Top SEO Trends Every Digital Marketer Should Know in 2021

We all are stepping into a brand-new opportunity to peek
into a new decade starting in a few days. First of all, cheers to all
survivors, but the risk is still there, especially for digital marketing
professionals. It is one thing that keeps on changing swiftly with the new
emerging technologies and trends. Over the past decade, the SEO landscape has drastically transformed in many positive ways.

With the introduction of voice assistants, artificial intelligence, and the rise of mobile experiences, SEO experts have to keep an eye on every changing aspect. Along with the technological advancements and Google algorithm updates, SEO is getting more competitive, technical, and nuanced. 

Well! We've been through a lot, so let's not talk about the past anymore.

Top-ranking SEO performance requires attention to many metrics, including traffic, backlinks, local SEO, and more. 

Let's discuss some new trends and what 2021 will be like for SEO professionals.

Trend #1: Mobile-first indexing will be a priority

You must have heard about mobile-friendly websites and their importance. Undoubtedly, it is one main reason to level up your SEO game.

Since Google has been analyzing mobile pages of websites as their main pages, desktop versions have become a second priority. The way search engine optimization works, has changed with the last update of mobile-compatibility in 2019. Many businesses, organizations, and enterprises
have adapted to the mobile-friendliness trend. And it is going to rule in 2021 too!

Therefore, mobile SEO is key to your website and, ultimately, business success because it is becoming even more relevant in 2021. One big reason for its popularity is a significant increase in the number of
people who access the internet from their smartphones.

In 2021, 3 out of 10 people will be visiting your website from a desktop. The other 7-people will scroll through it with a cellphone in their hand. So, by now, don't only focus on the desktop version since mobile-first indexing was enabled in July 2019. Mobile-first indexing declares that Google mainly uses the mobile version of the content for indexing and ranking.

John Muller, Google's keynote speaker, announced in the Pubcon event that March 2021 would be the month when the full mobile index is scheduled to kick off. It means desktop-only sites will be ultimately out from the index from March 2021.

Trend #2: Google's E.A.T. algorithm will rule

The famous phrase, "content is the king," may feel pretty old by now.

So, here's a new fact. Follow the Google algorithm in any case. But first, let's discuss what the E.A.T. concept is.

The E.A.T. word stands for Expertise, Authority, and Trust. The concept itself covers the idea of a copywriter/writer being an original and
proven professional in the industry he or she works in. Google will only accept that publicly available content that has no negative impact on people's lives. With E.A.T. implemented in 2021, Google will genuinely look for quality and authentic content.

One best way to succeed with this E.A.T. algorithm is to get good reviews from the customers and the community. If Google finds positive feedback about your website and services, your business will be considered an
expert that authorized users can trust. For the SEO geeks, having high quality backlinks will help in this case.

Pro-tip: If you can disavow all the bad or suspicious backlinks, it will help build up your E.A.T. score to Google.

Trend #3: Voice search will change search queries

With the increase in social distancing practice throughout 2021, people explored new features in their smartphones. It is found that around 111.8 million people in the United States only used voice assistance monthly. Surprisingly, it is over a third of the nation's total population. Moreover, half of all smartphone users are already engaged using voice search technology.

Thanks to the latest Google Assistant innovations, Apple's Siri, and Amazon's Alexa, people are actively using the voice search feature.
No doubt, it is a super-easy and useful thing to have in everyday life.

It is predicted that 55% of households will own a smart speaker by 2022.

To work on this trend for your business, consider long-tail keywords. Figure out and identify the long phrases most commonly used by
the people when finding something on a search engine. Voice searches produce better results with lengthy, more natural-sounding phrasing.

Trend #4: Search intent will supersede keywords

The time is gone when keywords played the most prominent role. It's 2021, and it's now time to focus on the user and their search intent. (For real.)

Well, Google always wanted content creators to create the material that best matches the user query, but some people just focused on the website rankings. It is now more essential to refocus on the questions because searcher intent and behavior are changing all the time.

Especially after the year 2020, when so much rapidly changed. The reason is, Google is a place to go when people want an answer to a question or to learn more about something. When we realize the nature of why people search and assist them with content that provides the answers they are looking for, then our business benefits from it.

Always look for good quality content, and then put effort into getting that content noticed by Google. Good Luck!