With the start of a new year, I always like to keep up to date with new content marketing and SEO trends.

Although it’s clear that core SEO principles continue to remain the same, it’s still important to keep up to date with search trends and algorithm updates.

For 2023, here’s a few points that have caught my attention.

AI and SEO

This is the big one. AI has certainly been the biggest talking point in 2023.
AI can be applied to lots of different SEO tasks. Some of these include:

• Generating content ideas
• Keyword research and identifying relevant topics to target.
• Writing title tags and meta descriptions
• Help cut down on research time
• Creating SEO content briefs faster

2023 is the year where all content creators need to start experimenting more and more with AI to understand how it can help in the content process.

Incorporating E-A-T into your content

I first came across this term back in 2019 when I attended Brighton SEO. It makes perfect sense that E-A-T will continue to be an important trend in 2023.

If you’re not familiar with the term, E-A-T stands for expertise, authoritativeness, and trustworthiness. It’s an acronym created by Google.

There are discussions on how important E-A-T is from one industry to another but as a writer it’s something you should be incorporating into everything you write. I read that E-A-T is more important for websites that are classified as YMYL (your money, your life).

This makes sense to me as I used to work for a pet insurance company. Pet insurance incorporates both your money and your life (in this case, the life and health of your cat or dog)

Online articles, and social media content regularly included direct tips and advice from colleagues who were professional trained either as vet nurses or vet surgeons. Their professional background meant they could clearly demonstrate expertise and authority to pet owners and to Google.

E-A-T provides trust and proof for your customers in terms of them understanding your products and services and making the right financial decisions that are best for them.

User Intent

One important aspects of SEO is understanding user intent.

I’ve been aware of this for a long time but each year, its importance seems to grow.

SEO isn’t just about SERPs and more thought needs to be given to the keywords we target and the search intent of the audience we want to attract.

Google’s algorithms are becoming more sophisticated, and SEO can’t just be about targeting certain keywords.

Content has to be not only relevant to the search query but provides the user with really useful, relevant information that gives a satisfactory outcome.

Optimising for local Search

Local search engine optimization is a branch of SEO that focuses on optimizing websites so that they can be found in local search results.

Lots of businesses create a Google business listing known as a Business profile which helps gain more visibility.

Google Business Profiles, are important parts of Google’s local search and Local Pack algorithms.
Having a Google Business Profile helps:

•Increase visibility on Google
•You can gain credibility with reviews
•Share business information with customers.

Well optimised Google Business profiles are always more likely to appear in local search results.

Video is becoming more important to SEO

Video is already becoming more important for Content Marketing so it’s only natural that the same applies to SEO.

Google is prioritising websites with video content so If you have the time and resources to create video content then it’s something you should be doing more of in 2023.

YouTube SEO can help your content reach a wider audience by actively targeting people who are searching for your videos.

YouTube’s search algorithm prioritises these four ranking factors when ranking videos in search results: Relevance, Engagement, Quality and Personalisation

With video SEO, you need to choose the keywords you want to target, just like you would with webpages.

The YouTube search bar is a great place to start. Type a word or phrase related to your product, service or industry, and you’ll discover a list of trending keywords.

Use keywords to focus on user intent (especially in your titles) and how those keywords match up with what the video content actually offers users.

And finally…remember to be original

It sounds obvious but being original and offering something different will still help your SEO efforts.

I like the idea of conducting original research as part of any content marketing campaign. It’s a great way to highlight your expertise and create content that goes a little further than just looking at what the algorithms are telling you to focus on.

Do some competitor analysis and look at the types of content they have on their websites. Are there content gaps which you can take advantage of?

Can you write about the same topics as your competitors, but do it better? Look for ways where you can provide a fresh viewpoint or greater expertise and authority.

The AI revolution means it may be easier to produce more content quicker, but how original and interesting will some of this be? This is where finding ways to be more original will be of benefit.

And finally, don’t forget Tone of Voice. Have an idea of who you and your brand are and how to communicate with your audience. Tone of voice is an important feature of standing out and showing how you’re different to everyone else.

 

*E-A-T has now become E-E-A-T with the extra E standing for ‘Experience’