It’s been a week since the Google June Spam Update rolled out, leading to significant shifts in search rankings. This completed on June 27, 2024. 

It is noteworthy that only three months have passed between spam updates. For comparison, there was just one spam update throughout the entire year of 2023, while 2024 has already seen two updates in just seven months.

This could indicate an increase in spam, likely driven by the rising popularity of AI-generated content, which Google aims to combat.

Let’s take a closer look at how this update has affected various sites and what steps you can take to avoid violating Google’s spam policies.

Purpose of the June 2024 Spam Update

The main purpose of Google’s June 2024 Spam Update is to enhance the detection and mitigation of spammy content that violates Google’s search policies.

The June 2024 update includes improvements to SpamBrain, making it more efficient at spotting spam and adapting to new types of spam that may emerge.

The update particularly targets websites that attempt to manipulate search rankings through spammy practices, including those heavily relying on AI-generated content.

Google’s goal is to maintain a fair and trustworthy search environment, where high-quality content is prioritized over spammy, low-value pages.

How to Avoid Google’s Spam Update Penalization

On June 28th, the level of volatility reached the “Very High” level across nearly all spheres and niches. 

This could indicate that Google was identifying common issues across many sites and penalizing them. I suspect it could have been an unskillful use of ChatGPT or other AI tools generating low-quality content. 

If you believe Google’s statements, which I’m skeptical about, their algorithm is constantly evolving.

Until all sites using 100% AI-generated content are dropped or removed from the SERPs altogether, they will continue to evolve it.

However, if your clients create quality content without relying solely on AI, or if they are skilled at integrating AI-generated text with original insights, you should notice an improvement in their rankings now or in the future. 

The widespread impact of this update suggests that Google has identified a significant issue and is working to address it.

Focus your clients on creating content that is genuinely useful to people. Advice them to share their thoughts, analytics, and personal experiences in articles. 

Don’t hesitate to offer advice and insights that are unique to their expertise. Such personalized content is difficult for artificial intelligence to replicate, making it harder for Google’s algorithm to categorize it as spam.

Be sure to check the positions of your clients’ sites with the WebCEO Rank Tracking Tool, which does not just give cached information but always shows real-time localized data, allowing you to react quickly and effectively work on your SEO strategy.

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Final Word

The June 2024 Spam Update underscores Google’s ongoing efforts to maintain the integrity of its search results by cracking down on spammy practices. 

With the increased frequency of these updates, it is clear that staying compliant with Google’s policies is more crucial than ever. 

By focusing on quality content and regular monitoring, SEO agencies can navigate these changes successfully and ensure their clients’ sites remain visible and valuable to users.

Take advantage of a 14-day trial of the WebCEO All-in-One Platform to avoid losing traffic and to keep track of any search engine updates.

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The post The Impact of Google’s June 2024 Spam Update appeared first on SEO tools & Online Marketing Tips Blog | WebCEO.

On March 5, Google announced a set of updates to their algorithm that should provide users with more useful content and label low-quality content as spam. The goal is to make genuinely relevant content that appears at the top of search results and not just cater to search engine algorithms.

Google’s latest initiative is a concerted effort to distinguish between content that serves the user’s intent and content that exists solely to game the system.

The update targets pages crafted predominantly to align with specific search queries, which has become an increasingly common practice with the advent of sophisticated language models and generative AI tools like ChatGPT.

“We’ve long had a policy against using automation to generate low-quality or unoriginal content at scale to manipulate search rankings. This policy was originally designed to address instances of content being generated at a scale where it was clear that automation was involved.”

The Impact of Generative AI on Content Quality

The advent of generative AI and large models has sparked a revolution in content creation, making it feasible to produce written materials at an unrealistic speed. It’s an open secret that everyone is now using ChatGPT for website content generation. Acknowledging this reality isn’t a cause for shame; rather, it underscores the importance of mastering the tool’s proper use. If, however, your approach involves simply inputting a query like ‘write an article about the 10 best SEO tools’ and directly pasting the response, you may encounter problems.

First and foremost, even if Google doesn’t recognize it, such content might not resonate with users, which is paramount for you and your clients’ success. Secondly, you can avoid penalties from this update if you work properly with AI friends. Enhancing the text with edits or personal insights to craft truly beneficial content is not only manageable but also crucial for effective SEO. Limiting yourself to just one tool for content creation is unnecessary. The WebCEO Content Assistant can prevent you from missing vital details in your content creation.

