Search engines are getting smarter, is your SEO strategy?

Search engines are improving at an impressive rate, and advances in things like machine learning and natural language processing mean that what some people refer to "traditional SEO" are becoming less relevant these days.

In addition to covering the basics of copywriting, consideration must be placed on what users type into a search engine, such as:

• What is the user trying to achieve with their search query?
• Is this resource (your website content) answering that question?
• Are they (your business) an authority on this subject or problem?

What is the user’s intent, and your content intent?

Deriving the user's intent from their query is one aspect of the improvements for search engines in recent times. This being the case, you can appreciate that search engines can also derive intent from your content. They are much smarter about figuring out if the two align. Is what the user is searching for, what you are actually providing? Not just a keyword heavy invaluable page.

The key question to ask is, how are you providing value?

Your goal with your SEO strategy should be about creating a valuable resource for visitors. The thing that will make your content rank well, is if it is a valuable resource. There's no trickery here, it really is that simple. Providing ongoing value should be your primary goal, you want to help your customers, right?

If you're doing that with your content, this will get it in front of them. Search engines want to provide the best experience for their users, and if your content does that, it will rank you accordingly. It also means that time on site will improve for you, as your visitors will be spending time consuming your content. If you are seeing poor click-through rates or high bouncing for your site you should start thinking about why, and how you can improve your content to combat those problems.

It also means that time on site will improve for you, as your visitors will be spending time consuming your content. If you are seeing poor click-through rates or high bouncing for your site you should start thinking about why, and how you can improve your content to combat those problems.