SEO Predictions for 2016

Every marketer constantly strives to stay at the top of the game when it comes to online marketing. As online marketing world evolves day-by-day, businesses cannot ignore latest online marketing trends and change their strategies accordingly. SEO is an integral part of online marketing plan of a business and algorithm changes by Google lead to drastic upheaval in the SEO world. So, it is very important for digital marketers, business owners and SEO experts to stay aware of key changes in SEO and to understand how it influences their website.

If you are planning your marketing and SEO strategy for 2016, here are few predictions you must keep in mind –

• Mobile searches will take over desktop searches as there is a constant increase in number of people possessing smartphones. With mobile searches reaching tipping point, businesses need to focus on mobile optimization of their websites and SEO efforts need to be focused on mobile devices too. Mobile design and mobile user experience become critical factors for a website. In-depth content on websites is expected to be replaced by short and precise content for better usability on mobile sites.
• There is an expectation that there will be a large update to the search algorithm by Google. This update is expected to shift balance of power while tightening the restrictions of search algorithm. Marketers need to be careful of their link building techniques and stay away from low quality backlinks.
• With increase in mobile searches, the importance of Google Local Pack and Google Maps is expected to increase. While searching from mobile, consumers prefer service providers within few miles of their current location, thus highlighting the importance of location based search results. Also, online reviews and customer feedback is also expected to play an important role in search results.
• Interaction holds the key for 2016. With presence of voice assistants, interaction with smartphones has become different. In 2016, text-based search is expected to become a thing of the past with voice search taking its place. SEO experts need to understand the difference in human behavior in text and voice search, and plan their SEO efforts accordingly.

For businesses, it is important to stay updated with the content marketing and SEO predictions for upcoming year. By predicting the changes, marketers can stay prepared and gain profit from the path where technology is taking the business.