Google’s Commitment to Quality

Google estimates that these changes will slash the presence of low-quality, unoriginal content in search results by approximately 40%, directing users toward websites that are genuinely worth their attention. It is not merely an incremental update but a substantial recalibration of Google’s core systems, with the rollout process lasting up to a month.

Additionally, the update aims at websites that are hosting legitimate original content but feature low-quality material, such as affiliate links or third-party contributions that leech off the site’s credibility. Such practices will soon fall under Google’s spam categorization, with enforcement set to begin on May 5.

“For example, a third party might publish payday loan reviews on a trusted educational website to gain ranking benefits from the site. Such content ranking highly on Search can confuse or mislead visitors who may have vastly different expectations for the content on a given website.”

Google will also consider domains to be spammy which have been acquired and repurposed to boost the ranking of low-quality content in search results.

Conclusion

For those who have heavily relied on ChatGPT or similar AI tools for content generation, now is the time for a detailed review. Websites filled with content created without significant human oversight face the highest risk under Google’s new policies. If your site falls into this category, consider this a critical time to initiate content audits. Evaluate the uniqueness, relevance, and value of your AI-generated content from a user’s perspective. Where necessary, infuse the text with personal insights, you own experience, expert knowledge, pros and cons, or additional research to elevate its quality.

Remember, the goal is not to completely disavow the use of generative AI in content creation but to harness it responsibly. AI can be a powerful ally in the content creation process, offering efficiency and creativity. However, the final output should always be distinctly human—reflecting genuine expertise, empathy, and insight that AI alone cannot replicate.

Regularly monitoring your site’s rankings with WebCEO’s Rank Tracker can offer invaluable insights into how these updates impact your visibility on Google. If you notice a sudden dip or fluctuation, it could be a sign to reevaluate your content strategy.

The post 99.9% You Will Face Google Penalties for ChatGPT-Generated Content appeared first on SEO tools & Online Marketing Tips Blog | WebCEO.

On August 22, 2023, Google launched a new update named Google Core Update August 2023. As is customary, and as Google states, the rollout process might take up to two weeks.

What to do?

Our foremost advice is to stay composed and focused. Such updates are predominantly targeted at something other than specific websites or pages. On the contrary, websites with lower rankings have the potential to become more prominent and substantial.

Website owners who observe a website’s rankings drop must redirect their attention toward identifying any technical issues and work on improving their website’s quality.

How does Google Core Update August 2023 affect rankings?

Over the past month, the volatility dynamics have remained remarkably high, and it isn’t easy now to assess the impact of the Google Core Update August 2023 on rankings.

During such updates, we strongly recommend frequently monitoring your rankings to recognize any need to improve a page’s quality. To facilitate this, utilize the WebCEO Rank Tracking Tool and Track All Types of Google Results, Including SERP Features.

We will vigilantly monitor this update’s progression and will undoubtedly showcase its impact in forthcoming articles.

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The post Google Core Update August 2023 appeared first on SEO tools & Online Marketing Tips Blog | WebCEO.

Another Google update has come in – the February 2023 Product Reviews Update. It aims to improve the search experience by providing more accurate and reliable information for users who are looking for product reviews.

With this update, Google Search’s product reviews system will be more refined and sophisticated, making it easier for users to find high-quality reviews of products they are interested in.

What is The Google February 2023 Product Reviews Update?

The Google February 2023 Product Reviews Update is a search algorithm update that aims to improve the quality of product reviews that appear in Google Search results. It focuses on surfacing high-quality product reviews that give users the information they need to make informed purchasing decisions.

The update will also penalize websites that provide bad or spammy product reviews, which decreases the quality of product review content on the internet.

Purpose of The Update

The Product Reviews System aims to weed out thin content that consists of mere summaries and surface more product reviews based on experience and research.

It means that people who are creating reviews must ensure that they provide authoritative, informative, and unbiased information about the products with advanced content (photos and videos)

This is the fourth update that affects product reviews. In the past, these updates only pertained to the English language and primarily targeted the US market. However, Google is now expanding its reach by adding new languages to the mix and evaluating the quality of the information provided in each language.

