Is SEO A Dying Channel? My Honest Opinion…

I can picture you rolling your eyes… NOT ANOTHER CLICKBAIT SEO ARTICLE!

There are so many articles out there titled ‘Is SEO Dead?’ We are encouraged to click to read, only to discover that SEO is not dead and around we go.

So, why should you carry on reading this?

Because this is not one of those articles.

I’m not using the keyword for links, traffic, and shares. This is my professional opinion on a topic that is getting a lot of coverage of late.

I’ll get it out of the way…

I do not believe that SEO is dying.

However, I do believe that it’s becoming a lesser digital marketing tactic.

The internet has gone through some significant changes over the last 20 years, but while Google’s algorithms may change, as long as search results exist, ranking in them is still important.

New technology has changed the way we search. Voice search has created a wave of people speaking to their phones.

Google will always respond to customer demand.

Featured Snippets were introduced to give searchers concise, direct answers to their questions. They are available in paragraph, graph, and table formats based on the query. 

Then you have the ‘People Also Ask’ section, which provides huge insight into the questions that Google deems relevant to each query. 

Both of these results appear above the organic search results.

You can see where I’m going with this...

The organic search results have been pushed further down the page. They no longer appear above the fold of the page.

You have to scroll to find them!

Ranking position one no longer means appearing at the top of Google.

The majority of people don’t need to scroll. They find what they need at the top of the page. The result for your SEO efforts? A highly reduced click through rate (CTR) for organic results.

It’s drilled into us that ranking position one is the best possible result. For more traffic, leads, and sales, SEO is the answer.

The reality is quite different.

We need to stop talking about SEO as if it’s a one-stop-solution to more website traffic. I specialise in SEO (and other forms of digital marketing) and I'm not hiding behind the truth.

What does this mean for you?

SEO is always going to be high on the agenda, but how we optimise needs to change. The end goal is to dominate the first page of Google, which means considering all elements of the first page!

So, let's explore them...

Pay Per Click (PPC):

Ultimately, ranking comes down to organic search vs. paid.

It’s the age-old question: Do I choose SEO or PPC?

Honestly, you should be using both!

The more revenue streams, the better. The problem comes when managing those revenue streams. PPC can be incredibly lucrative when done right. Otherwise, you are throwing away money and seeing little return.

Follow these steps to make SEO and PPC work together: 

• Identify negative keywords

Head to a keyword research tool like Ahrefs to locate negative keywords. In other words, the keywords that are related to your topic, but don’t match your search intent.

For example, people searching for ‘how to make birthday cards’ should not be shown an ad for ‘buy our birthday cards.’

Most people will skip this step as they don’t want to restrict their visibility. This is foolish. You are paying for every click, so make sure they count. Don’t waste clicks on someone who is not going to buy, or worse, a competitor.

• Make use of your PPC data

Pay close attention to the campaigns that perform well. Repurpose them into SEO-friendly content to make the most of it.

Use your best PPC text in the meta descriptions and titles on your website.

Another idea is to track separate campaigns to see which topics are performing the best. Develop these ideas into blog posts to attract more organic traffic.

• Analyse CPC

Some terms are more competitive than others. The same is true in both SEO and PPC. Don’t waste your time and money running ads for a term that is way over budget.

While a keyword may be highly-lucrative and a steal from an SEO perspective, it can drain your wallet!

Featured Snippets

You have probably seen a ton of featured snippets when searching for answers in Google.

We often refer to the position of these results as position zero. They appear above all search results and take up a large percentage of space!

There is no definitive strategy used to earn a featured snippet, and even if you do succeed, it may not last forever. Google may decide that another site is better suited to rank for that term.

The best way to secure a featured snippet is to produce great quality content in a format that Google loves.

An Ahrefs study found the words most likely to generate a snippet are:

1) Recipe

2) Best

3) Vs

4) Make

5) Definition

How to optimise for featured snippets.

• Be concise:

Offer a concise, direct answer (no more than 50 words) to a question included on a page. Include the answer under a heading, H2. So, the format would be ‘What is the best social media channel?’ and the answer would follow.

Google likes factual content, so keep the colloquial speak to a minimum. Use keywords and related terms in your answer to give it that extra boost.

