Future of SEO 2024: 5 Trends that Will Impact Your Business & Website Rankings

Is SEO dead in 2024?

What is the future of SEO?

Should you invest your time and money in search engine optimization in 2024 and beyond?

If you’re looking for the RIGHT answers to these questions, this article is just for you.

Did you know that 96.55% of pages get zero traffic from Google, and 5.29% get ten or fewer monthly visits? (Source: Ahrefs)

Does it mean SEO is dead?

No.?

However, Google is constantly rolling out new algorithms to provide the BEST information to the users.

If you’re wondering why over 95% of pages in Google searches don’t get any traffic, here are some reasons.

• Those pages don’t match the search intent
• Most of those pages don’t have any backlinks (and Google places a lot of importance on quality and relevant links)
• Most pages aren’t targeting a topic that people are actually searching for

So here’s a quick tip: if you want to increase your search traffic, understand the search intent, build links, and create content on those topics that have long-term traffic potential.

Let’s now jump into the details of SEO’s future, where we’ll discuss the upcoming trends in search engine optimization.?

What is the Future of SEO in 2024? 5 Trends Reveal Where We’re Headed

Is the future of SEO dead? Where is the SEO game headed? Here are the 5 trends that reveal where SEO is headed in 2024 and beyond.

1. Zero-Click Searches: The Rise of Answer Boxes

Zero-click searches (also called “no-click searches”) refer to a search engine results page (SERP) that answers the query right at the top of a Google search result.

According to Semrush’s study, 25.6% of searches on desktops are “zero clicks.”

Zero-click searches are increasing because the search user doesn’t need any further clicks to complete the search as the user gets answers directly.

Here’s an example of a zero-click search.

As you can see above, Google displays the answer directly for the above example as the user’s search intent is satisfied without clicking any other links from Google search results.

Zero-click searches are MOSTLY common on smartphones because most people use voice searches or usually look for short and quick answers to their questions.

Types of zero-click searches

There are many zero-click searches. Here are some common types of zero-click searches you’ll find on Google.

Featured snippets

Featured snippets are short search snippets that appear on the top of Google’s search engine results page.

Here’s an example for the keyword term “Mr beast net worth”;

Instant answers

Instant answers provide quick answers to a search query.

Here’s an example for the search query “how many days in a year”;

Knowledge panel?

A knowledge panel provides an expanded featured snippet with more detailed information that is relevant to the search answer.

Here’s an example;

How to prepare your website for “zero-click searches”?

Here are some of the best ways to rank for zero-click searches in 2024 and beyond.

Satisfy your website user’s search intent: To rank for zero-click searches, you need to understand your searchers’ intent and provide accurate answers to their questions.

Use the “people also ask” box: People Also Ask generally includes additional questions relevant to the user queries.

Here’s an example;

Target the keyword terms in the “People Also Ask” section. Find out which keywords return a zero-click feature (such as an instant answer, featured snippet, knowledge graph panel, etc).

Create click-worthy meta description: Your meta description plays a key role. The best practice is to keep your meta description length between 120 and 150 characters. Search engines like Google use your meta description to understand the “context” of your content.

2. Evergreen Content: Future-Proof Your Website with Timeless Content

Want better rankings in Google? Create content that Google wants. Create great content that helps your website users.

There’s so much competition out there in almost every niche. Creating great content is the ONLY way to distinguish your website from others.

The best way to create evergreen content is to use the concept of E-A-T

E-A-T stands for Expertise, Authority, and Trustworthiness

These are the three factors that Google uses to measure how much trust it should place in a website to rank in first-page search results.

Google’s mission is to constantly improve the user experience. Almost all the major Google core algorithm updates are focused on “providing faster and better information to users.”

Google takes a ton of factors into consideration while ranking a web page.

E-A-T is another way for Google to deliver what users want as it determines “credibility and trustworthiness”.

Make sure to follow the E-A-T guidelines while creating content if you want better search results.

If you’re curious, you can ask these questions while creating content.

• Expertise: Does the author have expertise and skills in their field?
• Authority: Is the author the go-to person for advice in their niche??
• Trustworthiness: Does the author provide unbiased and reliable information on the subject?

Here’s a simple illustration of E-A-T that helps you understand the concept better.

How to improve the E-A-T of your content?

Here are some of the best ways to make your content E-A-T friendly.

Become the go-to guy in your niche: You should hire writers who are experts in your niche and use their credentials in the author bio, or become an expert in your industry and publish everything under your name.?

Create helpful content: If you’re an expert and still publishing mediocre content on your website, you won’t get rewards from Google.?

You need to create useful content for your website users. E-A-T content is all about quality, so focus on creating highly informative content that helps people. Here are some quick tips for creating useful content.

• Create long-form content to cover A to Z information about a topic you’re talking about (but avoid using meaningless words)
• Whenever possible, include data, screenshots, images, etc (it shows that your content is reliable and backed by data)
• Use attention-grabbing headlines to improve your overall CTA from organic search

Focus on searchers’ intent: Google is always looking to provide the BEST information to the users.