Below is a list of the languages which were added to the update:

1. Dutch
2. English
3. French
4. German
5. Indonesian
6. Italian
7. Polish
8. Portuguese
9. Russian
10. Spanish
11. Vietnamese

What should website owners who publish reviews do?

First of all, realize that this update can significantly impact your rank if your website has many product reviews.

Secondly, do not panic. You should wait until the end of the update to draw any conclusions and make any decisions.

Remain calm until around March 7, 2023. Until then, we advise you to ensure that your reviews provide comprehensive and well-researched information that includes the product’s features, benefits, drawbacks, and any other relevant information that can help users make an informed decision.

It is also essential to avoid using deceptive tactics or practices that could be considered spammy or manipulative.

We have collected a few quick tips that can improve your reviews and are happy to share them with you.

Quick Tips for Creating High-Quality Product Reviews

• Be objective: Your reviews should be impartial and present the product’s advantages and disadvantages in a fair and balanced manner. It helps make informed decisions for clients and builds credibility for your review.
  
• Be thorough: Write comprehensive information about the product, including its features, benefits, and drawbacks.
  
• Be informative: Provide relevant information about the product (price, availability, and compatibility).
  
• Be credible: Use facts and evidence to build credibility and trust with your readers. You can use statistics, research, and personal experience to support your claims. If you cite other sources, make sure to provide proper attribution.
  
• Be original: You must be original and unique and offer your perspective on the product. Avoid copying content from other sources, as this can harm your credibility and lead to penalties from search engines.
  
  Also, you can try ChatGPT for building unique descriptions. It provides perspectives and insights based on its vast knowledge and understanding of various topics and industries.
  
• Be specific: Your review should be clear and detailed, providing concrete examples to illustrate your points.
  
• Be transparent: If you have any conflicts of interest or biases that may influence your review, it is important to disclose them to your readers.
  
• Be accessible: Write in a clear and concise manner that is easy to understand. Use simple language and avoid jargon or technical terms that may confuse readers.
  
• Be helpful: Offer recommendations and tips to help readers get the most out of the product. Add some advice on using the product effectively or troubleshooting common issues.
  
  It can be very effective to show an image of your product in use in an environment where it would be used. Any LED readouts in the image should show realistic readings.
  
• Be responsive: Finally, it is important to be responsive to reader comments and feedback. Responding to comments can help build engagement and trust with your readers and provide valuable insights into their needs and preferences.

Also, for creating high-quality product reviews that meet Google’s new standards, you can use WebCEO’s SEO Content Assistant to optimize your content effectively.

Conclusion

The Google February 2023 Product Reviews Update aims to improve the quality of product reviews in Google Search results. The update will reward high-quality product reviews while penalizing websites with bad or spammy reviews. Also, it will expand its reach to new languages and evaluate the quality of the information provided in each language we mentioned above.

To prepare for this update, website owners should ensure that their reviews provide comprehensive and well-researched information, avoid deceptive tactics or practices, and follow the tips in our article and Google Guidelines to create high-quality product reviews.

Also, do not forget to check your rankings changes with WebCEO’s Rank Tracker after every Google Update.

The post <strong>Understanding the Google February 2023 Product Reviews Update</strong> appeared first on SEO tools & Online Marketing Tips Blog | WebCEO.

From August 25 to September 9, Google rolled out a helpful content update (HCU) that made much noise in the SEO industry. However, site rankings did not feel much fluctuation compared to the nerves of SEO specialists. People worried about the fate of their sites and assumed a global reshuffle would happen, something on the Panda level. But only 20% of users noticed changes in positions after the update. We all know that many factors unrelated to a single update can cause changes in Google’s search rankings. And starting from this, part of that 20% attributed the changes to a Helpful Update that had no connection with their drop or rise. Dr. Peter J. Meyers analyzed this update and noted that looking for changes in site positions is like trying to find one particular drop of water in two weeks of rain during a summer thunderstorm. Glenn Gabe assessed the update’s impact in his tweet: 

To understand the humor of the situation, let’s look at the volatility dynamics from July 20 to September 28. 

Data provided by https://www.advancedwebranking.com/

Data provided by https://algoroo.com/

We can see that the level of volatility during this update remained unchanged and minor compared to the Product Reviews Update. Although the overall level of changes is relatively low, some sites still felt the impact of HCU, but still not as strong as with the previous update.

What types of websites were affected by the September Helpful Content Update (HCU)?

