SEO 23-24
When was the last time you reviewed your organic strategy?
The SEO landscape is ever-evolving due to the ongoing changes by Google, the impact of AI and the increasing use of voice searching technology. Google’s algorithm constantly evolves, with updates occurring up to 600 times a year [1]. As a result of these changes, organisations that want to ensure they have a strong, effective online presence must review their SEO strategies.
In this article, we consider four areas that are essential to building a strong SEO strategy in 2023.
The Impact of voice search technology and how it changes the use of language for seo
Amazon’s Alexa, Apple’s Siri and Google Assistant voice searches are now utilised daily by a large percentage of the population. There are also appliances such as Google Home, Amazon Echo and Apple Homepad which are also driving the increasing use of voice search technology [2].
The impact of voice search technology has seen the rise of conversational queries rather than typed search queries.
What does this mean for seo?
SEO must be optimised for voice search. Voice search focuses on natural language processing (NLP) which is different to typing a search query.
Google has launched LaMDA to understand natural language better. LaMDA (Language Model for Dialogue Applications) is a machine-learning model designed to understand dialogue better and deliver more efficient results. As LaMDA becomes more proficient, the emphasis will continue to switch to voice search rather than typed search queries.
How to optimise for voice search
Organisations can optimise their SEO for voice search in the following ways.
- Targeting phrasing: For example, a customer may type “best hiking boot brand” but verbally search “what’s the best hiking boot brand?” Optimising for these verbal searches is a great way to target conversational keywords.
- Keeping answers short: If you optimise for conversational keywords, it is essential to keep your answers concise to deliver helpful information quickly.
- Considering the vernacular: Different countries and different states within countries use specific phrases to describe objects or places. Knowing the vernacular words can help you optimise for more conversational keywords [3].
The increasing use of ai
The increasing acceptance and use of AI (Artificial Intelligence) and its impact on SEO are associated with the rising use of voice search technologies.
Search engines such as Google rely on sophisticated algorithms. AI-powered algorithms can improve search engines’ algorithms, making search results more accurate, personalised, and efficient. As AI improves and becomes more mainstream, search engines will likely adopt similar technologies, resulting in a more accurate understanding of user queries and better search results [4].
Consequently, organisations need to consider how they use AI as part of their SEO strategy. To refuse to consider using AI will ultimately negatively impact the organisation’s online presence.
Video marketing
Consumers are increasingly using videos to help them make purchasing decisions, and Google is also rolling out features to help users find information faster in videos [5]. These features include:
- Clip markup – enabling companies to highlight critical points in their video so users can go straight to those parts. YouTube also provides an autocomplete feature that provides an easy way to find video keywords.
- Seek Markup – this tells Google how your URL structure works, which enables Google to display critical moments of your video immediately.
With the increasing use of videos, they become an essential component of an organisation’s SEO strategy to increase its market presence.
Since users spend 88% more time on pages with videos, incorporating videos in the content can boost engagement, rankings, and traffic. It is also essential if using clip markup or seek markup to use keyword-rich markups [6].
This brings us to the third area to build a strong SEO strategy in 2023.
The Importance of Keywords
The purpose of keyword research has changed in recent times. It used to be that keyword research was done for a website to ensure it appeared first in the search results. However, this is no longer the primary objective as SERPs (Search Engine Results Pages) are often taken over by adverts and snippets from other articles that are thought to be more relevant to the searcher. For this reason, keywords are now being optimised for SERP marketing [7].
What this means is that keywords are related to clusters of topics or phrases that are similar. The advantage of this is that by linking to similar keywords, the subject the reader is interested in is expanded, providing more context and value. This is a more holistic approach to SEO where content is created not just to rank but also to cover relevant subtopics.
The shift from keywords to the idea of the searched phrases and cluster topics provides more value to the person. It also means focusing on the user’s intent and considering “questions people also asked” around the topic.
User intent can generally be broken down into four areas:
- Navigational – This refers to when someone is trying to visit a specific website online.
- Informational – These searches are done to find an answer to a specific question or to find information about a particular topic.
- Transactional – This occurs when someone is looking to make an online purchase; and
- Commercial – When people intend to make a purchase but need more time or want to make an informed decision.
