Ever since artificial intelligence (AI) entered the digital marketing landscape, search engine optimization (SEO) has experienced drastic changes. This easily manifests in SEO trends that are constantly evolving to meet the demands of an ever-changing digital world.
With AI tools and the new Search Generative Experience (SGE), 2024 is the year we can expect further developments in SEO as businesses continue to compete for the top spot on search engine results pages (SERPs).
Here are the nine SEO trends of 2024 that you need to be aware of to ramp up your website’s ranking:
The Rise of Google SGE
SGE is an innovative and cutting-edge AI-powered search experience introduced by Google. By analyzing user behavior, preferences, and context, SGE will redefine how users interact with search engines in 2024.
Here’s how it works: when you search on Google, you’ll see an AI-powered result show up. It’s like a snapshot that gives you relevant links to the sources and prompts you to dig deeper into the topic. This is Google becoming a conversational assistant, understanding and responding to your queries like how you talk to a friend.
SGE and AI are set to revolutionize Google searches. The AI market, including SGE, is valued at almost $100 billion and is projected to reach nearly $2 trillion by 2030. With real-time suggestions, predictive search, and enhanced user interactions, SGE leads search innovation, providing clear answers, relevant visuals, and a conversational engagement model.
How can you adapt to this trend?
It’s too early to tell how often users will depend on SGE for answers. Many users might still choose to click on the traditional search results shown on the search engine results page.
What is safe to do: create content that directly answers user queries. While it’s still early to have a foolproof optimization strategy, ensuring relevance through comprehensive answers is key. The AI-generated content from SGE also includes links to relevant resources.
Importantly, don’t ditch traditional SEO best practices because of SGE. Even though AI-generated results might influence user behavior, SERPs still have traditional search results that matter for the future of SEO.
Deep Integration of AI
In 2024, AI will assist in content quality and level up its sophistication. Initially, mainstream generative AI was all about exploring its capabilities like a shiny new toy. Now, AI summaries and image generators are everywhere!
LLMs like ChatGPT and Google Bard excel at generating content faster than humans. This led to a debate on how search engines will treat AI content in their SERP. As for Google, its mission remains to prioritize relevant and high-quality content for users, regardless of whether humans or AI creates it.
Quality and relevance are what truly matter.
As AI-generated content grows, SEO experts must innovate to create engaging and distinct content that resonates. Traditional tactics like backlinks and keyword-optimized headers won’t suffice. Instead, the focus shifts to the marketing aspect of content. Brands must stand out from AI-driven content by committing to content excellence.
How can you adapt to this trend?
Don’t go all-in on topics that generative AI can easily handle. You’ll just lose clicks like crazy in the long run. Instead, start giving priority to topics that AI will find challenging.
How do you figure out which topics will give AI a hard time? Just ask ChatGPT. If it comes up with a solid and concise answer, then it’s clearly a piece of cake for AI. If it struggles, then your topic is ripe for human optimization.
AI and machine learning aren’t here to take over the world yet. Make sure your content stands out from AI content by adding a personal touch and storytelling elements.
Staying Aligned with E-E-A-T
Last year, we discussed E-E-A-T (Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, and Trustworthiness) becoming a critical ranking factor. In 2024, E-E-A-T remains relevant as AI algorithms aim to replicate human-like decision-making processes.
Websites that consider E-E-A-T are more likely to rank higher in the SERPs. Let’s define it further:
- Experience: Ensure your website provides an excellent user experience, from page speed to visual appeal.
- Expertise: Establish yourself as an industry expert by creating high-quality and authoritative content.
- Authoritativeness: Gain credibility with backlinks from reputable sources and collaborate with influencers in your niche.
- Trustworthiness: Build trust through transparent policies, customer reviews and ratings, and secure payment methods.
Google decided to add E because they believed that the author’s experience would impact the quality of the content. So, if a car dealer writes about secondhand cars, it would be given more priority than someone without car dealing experience.
How can you adapt to this trend?
Let’s consider three key things:
- If possible, have your content written by certified experts in the field.
- Cite sources from authoritative websites.
- Include reviews and testimonials from happy customers.
And, of course, don’t forget about traditional SEO best practices like creating relevant content, building backlinks from relevant and high-quality websites, and more. These strategies will surely boost the E-E-A-T of your web page.
Get Optimized for Voice Search Queries
Using voice searches is increasingly popular among consumers, especially those who multi-task. And in 2024, search engines will continue to improve the accuracy of their voice recognition technology, making it an integral part of SEO.
According to recent research conducted by UpCity, voice searches have witnessed a significant increase of up to 50% as of 2022. And with the introduction of smart speakers like Amazon Echo and Google Home, it’s only going to increase further.
With the continuous advancement of technology, voice search is set to become even more sophisticated. So, it’s crucial for businesses to stay ahead of the curve by constantly adapting their SEO strategies to embrace these changes. Investing in voice search optimization now isn’t just about following key SEO trends. It’s about positioning your brand for future success.
How can you adapt to this trend?