The greatest impact was on sites dealing with:

• Business
• Careers
• Arts & Entertainment
• Health&Fitness
• Hobbies & Interests
• News & Weather Information
• Personal Finance
• Travel

Data provided by https://www.advancedwebranking.com/

The graphs show that these particular niches may have had a lot of unhelpful content, and it’s easy to believe that. For example, Travel. You can find many articles on “What to buy in Turkey as a souvenir,” but not all of them will give you a list of the most popular souvenirs and the exact information on where to buy them. Most likely, some travel agencies’ websites will use AI to create articles for promotion. Of course, all niches can abuse content creation to game the algorithm, but I don’t think it’s a coincidence here. 

We all know that the health niche can lack credibility and should always be called into question. We can see from the graph that health&fitness sites had almost a peak value, which means that Google penalizes those sites where keeping credibility, expertise, and authority is very important. 

Let’s take a look at which niches the upgrade has not affected at all:

• Food & Drink
• Home and Garden
• Pets
• Shopping
• Society
• Sports

These niches primarily include guides and news, which require little expertise. Or maybe Google can’t yet see the difference between valuable and unhelpful content in these areas. To be sure, we need to look at the graphs after the new Helpful Content Update, which came out on December 5, 2022.

December 2022 Helpful Content Update Impact

Google released a December 2022 helpful content update on December 5. This update is supposed to improve the classifier and work across content globally in all languages. The rollout may take up to two weeks to complete. One week later, we are still waiting for changes in the rankings. Judging from experience, you should only expect sanctions against your sites if you have blatantly inappropriate content.

If you were suddenly affected by this update in August and took steps to improve, you will be able to recover in December. However, there is also the opposite effect. If you were not penalized in August, you might see a change in the rank after the December update is over.

Data provided by https://www.semrush.com/

The most significant changes are in news, shopping, art, and sports. However, there is still time to conclude this update’s impact on any niche because the update is still rolling out. Google continues to interpret that people should create content for people. But whatever Google says, we must not only avoid the punishment of the algorithm but also use the algorithm to our benefit!

Why did Google release an update at this particular time, and what are its reasons? 

Let’s look at the option that benefits the user. SEO specialists are very fond of manipulating Google results. Most commonly, they analyze the top 10 sites that currently score for a keyword and then compose specifications for an article that should beat most of them. While a good copywriter can write unique text on any topic, creating quality content is a much more difficult task, and Google is allegedly getting better at identifying it. Another Google problem is that experienced users can find good quality content, for example, on medicine. In contrast, inexperienced users take the first result as the truth. From this perspective, this is an excellent update for users. 

But it’s not so simple. In the end, the helpful content update impact was disappointing in September, and many SEOs did not see a considerable change. According to Aleyda Solis’ Twitter poll, 63.1% of users did not notice any movement in the ranking, 8.9% reported a rise, and 12% indicated a negative impact of the update. The remaining 16% did not check for changes. Also, you can see in the graphs above that the volatility was ridiculous.

If you have observed a significant drop or rise, likely, something on your site was frankly wrong or very good, but Google didn’t detect it before. In almost every guide it offers, Google says that people should make content for people, so if you’ve followed that advice, you should be fine.

So why is Google rolling out such a high-profile update that doesn’t make a big difference?

First, Google can use such a big announcement for a PR campaign and naturally improve the quality of its search engine results. This noise allows them to tell everyone again, “We want you to make content for people.” To avoid punishment, site owners have withdrawn from creating content with AI or other Black Hat SEO techniques.  

Secondly, helpful content updates by Google show us what it wants to see in search engine results. Company employees have said, “Update will be improved, and you will feel its impact in the future.” Even though the second update has already been released, we must stay one step ahead and keep the algorithm from hurting our rankings. Plus, if you get sanctioned by this update, it will affect your entire site’s ranking. Below you’ll find our tips on improving the quality of your content and using the December Helpful Content Update to boost your rankings.

Six tips to benefit from the December Google Helpful Content Update

1. Focus on creating content directly related to the site’s theme 

To determine thematic, count the number of articles devoted to a particular topic. If you have many pieces that do not correspond to the main topic, check the amount of traffic you get from these pages. If there needs to be more traffic, you should remove these pages to raise the relevance of the entire site. 

