With so many updates over the last few years it is very difficult to know what Google is looking for when it comes to ranking content. With this article I hope to give you better insight so you will have a better understanding of what Google is looking for.
As far as content goes the biggest concern will more than likely be semantic search. This all came about due to the Hummingbird update Google implemented a few months ago. The purpose of this update was to generalize specific content related to semantic search. Because of this the importance of long tail keywords has been diminished a bit.
The best way to explain this is to give you example. This is an example Jim Dougherty used in his article on SEO in 2014. It’s a great example so I will use it in this article as well. Let’s say you go to Google and search for “Steak Lettuce Wraps with Horseradish Cream”. This is a very specific search. You would therefore expect very specific search results back.
However, this isn’t always the case. You may find the sites that have a higher number of links will come up at the top. This is Google trying to generalize your search.
According to Google they are trying to give users more relevant data. They believe users are using more and more semantic queries during searches. Hummingbird is supposed to understand those semantic queries and somehow sort them all out. Whether or not this is the case is and will continue to be an ongoing debate.
Either way I think its safe to say long tail keywords may not be as effective as they once were. So the million dollar question is what kind of content will rank in Google serps in 2014? And the answer is very simple.
Quality relevant content! That is what Google is after. All their updates have that main goal in mind.
They are trying to ensure the best quality content always rises to the top. So instead of trying to game the search engines focus on producing quality content. Its not about how much content you have floating around the internet. Its about how much QUALITY content you have out there.
Your job is to write content your target audience will find helpful. Relevant, helpful content. That’s what Google wants. You can still use keywords as you have done before just make sure you are not overdoing it. Too many keywords will make your content hard to read and therefore not helpful.
Its also important you think outside the box. You can drive traffic more ways than just with content. Think pictures, graphs, charts and the popular infographics. All of these can help build links and drive traffic to your sites. Remember they need to be relevant and helpful.
Google will also still be ranking content from social networks. It won’t be as prevalent but it will still be a pick part of what is being ranked by Google in 2014.
The Power Of Social Media
Let’s think about social media for a moment, how great would it be to spread your content all over the web without having to lift a finger because other people will do it for you?
Well that’s the power of social media, great content can go viral and social links is definitely one of the ranking signals in the Google algorithm.
What if you don’t have 10,000 followers that will spread your content to their followers and so on?
Well the good news is that you can get others to share your content easily with the sites listed below:
This is a great site created by Ann Smarty where you can post your best content and others will tweet it, post it to Facebook, Pinterest and Stumble Upon for you. How it works is you earn points by sharing other people’s content (or you can purchase a pro account) on your social networks and then use those points to buy shares from others.
There are some power hitters there, with some members having thousands of followers. Just be sure that your content is top notch or they won’t approve it. The content should be worthy of going viral naturally. The results can be quite amazing.
JustRetweet works in the same way as Viral Buzz, you can earn or buy credits. Lots of members that will Tweet, FB and Google+ your best posts.
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