How SEO has changed over the last five years
SEO is one of the most fast-paced areas of marketing, with Google algorithm changes constantly rolled out and consistent changes based on newer research into how we search, scroll and want to be given our content. It’s an ever-changing landscape that’s changed a lot over the last five years alone – here’s how SEO has advanced since 2012.
1. Keyword stuffing
Back in the day, keyword stuffing was a common practice, with SEO professionals stuffing as many multiple keywords into an article and website landing pages as possible. For instance, a website about “door repairs” with many attributed keywords stuffed into the article would usually rank highest, but since the release of the Panda update in January 2012, priority is given to interesting, informative articles, written for human consumption. Keyword stuffing is now seen as a ‘black hat’ SEO strategy.
2. Backlinks
The quantity of backlinks used to be a key ranking factor, with people buying thousands of backlinks for their website in order to rank higher. Not anymore. These days, it’s a case of quality over quantity, and links from spammy websites can harm your rankings. One good quality backlink from a highly reputable and relevant website is worth more than a thousand spammy ones.
3. Anchor text
Anchor text is the text on which a link is hyperlinked on a web page. It used to be that primary keywords acted as anchor text, but this doesn’t hold true anymore. The anchor text on an outbound link has no bearing on the page ranking relevance, it is just treated as part of the text.
These days, anchor text is written more from a UX point of view, to let the reader know exactly what the link will take them to. This is why “click here” links are heavily frowned upon.
4. Mobile optimisation
SERPs for mobile and desktop searches were essentially the same back in the day. It didn’t matter if your website was mobile optimised. If your desktop site ranked highly, then it did so on both mobile and desktop searches.
Since Google’s ‘mobilegeddon’ update of 2015, mobile and desktop are now separate search rankings, and ideally you’ll have a separate site for each.
5. Local SEO
Local SEO has always been important but it’s super essential in 2017. Local businesses need to ensure that their Google Places profile is active and completed and that they show on Google maps, with phone number, address and opening times to ensure a top local ranking.
SEO changes every year, sometimes more often, and requires constant updating and adapting. This is why as a digital marketing agency with specialism in SEO we are a good option for your business. Javelin keep constantly up to date with current and probable future practices to ensure that your SEO never lets you down