🔍 2019's Top Stories on SEO Trends and How-Tos

Jan 02, 2020

Good morning search marketers, let's look back on SEO trends,

As we head into a new year, we are taking stock of the changes and trends of 2019 that will help shape marketing in 2020. Today, we focus on SEO trends and How-Tos with a selection of influential stories and a Pro Tip from the community.

Enjoy,

Ginny Marvin
Editor-In-Chief

1. Misquoted and misunderstood: Why many in the search community don't believe the WSJ about Google search by Barry Schwartz
Search is complicated. The WSJ appeared set on seeing that complexity through a conspiratorial lens.

2. SEO myths busted by an ex-Googler by Kaspar Szymanski
Google doesn't hate your website, AdWords don't impact SEO and 'freshness' and keywords are not as important as you think.

3. Google search results eye candy: How users navigate search features and what it means for SEO by George Nguyen
Search behaviors are changing as users "ping pong" their attention across search results pages.

4. Leaning into SEO as Google shifts from search engine to portal by George Nguyen
How to prepare your company for Google's new customer journey for search.

5. How reputation became a major ranking factor in SEO by Chris Silver Smith
To stay on top today, you need to be diligent in assessing your site's usability and the quality of its content.

6. Data: Google organic search CTRs decline on desktop, see big drop on phones by Greg Sterling
Mobile organic clicks on declined roughly 10 points between 2016 and 2018.

7. Here's what you need to know about image optimization for SEO by Romain Damery Google's updated image search interface isn't the only tool keeping the spotlight on visual content and product discovery.

Pro Tip Throwback

Be careful when making taxonomy changes. Here's why

"We are quite careful when adjusting taxonomies since even a small change can have ripple events throughout a large website," explains Jordan Silton of Apartments.com.

"As a site scales, changing a name on only one or a handful of categories can impact thousands or millions of pages on a site. Keeping URLs the same should help to minimize disruption, particularly if the name change is close. For example, we have a filter on our site for low-income housing, which is also known as affordable housing or income-restricted housing. These terms are all synonyms and we changed the way we labeled the filter to help renters find the appropriate housing options. Even though we made changes, we kept the URL consistent. This helped us capitalize on the name changes by labeling the page appropriately while also keeping things consistent for search engines without a bunch of redirects or a whole new set of pages."

Learn more »

Is it time to consider an identity resolution platform?

Connecting consumer identifiers has become a mandate for enterprise marketers trying to meet customer expectations for a consistent, personalized brand experience. This MarTech Today guide examines the market for identity resolution tools and what you should expect when implementing this software into your business. It includes profiles of 12 leading vendors, pricing information, capabilities comparisons and recommended steps for evaluating and purchasing.

Read more »

Resource Spotlight

The Periodic Table of SEO Factors 2019

Since its debut in 2011, Search Engine Land's Periodic Table of SEO has become a globally recognized tool that search professionals have relied on to help them understand the elements essential to a winning SEO strategy. The completely redesigned 2019 update contains elements that are foundational or increasingly toxic to an SEO strategy or represent verticals that are still emerging.

Download your copy today »

Dive deep with an SMX workshop!

Tack an extra day of training onto your SMX West itinerary and attend one of six exclusive workshops on Friday, February 21 from 9:00am – 5:00pm. These expert-led workshops are the perfect way to drill down into a specific search marketing topic and round out an amazing few days of learning. You'll walk away with actionable tactics you can implement immediately to drive results. Topics include Amazon Advertising, Paid Social Commerce, Advanced Local & Multi-Location SEO Strategies, Advanced SEO Training, Advanced Google Ads Training, and Hardcore Technical SEO Tactics & Techniques. Which will you choose?

Register now »