2. Make your content complete

You can use WebCEO’s Content Assistant for this. Create a report with your primary keywords; our tool will show you bits of advice you could miss. Remember, the user must feel the emotional component of your text and leave your site with no further questions. To achieve this, you must take advantage of critical elements in your content and on-page optimization. Otherwise, no one will be able to read your material. Our tool will show you how to improve your optimization and the pages of your competitors for inspiration. It will help you analyze the essential information a user is looking for and make your content ultra useful.

3. Write content with added value

This is a crucial point. You should always give the user some new and valuable information that he can’t find anywhere else. This thinking will allow you to improve the quality of any website you have. But how do you give users unique information? If you write the content yourself, you must study the topic thoroughly, see what your competitors are writing, and present the information in the best possible way through the prism of your perception. If you need more knowledge and competence in the field you want to write about, then hire an expert. We will consider this method in detail in point six.

4. Add words that confirm that your content is expert

It can be phrases like we tested, researched, recommended, our favorite, medically reviewed. The algorithm may search for and highlight such terms, so you can specifically add such words. For example, “We have tried 20 different microphones, tested the quality, appearance, as well as use by professional players and recording studios, and here’s what we can offer based on our expertise.” Of course, photos should confirm everything.

5. Refrain from covering broad topics 

The Helpful content update hurts precisely the sites that write everything about everything. For example, if your site is about musical instruments, and you write an article about the best snow tires in 2023, not only will you not make it to the top, but you can lower the ranking of your entire site.

6. Hire or invite an expert in your niche if a copywriter wrote all the text for your site 

He or she will give an opinion and comment on your article. A suitable method for creating content for the copywriter is to gather information and prepare for an interview with an expert. For example, the copywriter reads the first ten search results for a keyword, writes out the main theses, prepares questions for the expert, communicates with him or her, and creates content based on the expert’s review and opinion. 

Conclusion

After the September update, we did not see significant changes and should not expect them now. Of course, this is only if you do not use black hat techniques and if you don’t completely ignore the Helpful Content Update. Don’t worry too much about the fate of your site if you have good content and don’t spread it over many different topics. 

 Sometimes we may see comments like this.

But it is better not to use this method because, sooner or later, your site may lose traffic even without the participation of HCU. Let’s see the results after the December update finishes rolling out and whether it will have any tangible effect. 

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The post Google Helpful Content Update Is Back appeared first on SEO tools & Online Marketing Tips Blog | WebCEO.

Don’t you love it when Google makes waves with its major updates?

Earlier this September, the search giant finished rolling out a new core update. The immediate effects were as usual: some websites didn’t even notice anything, while others reported fluctuations in traffic and/or rankings. Thankfully, the SEO community knew why it was happening because Google warned everyone in advance.

Maybe you’ve felt the effects, too? Even if you haven’t, you want to know what’s going on, trust us. Google updates should never be ignored, and this one is particularly big (although it’s still warming up). Let’s give you a quick rundown.

What is Google’s Helpful Content Update?

As is the case with literally any algorithm update, Google wants to give users better search results. Only the method differs.

This time, Google’s preference appears to be content. Sites with better content receive more love, and vice versa: low-quality content earns you lower rankings. What’s more, it affects entire websites rather than individual pages. That’s right: all of your site rankings will be re-evaluated based on your content’s quality. All content you have on your site.

Cheerful news, isn’t it? But Google never demands the impossible from webmasters. Even the worst-case scenario can be overcome with a solid plan.

Was I hit by the Helpful Content Update?

There’s an easy way to find out. Just check how your site rankings and traffic behaved before and after September 9th. This information can be found in Google Search Console…

However, we recommend connecting your GSC account to WebCEO for an extra bit of useful information.

You see, WebCEO keeps track of Google’s updates and marks them on the chart with Search Console’s data. This is the easiest way to see if the Helpful Content Update has done anything to your site.

Here’s what the Top Pages report will show you:

In addition to that, you can view the list of the latest Google updates for more context. (You can even add your own events to this list: for example, if you have done anything notable for your SEO which could affect your site’s performance in search engines and you’d like to track your progress in the report.)

Look for September 9th on the chart. It will be marked by a G icon. If you see any unusual fluctuations past this mark, the Helpful Content Update could be the reason.

And if that’s the case, why?

Who is targeted by the Helpful Content Update?