So, you ALWAYS need to focus on your website users and the intent behind their search queries.

For example, if someone searches “how to install a WordPress plugin”, it’s clear that they’re new to the topic.?

So, your blog posts must be easy to follow and understand. It’s as simple as that.?

In a nutshell, create highly informative content that caters to the needs of your audience. Then, make sure to build the credibility of authors and show their credentials in author bios to improve the E-A-T of your content.?

3. Voice Search Revolution: Optimizing for How People Talk, Not Type

Voice search SEO is optimizing your site to get higher search rankings for voice searches.

Voice search is “the next big thing” in the SEO world. Millions of people are using voice search to browse online.

According to a survey, 50% of people are now researching products using voice search.

Apparently, a lot of this growth in voice search is due to the rising popularity of smart speaker devices like Amazon Alexa, Google Home, Apple HomePod, etc.

So if you want to get long-lasting traffic from search engines like Google, be prepared for voice search SEO.

How to optimize your website for voice search?

Here are a few best practices to prepare your website for voice search SEO.

Find questions your audiences are asking: One of the best ways to rank our website for voice searches is to target “relevant questions”.?

You can use tools like Answer The Public to find some of the frequently asked questions in your niche.

Just enter a topic or keyword and it will instantly show you a list of all the questions related to that keyword.

Have a look;

Once you have a list of relevant questions, you can target them in your blog posts by creating an FAQ section at the end of every post you write.

Optimize for local search: Whether you know it or not, most voice searches are for local information.

Examples include;

• Order a pizza from Pizza Hut near me
• Best car deals near me
• Car mechanic near me and so on

So if you optimize your site for local SEO, you’ll also rank for voice searches.

Optimize for featured snippets: Did you know 61.2% of voice search answers come from Featured Snippets?

Here are a few quick tips to optimize your content for featured snippets.

• Find question-type search queries and provide concise answers within your content
• Research top-ranking pages for your targeted keywords and analyze the featured snippets
• Provide useful and in-depth answers to the most asked questions in your niche
• Use powerful headlines for every post you write
• Use the table of contents if you’re writing longer articles and use descriptive subheadings

You can also read our detailed guide to get Google featured snippets for your website.

Unlock Your Website’s Potential with Semrush

Ready to supercharge your SEO? Try Semrush free for a comprehensive toolkit trusted by millions.

4. Importance of Site Audits: Uncovering Hidden SEO Issues for Better Rankings

Most website owners avoid technical aspects of their website.?

If you ignore issues preventing your website from getting more search traffic, you’ll be wasting a lot of money.

You need to regularly audit your website to find all the issues on your site.

It doesn’t matter whether it’s 2024 or 2030, site audits are going to stay forever.

A site audit is simply a process for evaluating the search engine friendliness of your website in multiple areas. It gives you an in-depth overview of your website’s health.

How to perform site audits on your website?

Here’s how to quickly perform site audits to find and fix all your website issues.

Quick note: We use Semrush (the #1 SEO tool used by over 10 million people worldwide) for the site audit. So we’ll be using the same tool to perform site audits.?

If you want a free trial, visit this link to try Semrush FREE for 14 days .

Once you’re on the Semrush tool, Add your website by creating a new project (from the Site Audit tool).

Within a few minutes, it will scan your website and give you a health score and site issues.

Here’s what our blog’s site audit looks like;

As you can see above, our site health score is 81%, which currently has around 28 errors. Fix them if you want to improve your site’s overall rankings.

You’ll find all kinds of issues, including;

• Crawlability?
• HTTPS
• Core web vitals
• Site performance
• Internal linking
• Marketing issues, etc

5. Mobile SEO: Dominating Search in a Mobile-First World

63% of Google searches occur on mobile in the U.S. The number is increasing rapidly.?Also, 60% of smartphone users have contacted a business directly using search results. (Source: Google)

So, if you want to get the best SEO results, you must prepare your website for mobile SEO.

Mobile SEO is about optimizing your website for mobile device users (or tablets).

Do you know how fast your website loads on mobile devices?

Our website BloggersPassion takes just 2 seconds to load on mobile devices (according to the Google mobile site speed test ).

You can also use Google’s free mobile site speed test to quickly find out how fast your site loads on smartphones.

Did you know that improving your page loading time by 0.1 seconds can boost conversion rates by 8%?

If you want to get better results from your website, improve your page load times (both on desktops and mobiles).

How to improve your website’s mobile SEO?

One of the first things to do on your website is to improve your page speeds on mobile devices.?

Here are some of the best ways to optimize your website’s speed for smartphone users.

Eliminate render-blocking resources: Google itself suggests removing all render-blocking resources, including scripts, stylesheets, and HTML imports that block or delay the browser from rendering page content.