The increasing importance of expertise
The final area is the importance of expertise. In other words, showing first-hand experience with your content is essential.
Search engines want to provide users with the most valuable content to answer their queries and provide the necessary solutions. The best way to do this is by showing users content from creators that have relevant, real-world experience on the topic [9].
This means the content that is shared across your social channels must be within the area of your organisation or business expertise and practice.
It also means the content that you provide must give value to people. In the early days of SEO, content would be written to ensure ranking rather than providing value. Using such a strategy in 2023, where the only intent is to achieve ranking, is no longer effective. The advances made by search engines and the use of voice searches and AI mean that SEO strategies must be aimed at providing value to clients and potential customers.
It is about providing a great user experience and demonstrating first-hand knowledge of the topic.
Google’s e-a-t is now e-e-a-t
Google has produced E-A-T guidelines that will continue to be used to determine higher Google search rankings. E-A-T was introduced as a document for human search quality raters to assess the quality of web pages.
The acronym stands for expertise, authoritativeness, and trustworthiness. To this has been added E, which is experience [10]. Google wants to see pages that demonstrate an experience with the product or service they provide or sell rather than just generic information.
Using these E-E-A-T guidelines enables pages to achieve a higher ranking.
SEO is not static. It is continually evolving and changing in response to changing technologies and updates by search engines. This means organisations need to constantly review and revise their SEO strategy to ensure they adapt to these changes and maintain their profile and relevance to clients and users of their product.
Navigating Disinformation
We all have a responsibility to do what we can to mitigate the impact of fake news, particularly given the harm it can do to individuals, communities, and ultimately to governments.
- Published in ethics, marketing, Psychology
AI & Authenticity
Brand authenticity is essential if organisations are to build a strong, loyal base of clients and succeed in today’s business world.
BING & ChatGPT
For organisations, by taking advantage of BING’s lower competition and ChatGPT’s natural language capabilities, there is the potential to drive more traffic and improve the customer search experience.
NFP Re-imagining
In a recently published article, we considered the importance of businesses reimagining work in ways that allow them to make money and be profitable. This reimagining is essential post-COVID because of the disruption that has been caused to the relationship between work, the workplace, and the workforce.
In reimagining how work is performed, one question remains the same. How does the business make money?
Making money is no longer just an exercise in rampant capitalism. How companies make money in today’s economy and society involves closely aligning an organisation’s purpose with environmental, social and governance (ESG) considerations.
While not-for-profit organisations have a service priority rather than a profit or money-making goal, they are still faced with the necessity of reimagining work post-COVID.
In many ways, this question is more challenging for not-for-profit organisations. For-profit businesses ask, “how do we make money?” The question for not-for-profit organisations is more nuanced because there are two aspects not-for-profit organisations have to consider;
- How do not-for-profit organisations provide a service that meets client’s needs
- How do NFP organisations remain financially viable?
HOW DO NOT-FOR-PROFIT ORGANISATIONS PROVIDE SERVICES THAT MEET CLIENT NEES AND ENABLE THE ORGANISATION TO REMAIN VIABLE?
The term not-for-profit is a misnomer because organisations that have a not-for-profit status must still make a profit to enable them to continue to function and provide a service to their client base.
Hence, in re-imagining how to provide a profitable service to meet client needs while remaining financially viable, there are several unique factors not-for-profit organisations must consider.
THE ONGOING ISSUE OF FUNDING
As not-for-profit organisations do not charge for the services they provide, they rely on grants and donations.
THE CHALLENGE WITH GRANTS AND CONTRACTS
In 2022, revenue from the Australian Government to the not-for-profit sector was $88.8 billion which accounted for 50.4% of the total revenue to the sector.
The number of organisations accessing this government funding rose from 37% in 2019 to 47% in 2020 to 49 165 charities.
While revenue from the Australian government to the charitable and not-for-profit sectors is essential to assist organisations in meeting complex needs within the community, it does present challenges to organisations receiving grants and contracts from the government.
1. INCREASING REGULATORY BURDEN
With increasing government spending in the sector, there is often an increasing regulatory burden on organisations to demonstrate that the money they are receiving is being used for the purposes it was provided for.