Make your content conversational, direct, and laser-focused on answering specific questions. Don’t forget the power of long-tail keywords and FAQ sections—search engines understand them as a means to provide direct answers.
Also, make sure your website loads lightning-fast and is mobile-friendly. After all, most voice searches happen on mobile devices.
Video Content Will Dominate Search Engines
Video is everywhere. 2024 will see video content continue to dominate the digital landscape, especially with the rise of live streaming and short-form video platforms like TikTok.
People are devouring video content like never before. The number of digital video viewers worldwide is set to hit nearly 3.5 billion by the end of 2023.
And guess what? Search engines have taken notice! According to Wyzowl surveys, 90% of businesses will be using video as a marketing tool in 2023. And for those few businesses that haven’t jumped on the video train yet, don’t worry; most of them plan to optimize video content soon.
How can you adapt to this trend?
Get your camera ready and start recording! But before you hit that record button, make sure you have a solid video SEO strategy in place.
With more videos and competition for audience attention, rushing in can lead to suboptimal results. Like in any content creation, think of user search intent and relevancy before anything else. Then, focus on crafting engaging, valuable content that aligns with your brand’s message and goals.
Optimizing video titles, descriptions, and tags with relevant keywords also plays a crucial role in video SEO. And don’t forget to include a call-to-action and link back to your website for more information or conversions.
Bing Search is Getting More Attention
While you are focusing on Google search results, don’t forget about Bing in 2024. With Microsoft’s major investments in search technology and partnerships with Yahoo! and Apple, Bing has steadily gained more market share.
Yusuf Mehdi from Bing excitedly shared in March 2023 that the search engine had reached a milestone of over 100 million daily active users, a first-ever achievement! This remarkable feat came just one month after the launch of the incredible AI-powered Bing.
As we enter 2024, Bing is all set to continue its growth and compete with Google, which still dominates the search engine market. Bing may be more popular now, but its market share is still around 3%, according to estimates by Statcounter. On the other hand, Google holds roughly 92% of the market share.
So, if you want to optimize your website, Google should be your main focus. The interesting thing is, if you rank well in Google, you usually do well in Bing, too. So, no need to worry too much about Bing!
How can you adapt to this trend?
Expand your target audience by considering Bing in your SEO strategy. After all, 100 million daily active users is a considerable audience to miss out on.
Ensure that your website follows Bing’s best practices for SEO and submit your sitemap to the search engine. Also, make sure you have a presence on Bing Places for Business and optimize your local listings.
Enhancing the UX of Your Website
When it comes to technical SEO and optimizing content for search engines, we can’t overlook the importance of User Experience Optimization (UXO). It’s not just about technicalities! In 2024, search engines will favor websites that provide a seamless and delightful user experience.
Page speed, mobile-friendliness, and overall core web vitals play a significant role in providing a good UX. No user wants to wait long for a page to load or navigate a clunky website on their mobile device. This can lead to a high bounce rate and negatively impact your SEO efforts.
According to Google’s core web vitals report, websites that provide a better user experience tend to rank higher in search results. So, it’s essential to improve and enhance your website’s UX continually.
How can you adapt to this trend?
Conduct regular audits and tests of your website’s UX. Google Search Console (GSC) is a great tool for this. Find and fix any technical issues, optimize images and videos for faster loading, and make sure your website is mobile-friendly.
Wix Studio offers a range of SEO tools to boost your website’s performance. One standout feature is Responsive AI, a powerful tool that effortlessly optimizes your web page’s desktop UX for various screen sizes and breakpoints. With just a click of a button, watch as your website adapts seamlessly to provide an exceptional user experience across devices.
Significant Impact of Zero-Click Searches
In 2024, we’re witnessing zero-click search queries taking center stage. This basically means more searches where users don’t bother clicking web pages shown to them.
Around 57% of mobile searches and approximately 25% of desktop searches do not result in any clicks on organic or paid results, as per the Semrush Zero-Clicks Study. This behavior can be influenced by various factors.
For example, a user’s search query: “What is the weather in New York?” can be answered by Google’s featured snippet, negating the need to click on any website. Similarly, local searches for businesses or directions often end with a result from Google Maps, again eliminating the need for a click-through.
How can you adapt to this trend?
Conversational keyword research is crucial, but optimizing for featured snippets and local searches is essential. Provide clear and concise answers in your content that search engines can easily pick up to display in a featured snippet.
Optimizing for Google My Business and having a strong presence on other directories will improve your chances of showing up in local searches. Also, make sure your website is mobile-friendly and optimized for voice search, as zero-click searches are more common on mobile devices.
Conclusion
The SEO industry remains between a rock and a hard place, with constant algorithm updates and ever-changing trends.
These SEO trends in 2024 are just the tip of the iceberg. To stay ahead of the competition, it’s essential to keep a close eye on industry updates and adapt to changes in search engine algorithms and user behaviors.
Optimizing your website for Google and Bing and providing a delightful user experience will set you up for success in 2024 and beyond. StarTechUP can help you with all of this and more. Contact us today to get started on optimizing your website for the future!
