One of the most important SEO trends: user intent and behaviour
SEO trend: enhancing the user experience
Every online website needs to work on SEO. This means the use of keywords, meta titles, descriptions, etc. Branded content is amongst the most popular platforms to reach a wide audience if done right. However, we need to make sure that the content is working within the framework of current SEO trends.
Whether how well the content is put together. Working the content with up to date SEO trends will only boost the results.
Branded content still needs to attract the right organic traffic and SEO is a good answer to this. In this article, we will be covering 2 of the biggest SEO trends that branded content needs to comply with.
What is branded content?
I would like to first discuss what branded content is. Branded content is unique to most of the content we may come across. Our minds are used to seeing TV and social media advertisements. We see a lot of brand marketing, but this is where brand content differs.
Branded content bridges the gap between marketing and entertainment. Remember the lego movie that came out in 2014?
It was one of the best films of the year and proved to be very entertaining to audiences. This is an example of branded content. The keyword here is content. Content can be delivered to entertain or please an audience. Marketing, however, can be subjective because it has one purpose which is marketing your goods and you never know how your market will respond.
A brand’s content can be used to not only market their products, but to also entertain audiences, whilst incorporating the company’s values and latest products, without making it feel forced to the audience. You want to make the branded content feel as natural as possible. As an audience, you don’t want to feel that there is a clash of ideas between the brand and the content. The two should work together.
But, what about current SEO trends?
We need to look out for SEO trends in 2021. Not one year before or one year ahead, but what are they?
Here are some of the truths that brand’s need to know when it comes to SEO trends:
One of the most important SEO trends: user intent and behaviour
This is by far the most important SEO trend of 2021. The good news with this trend is that it will most likely never change. As a brand, understanding exactly what your customers are looking for in your industry should always be at the top of your priorities.
The even better news is that we can use specific tools that give us access to vital pieces of data, when it comes to understanding our target audience’s search intent. The concluding point is that Google ranks content based on keyword relevancy.
This emphasizes how important it is for the user to gain access to the websites they are seeking. It doesn’t make sense for a user to purchase a product that they were not looking for in the first place.
Your brand marketing strategy needs to align with your target audience because consumers will not purchase products that they don’t want or need.
The first step that brands can work on first is to find out popular search queries. This will help the brand understand what their consumers are searching for and how they can start to work on their products based on these search terms. Tools such as SEMrush and Google trends including Google search console keyword data can be useful to know not only what our customers are searching for but what they are asking for.
Remember, consumers use Google to find out more about products and may search questions to find out more.
Once you start to understand and craft your branded content around your consumer’s search terms, we can think about how we can maintain and create a long-term relationship with our customers.
But, how do we do this?
SEO trend: enhancing the user experience
From a consumer’s point of view, we want to find your brand easily. Brand SERP optimization is a key area to look into. This involves working on how your brand appears on Google. This includes positive reviews, reputation, and a panel on the right-hand side. The below image displays the panels I am referring to.
When users type your brand name on Google, make sure to appear on the 1st page and have all the necessary information that best informs your user.
Your reputation doesn’t just come from Google, it can come from several different media outlets. These include Youtube, Facebook, and other social media platforms. Working on building a good reputation on these platforms is complying with an important SEO trend.
Another factor of user experience is your website’s layout and functionality. These areas include page speed, data & security, and other forms of SEO including a mobile- optimized website. Yes, a lot of consumers use mobile searches. Consider the stat below.
Every brand needs to look into mobile SEO as a means of attracting as much traffic as possible.
To conclude
Having looked at two of the biggest SEO trends for 2021. We can conclude that branded content needs to at least comply with the following areas.
- Brand SERP optimization
- User research
- Mobile website
- Website experience including layout and page speed
- Keyword relevancy
These 5 areas are what brands need to focus on in order to be more intelligent when it comes to working on their SEO and their marketing strategy. Luckily, these trends may stand the test of time and are pretty straightforward to test on websites.
The concluding factor is understanding what the customers are searching for and want from the industry that the brand is working in. This will provide brands a good starting point to build their marketing strategy on.
To read more about SEO, please click here.
Author bio
Sam Edwards is a content writer who lives in Tunbridge Wells. When he is not writing, he can be found grabbing a coffee or playing guitar.
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