While organisations need to be accountable to both the government and the community to show that tax-payer funds are being used for the benefit of the community, accountability must be balanced with an increasing regulatory burden that often means employing additional administrative staff to meet these requirements.
2. TIME-LIMITED CONTRACT PERIODS
The other challenge with government grants and contracts is that they are generally time-limited to three or five years. While some grants and contracts may be rolled over, in many cases, organisations must re-apply for funding.
This introduces an element of uncertainty for organisations as continuity of funding is not guaranteed. Changing governments and changing priorities can result in organisations being defunded and contracts awarded to other organisations.
As governments seek to reboot economies impacted by COVID, rising interest rates and inflation, accessing government grants will become more difficult for many not-for-profit organisations.
THE CHALLENGE OF ACCESSING DONATIONS
Accessing philanthropic donations is often just as challenging as receiving government grants, particularly for small to medium-sized not-for-profit organisations. In small to medium-sized organisations, staff are involved in frontline service delivery. Consequently, they do not have the time to invest in the relationship-building often required to attract substantial donations from individuals or businesses.
How do not-for-profit organisations reimagine the services they provide when they must also reimagine how to access and secure funding to provide the services?
In considering this question, there is another area that not-for-profit organisations must consider.
SERVICES AND STAFFING
During COVID, many for-profit businesses were able to pivot and provide services through innovative use of technology.
While the use of technology within the not-for-profit sector is greater now than in pre-COVID, most not-for-profit organisations still provide face-to-face services for clients.
As with funding, there are several factors that are impacting the delivery of face-to-face services post-COVID.
STAFF AND EXHAUSTION
Many people are experiencing an ongoing exhaustion post-COVID that they often do not verbalise. The prolonged uncertainty and anxiety many experienced during COVID continues to be felt as exhaustion. In the haste to return to some level of normality, this exhaustion gets denied or, if it is felt, is not acknowledged because we are afraid of appearing weak.
Yet, exhaustion is a reality for many, particularly staff in the not-for-profit sector. The rapid changes they had to adjust to, the sense of uncertainty and the increasing complexity of client issues mean that staff are exhausted.
Reimagining how services can be provided is virtually impossible when staff are exhausted because it requires two things absent in states of exhaustion. These are:
- Energy
- Creativity
Reimagining requires energy—the energy of creativity and the power to implement what the creativity has created. When staff are exhausted, they do not have the energy to reimagine a different way of doing things.
TALENT DRAIN
The exhaustion many staff feel also contributes to the talent drain within the not-for-profit sector. Staff leave because they think they have nothing left to give. They also leave because, with rising interest rates and inflation, they can no longer afford to remain in the not-for-profit sector.
When people leave the sector, not only is talent lost, but knowledge and history are also lost. Given that the not-for-profit sector is heavily people based when knowledge is lost, people are unaware of the lessons and the history that previous staff members have learned.
At the beginning of this article, we asked the question.
How do not-for-profit organisations provide services that meet client needs and enable the organisation to remain viable?
As we have outlined, not-for-profit organisations face unique challenges in reimagining this future. However, despite the challenges, we need to start carving out time to reimagine what the future could be. As indicated above, we are often so focused on clients’ needs and daily demands that we don’t have the energy or time to reimagine what could be.
Yet, just as for-profit businesses have to carve out the space to reimagine the future of work, we have to carve out the space to do the same. Otherwise, we run the risk of being left behind and providing services that are no longer fit for our clients.
- Published in marketing, Not-For-Profit
Re-imagining
It may be that in years to come; COVID will be recognised as the primary catalyst for changing how we work in the 21st century.
- Published in marketing
Managing FOFO in Business
Fear of finding out was initially used in the medical world to describe the psychological barrier that stops many people from seeking medical treatment for health concerns.
ChatGPT in Business
In the last article, we discussed ChatGPT, what makes it different, and some ethical concerns around its use. In this article, we consider the use of ChatGPT in business.
ChatGPT
ChatGPT, launched in 2022 by OpenAI, has created discussion, debate and interest like many previous technological advances.
Attention Span
According to a study by Microsoft, people have an attention space of eight seconds which is a decrease from twelve seconds in 2000 and a second less than a goldfish, which has an attention span of nine seconds.
- Published in marketing, Psychology, Wellbeing
