Search engine optimization constantly changes. Adapting to the fickle machinations of search engines is the only way to stay alive.
The future of SEO won’t be gaming the algorithm. You need to use and understand artificial intelligence and how it impacts rankings.
The use of machine learning has grown throughout many industries. Its impact on digital marketing and business is only beginning.
Google wants to provide the best experience for their users. AI can help enhance their already robust algorithm.
Today, it’s not enough to use and understand search queries. Search engines look deeper into their meaning through AI. The goal is to provide laser focused results.
The Future of SEO: RankBrain
Google has never been afraid of pushing the envelope. In 2016, the company introduced Rank Brain to their algorithm.
Its version of artificial intelligence isn’t an all-knowing machine god ready to take over the universe…yet. You can keep visions of “Terminator” out of your head.
Google wants to make sure searchers get the right results when the type in a search query. Before RankBrain, bots crawled the page and provided you results based on a set of parameters.
RankBrain along with Hummingbird allows for search query variation. For example, let’s say you’re interested in learning more about a Ford Taurus.
You type in Taurus and RankBrain examines your previous searches and determines you mean the car and not the astrological sign.
If you want to learn about pneumonia symptoms, but misspell it, then it can learn what you mean.
The most interesting aspect of RankBrain is the ability to examine general searches and extrapolate your meaning. For example, let’s say there are wildfires in California and millions of people searched for information about it.
If you type in “wild fire” it will bring up information about the current disaster and not general information. Google constantly updates the algorithm. RankBrain will grow and develop as it learns more.
Direct Answers to Questions
Content is the key to driving your SEO into the future. When a searcher asks a question in Google, the search engine may answer it before placing organic search results.
For example, if you type “how to clean your gutters,” then Google might provide you an answer box from what it considers a trusted source. It might include the steps to cleaning the gutter. Below it, list the standard organic search results.
What’s interesting is the place where the answer came from may not be the first results in organic search.
How do you plan for this? Start answering questions on your website’s blog. Make sure you use questions keyword phrases to catch the attention of Google bots.
Artificial intelligence interpretation means keywords don’t have to be right next to each other. You have more freedom, but it’s still a good idea to make the question an H1 or H2 if it’s part of a larger set of questions.
Use AI Interpretation and Analyze Keyword Groupings
Keywords are and always will be an important part of SEO for your website. In the early days, you wanted exact keywords. People spammed their pages with tons of keyword phrases.
Google advanced and people couldn’t spam anymore. They advanced more and allowed people to have keywords and keyword phrases, but they didn’t have to be together. You could have punctuation or words between them.
With artificial intelligence, the actual phrase is less important than the meaning. For example, let’s say you’re looking for a house to rent.
You could have many phrases about the cost, location and that you want a house: house rental in San Francisco, cheap house in San Francisco, etc.
Rather than cluttering up your webpage with all those keywords, choose a single phrase that exemplifies your idea such as cheap house rental in San Francisco.
When someone types in the other keywords, machine learning RankBrain gets their meaning. It shows your site because of the exemplifier keyword.
How does Google rank websites? It uses themes and keywords…and 100 hundred other things, but you have to start somewhere.
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Schema Helps AI Understand Your Site
We talked how AI search is all about interpretation of the keywords. How does Google know what your site is all about?
Keywords are not the beginning and end of SEO. Google bots crawl your site and need to know and understand as many aspects as possible. If they can’t figure out the theme of your site, then it’s hard to rank for anything.
Schema is snippets of code that give aspects of your website context for Google and the AI. It’s most often used for rich snippets, i.e. the extra information that web results have below the meta information.
Schema tells the bots and AI what your website is all about. It shows them the address, product page, recipe, book, etc.
There are countless schema code variations to help identify and give context to your site. It can even help with local SEO plans. AI learns and adapts, but it doesn’t hurt to give them something to start with. Schema is vital to a website’s continued ranking in the era of artificial intelligence.
User Experience Growing in Importance
Google doesn’t only care about the information you have on your site. They also care about how you present that information and how easy it is to navigate your web space.
When Rank Bran determines the meaning behind the keyword, it takes into account how fast your pictures load, mobile friendliness and more before placing you in the rankings.
If your website doesn’t cut the user experience mustard, then it’s not showing up in the first spot of search results.
AI Isn’t Going Away
Google likes to try new things. If it doesn’t go well, they remove it and try something else. AI isn’t going anywhere. It’s the future of SEO.
You need to understand the best way to SEO your site in this new age of artificial intelligence.