• Build a knowledge hub:

Is there a broad topic that you can cover in multiple posts? If so, why not create a knowledge hub? Include interlinked posts with the intent of strengthening the pages and stealing a snippet.

To make things even more complicated for you…

Create one FAQ’s page optimised for each question. The core FAQ’s page links to each individual page and they, in return, link back to the core page. The link juice is transferred between pages to make them super relevant for the keywords used.

• Order everything

Google loves steps, lists and facts. I see it all the time. The results featured are those that include ingredients, statistics, data, etc.

When optimising for a paragraph snippet, follow the same basic principle. You rarely see an opinion as a snippet. Provide a logical answer at all times. Use the H1, H2, H3, H4 hierarchy to order your content in a logical way.

Answer boxes are easier to optimise for because Google loves structured data. For these results, use an HTML table. Make sure the table is no more than four columns wide so that important information is not cut off and doesn’t impact CTR.

Google's Local Pack

Have you ever done a local search for any goods or services in your area? I bet you have. Common local searches include restaurants, pubs, hair salons, etc.

Perform a local online search and you are presented with Google’s Local Pack, which looks a little like this:

The chances are, once you see this handy little box, you won’t need to perform another search. Everything you need is right there.

Google’s Local Pack appears in 30% of all online searches, making it one of the most commonly displayed Google SERP features.

How to earn a place in Google’s Local Pack

Location

Getting a place in Google’s Local Pack is easier for some companies than others. For example, the more competitive your niche, the harder it will be to earn a place.

There are ways to get featured, even in an incredibly competitive niche. It all comes down to location. The more central your location and the higher the number of citizens in that area, the higher your chances of appearing in Google’s Local Pack.

Please note: People do some pretty shady things to alter their business location. Google has incredibly strict rules when it comes to this so resist the temptation to cheat the system. You will, most likely, be penalised.

Optimise Google My Business

If you want to take full advantage of Google’s local search results, then you need to optimise your Google My Business profile. It’s not enough to claim your listing and leave it to stagnate.

• Optimise your service/product descriptions with relevant keywords.
• Include all the must-haves like company name, opening hours, phone number, social profiles, etc.
• Encourage customers to leave positive reviews that will increase your CTR. Don’t be tempted to buy fake reviews - it’s obvious. Instead, ask customers for authentic, honest reviews that people can trust.
• Choose an industry sector. Think hard about your industry sector. For example, a company working in digital marketing may have multiple services (SEO, PPC, Social Media, Graphic Design, etc), but can only select one option.
• Keep your listing fresh with updates Google My Business posts and updates.

Optimise your website

The three core things that Google considers in the local results are relevance, prominence, and consistency. That means that in order to appear for queries made in your area, your website should be optimised too.

Creating landing pages for services in your location (for example, SEO Yorkshire), including your NAP information in the footer of your site, and collecting earned links from trusted, local domains, are all excellent ways to build up your local online presence.

Video

Appearing in the search results isn’t all about organic written content. Visual content is fast becoming the most popular method for engagement, traffic, and leads.

Video drives a 157% increase in traffic from the SERPs! (source)

Video appears at the top of the search results and can often be found in featured snippets, along with images.

My best advice for video is to locate your top-ranking written content and create videos around the same topic. That way, you’ll take up more first-page real-estate, increase your brand awareness and double clicks through to your site.

Conclusion

I’m not trying to say that you should ditch SEO altogether.

There are plenty of ways to optimise and still appear high up in the search results. Just make sure that you account for all elements on the first page.

Google is changing all the time and we’re seeing a trend towards creating informative, topical content. Do some keyword research, get creative, optimise, and promote!

Lastly, don’t forget about paid ads. They get priority on Google, resulting in maximum visibility. Paid ads are not reserved for the cash-rich. If you’re sensible with your money and don’t go after the most competitive terms right away, then you’ll be fine.

I’ve also noticed a correlation between top-placed ads and organic rankings. The more successful the ads, the higher the rankings. That’s my experience anyway.

Do you need support in any of the above areas?

Are you struggling to generate clicks from first page rankings?

I’m always happy to help.

I have a history of helping people build high-performing businesses. If you’d like to find out more, or just to have a chat, contact me directly on 01226 720 755 or drop me a message.