Rand Fishkin, Wizard of Moz | @randfish | [email protected]
The SEO Revolution
Will Not Be Televised
Be Kindly Advised:This presentation features an
above-average quantity of Rand’s
personal opinion & perception
This Presentation Is Online Here:
bit.ly/seorevolution2014
Major Shifts in Search(of which most folks are aware)
5
1) Far More
Diversity of
Result Types
Only 15% of SERPs are “10 Blue Links”
Local Results
Above Organic +
Map
Local Carousel
+ Map
Sitelinks +
Knowledge Graph
+ News
AdWords Top +
Sitelinks +
Knowledge Graph
+ Recent Google+
Posts + Also
Search For
Recipe images via
Schema markup + mini-
sitelinks + video snippets
+ ratings, calories, &
reviews rich snippets
Mini-sitelinks +
images box +
knowledge graph
+ video snippets
Ignorance via
Google Suggest
(also embedded Q+A
links)
2) Cannibalization of
Traffic-Referring
Queries by Google
Themselves
If I were the NCAA, I don’t
think I could stomach
paying Google to appear in
these results.
This is even worse.
And it’s not just
happening for popular
queries.
It’s even happening
to your friends
3) Sacrificing Transparency Under the Guise of Privacy
Via Not Provided Count
G+ = Author Photos & Knowledge Graph Posts
1 2
G+ Gives You Follower Counts, a Follow Button, More Posts
from Your Account, & Can Show Up in SERPS
3 54 6 7
If You’re In Someone’s Circles, All You Have to Do is
Mention Their Search Phrase to be on Page 1
8
Even for Incredibly Competitive Queries
8
5) The Long-Awaited Dominance of & Bias
Toward Brands in Search Has Arrived
Via Mozcast
27% Growth in 24 Months
Brand Gets You Rankings, & It Gets You Out of Trouble.
Via Techcrunch
Subtle Changes to Search(that not everyone might know)
4
1) Content Growth Exceeding Query Growth
Search stats via Comscore and AJ Kohn on G+;
2013 Actually Had 11 Months of YoY Growth
Search stats via Comscore and AJ Kohn on G+;
Content May Go the Way of Advertising
Ad cycle & content graphic via Rand’s Blog
Standing Out May Become Much, Much Harder
Ad cycle & content graphic via Rand’s Blog
2) On-Page’s Impact
Growing After Years
Of Shrinking
Instead of carefully keyword-matched
content from sites like eHow &
Journeymart, Hummingbird has helped
Google “intent-match” and return more
valuable (though less classically “SEO’d”)
pages
3) A New Philosophy/PR Approach to Spam
1997-2011: Spam is our problem
2012-2014: Spam is your problem
4) Introduction of Machine-Learning to Search Quality Algorithms
Quora thread with Edmond Lau’s response here
A Brief Look at Machine Learning
A Brief Look at Machine Learning
Search quality filters
Sites G don’t like
Any & every signal
New Algo
Signals that correlate w/
bad sites
Ways Our Industry is
Taking These Changes
3
Anger, Distrust, Resentment, & Retaliation
Young fools. Only now do you see the folly of retweeting “sick burns” on Matt Cutts as your
primary mode of defense.
Modification of Strategic Approaches
Many of Dr. Pete’s weekends were burned to bring us this
information.
Reject and (or) Ignore
Hey, if I want to buy some links,
you’ll shut up and sell me some $
%&# links.
Landscape Upheavals for
SEOs Themselves
2
The Evolution of Technical SEO
What’s insane is that this same pattern holds true for every facet of SEO, not
just the technical side.
Whoa.
LinkedIn Members w/ “SEO” in
their Job Title
LinkedIn Members w/ “SEO” in their
Job Description
Via LinkedIn and Moz’s 2013 Industry Survey
1997-2010: “I’m an SEO”
Via LinkedIn and Moz’s 2013 Industry Survey
2011-Present: “SEO is a part of my job.”
Quiet Revolution
1
New Spam Tactics
+
Brand Biasing
+
Broader Algorithms
=
Decline of Classic SEO
(aka keywords & links)
Search Growth Leveling Off
+
Google Taking Many Queries
for Themselves
+
Increasing Competition
=
A Need to Find New / More
Creative Opportunities
Increasing Complexity
+
Perception of Accessibility
=
Continued Lack of Respect,
Influence, and Resources
3 of My Big Takeaways
We Need to Create Better Expectations(or our teams/clients will continue to demand the impossible)
#1
We Must Educate Clients, Managers, and
Teams About What Modern SEO Entails
About the New Timeframes for SEO Success
Via Case Study: How Long It Takes to See Organic Results
AKA “The SEO Slog”
Via Surviving the SEO Slog
And about the Reality of SEO’s New Risks
Penalty?
Cannibalization?
Drop in Demand?
Technical Issue?
Competition?
New SERP Types?
It’s Not Just About What’s Expected of SEOs, But
What We Expect from Our Teams & Clients
If SEOs are expected to have broad marketing
knowledge, other teams need to have SEO knowledge, too.
Early Adopters of New Channels or
Tactics Will Earn Outsize Returns(more than ever, it’s paying off to be on the bleeding edge)
#2
TripAdvisor Got a Pass b/c There Was No Panda
Tripadvisor in 2011 featuring
virtually no unique content
Many Got a Pass b/c There Was No Penguin
Don’t worry… I’m not going to tell on
you
Infographic Peddlers?
Guest Blog Abusers?
How Geraldine replies to guest post requests.
Getty Images Will Get a Pass Because
They’re a Brand and They’re Early
Via Rae Hoffman’s SMX “Meet the Search Engines” Takeaways
Earning an Engaged Following on Google+
Today May Be Hard
But So Was Earning a Following on Facebook
Instagram? Pinterest? Secret?
Those Who Aren’t Building Brands Will
Struggle Mightily in the Years Ahead(The “find & abuse exploits” era of SEO is ending. The only logical strategy today is
to be so good that Google looks bad taking you out)
#3
Link Building ≠ Brand Building
Keyword Targeting ≠ Brand Building
Short-Term Rankings ≠ Brand Building
Official airport website
Major brand
Major brand
Major brand
Major brand
You’re Probably Sick of Hearing About Content
Marketing
You’re Probably Sick of Hearing About
Social Media Marketing
You’re Probably Sick of Hearing About
Earning Press
You’re Probably Sick of Hearing About
“Going Viral”
Guess What?
Content Marketing
Social Media Marketing
Earning Press
Going “Viral”
= Brand Building
Google made SEOs into brand builders
by making the algorithm love brands.
Welcome to the Revolution