing more focus on is quality content – content that serves up quality responses to queries. A while back, websites put more focus on producing tons of content regularly. Today, however, the focus should be more on quality than quantity. As we move forward, the company’s evolving algorithms will be able to discern the trustworthiness and expertise on given topics better. Soon, good keywords integrated into poor-quality content just won’t suffice.

Search engine optimization never stands still, so why should you? By staying up to date with the latest trends, you’ll have an easier time creating and providing a quality user experience; this will, in turn, boost your optimization efforts and the results you get from these efforts.