Enable caching for mobile devices: You can install a caching plugin like WP Rocket or W3 Total Cache to enable caching on your website. Page caching ultimately makes your website blazing fast.?

Make your site fully responsive: Use responsive WordPress themes such as Astra, GeneratePress, etc to make your site 100% fully responsive and adaptive to all screens.

Enable lazy loading of your images: By enabling lazy loading on mobile devices, you can show images on a page only when they are visible to the user, which ultimately helps you with faster page loading times. You can use plugins like WP Rocket to easily enable lazy loading feature.?

Optimize your images: Always optimize your image sizes as they take a lot of time to load (if not optimized). If you’re on WordPress, you can install a free plugin like Smush for image compression.??

Create mobile-friendly content: Lastly, create content that’s easy to read on smartphones. Here are a few quick tips for doing so.

• Use lots of bullet points
• Keep your paragraphs short (at 3 to 4 sentences at max)
• Use subheadings?
• Make your text “bold” for important words

An Actionable Checklist to Prepare Well for the Future In SEO

The future of SEO depends on how well you plan. If you want to win the SEO game and increase your search traffic, here’s an actionable checklist.

• Make sure to set up accounts on both Google Search Console and Bing Webmaster Tools, as they both offer a detailed overview of your website’s performance in search engines
• Ensure your website displays and functions flawlessly on all devices, especially mobiles.
• Always perform keyword research for every post you publish. Use tools like Semrush, Ubersuggest, KWFinder, etc., to find better keywords. Understand the intent behind user searches for your chosen keywords (informational, navigational, transactional, etc.).
• Install an optimization plugin like Rank Math . It helps you easily optimize your blog posts for your targeted keywords. Include your keywords in important places like H1, H2, and H3 tags, URLs, meta descriptions, image ALT tags, etc.
• Identify your competitors. Find out their top-performing pages. Use tools like Semrush to find a list of any website’s top-ranking keywords and top SEO pages. Build high-quality backlinks to your website from reputable sources and relevant websites in your industry. Backlinks are a significant ranking factor.
• Constantly update your existing blog posts. If a post is not generating traffic or sales, update it and make it 10x better. You can also use 301 redirects to redirect such posts.
• Make sure to fix broken links on your website. You can use free plugins like Broken Link Checker to find and fix such links.
• Discover the questions that people are asking. You can use tools like Answer The Public to find relevant questions for any topic.
• Perform regular site audits to find and fix all your website issues to increase your rankings on Google
• Optimize your website for speed and mobile. Use a faster web host such as WPX hosting.

FAQs About the SEO Future 2024

Here are some frequently asked questions about the SEO future and search engine optimization in general.?

Will SEO exist in 5 years?

Yes, SEO is NOT going to die anytime soon. However, SEO might be more personalized, making the content accessible with fewer clicks.

Will SEO be replaced by AI?

AI is highly unlikely to replace SEO entirely for a couple of reasons: – People need honest opinions and real-time experiences (which can come from authors and creators, not AI tools) – SEO involves understanding user intent, creating a content strategy, etc (which can’t be replicated by AI) – While AI can assist with content creation & optimization (but AI can’t create high-quality content)

Does SEO have a future?

Yes, as millions of businesses use search engines like Google to drive more customers online. The trend is only growing rapidly as people rely more on search engines to read reviews, purchase products, search for information, etc.

Is SEO in demand in 2024?

Google is introducing many algorithms to provide a better and FASTER way to answer users’ queries. If you focus MORE on users instead of search engines, you’ll get better results from SEO.

How can I improve my SEO in 2024?

Here are some of the best ways to improve your SEO in 2024 and beyond.

– Target the right keywords that are relevant to your brand or business – Build relevant backlinks – Improve your website’s user experience – Create highly informative content

What are the best AI SEO tools?

Here are some of the best AI SEO tools you should use in 2024.

– Rank Math SEO (WordPress optimization plugin) – Semrush (#1 SEO tool) – Surfer SEO (for AI SEO writing)

What is the future of SEO in 2030?

The SEO industry is multiplying every year. In fact, it is expected to grow at a MASSIVE CAGR of 17.6% between 2024 and 2030 and reach $234.8 billion by the end of 2030.

What is the future SEO scope?

As long as businesses and brands rely upon people to generate organic growth, such as website search traffic, conversions, and sales, there’s a HUGE score for SEO.

Is SEO dead?

No, SEO is NOT dead. In fact, it’s growing rapidly with the rise of digital marketing. However, the competition has grown by 10-fold due to AI tools like ChatGPT.

Final Thoughts On SEO Future

Google often changes its algorithms to provide the best experience to its users. So, focus on delivering the BEST user experience to win the SEO game.

SEO will only grow in the future. To get better rankings, follow the best SEO practices, such as creating helpful content, having a faster website, and following Google guidelines.

So, what are your thoughts on the future of SEO? Do you have any more questions? Let us know your thoughts in the comments.?