Google’s goal is the same as always: present the most useful and valuable content. This update merely raised the bar on what it considers valuable – or, rather, made it official.

When does content fall short?

• It offers too little or no value. If a user isn’t satisfied after visiting a page, it clearly needs improvement.
• It’s optimized for search engines rather than for users. On-page SEO is important, but don’t forget the human whose needs matter even more.
• It’s made without any real expertise on the subject. If others can tell about it better or make a more compelling offer, they will definitely outrank you.
• It’s unrelated or too loosely related to the site’s niche. Google doesn’t think that a jack of all trades is better than a master of one. When your content steps outside of your site’s specialty, Google may see it as a cheap attempt to grab more traffic from users who don’t need what you have to offer.
• It’s automatically generated. No good level of quality can be expected from content that wasn’t made by humans. Unless that is the selling point (e.g. AI-generated Harry Potter chapters).
• It’s just clickbait. Pretty self-explanatory. Nobody likes clickbait content.

If you have anything like that on your site, that’s what you must improve. With that in mind, what is the next step?

How to optimize your site for the Helpful Content Update

Let’s start with what you shouldn’t do: wait until you get hit by the update. You can take preemptive measures right now to soften the impact – if it comes. And if it does come, you will find it much easier to deal with.

Since the goal is to raise the quality of your site’s content, two obvious actions come to mind:

1. Improve what you have;
2. Delete the pages you may deem unnecessary.

But the catch is, this is a site-wide update. At the moment, there’s no telling just how much low-quality content is enough to tank your rankings. The most bothersome scenario may call for a full content revision on your site.

And if your page count is in triple digits or higher, then I can hear you groan from way over there. Do you see now why it’s better to start early?

All right, the task is to find low-quality content on your site. Where are the easiest places to look?

• Pages with a low word count.

Google has stated they don’t have a preferred word count. However, more often than not, you will need more words rather than fewer to explore a topic well. The tricky part is bringing up the word counts for all of your pages to help you find the offenders.

If you made your site in WordPress, there are plugins for that, such as WP Word Count. Alternatively, Screaming Frog can do it.

• Pages with low Google rankings.

These are way easier to find.

Open the Top Pages report in WebCEO and click on the Avg. position column to sort it in descending order. All your lowest ranking content will appear at the top of the table, with a delta displaying recent changes.

In other words: if a page has lost rankings after the Helpful Content Update, it might be just what you are looking for. If it isn’t, keep digging through the table and through the pages.

• Pages with high Google rankings.

Surprise! Well, not really. Site rankings are a fluid thing, and even the best content doesn’t stay on SERP #1 forever. Your competitors are working hard to make sure of that.

Once again in the Top Pages report, sort the Avg. position column in the ascending order. Visit your top ranking pages and see if their content could be improved in any way. Most likely it can. At least you know you won’t have to delete those pages.

Wrapping up

The Helpful Content Update has only just finished rolling out. We won’t see its full effects until some time passes – weeks, or maybe months. However, Google is pretty clear about what it wants from websites and their content, and it all boils down to two simple points:

1. Deepen your expertise;
2. Go all out when you write.

What can you learn today? What can you do on your site today? It’s all up to you!

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The post New Google Update: How to Make Your Content More Helpful appeared first on SEO tools & Online Marketing Tips Blog | WebCEO.

Have you checked how your site appears in search results lately? Noticed anything strange? If you did, you weren’t the only one. That’s what normally happens when Google experiments with its algorithm.

The final days of August 2021 marked more than just the end of this year’s summer and its warmth (oh how I already miss it). At the end of last month, Google rolled out a new update – and the Internet cried. It caused a still-ongoing wave of complaints, and for that the SEO community has dubbed this update Titlepocalypse.

Sounds serious. What in the world happened?

What is the Titlepocalypse and what did it do?

Judging by the name, it has something to do with page titles. That’s exactly right: something has indeed happened to websites’ page titles. Fortunately, not on the pages themselves – only in search results. So what’s the big change?

On paper, this update is simplicity itself: Google has decided to change what information it uses for search results. The bare minimum of every search snippet is a title and a URL. Before this update, Google used pages’ <title> tags for the titles of their search snippets. And now, Google uses <H1> tags instead. About 20% of all websites have been affected.

That’s it. So what’s the big deal, you ask?

Well, as it turns out, even such a small change can cause large ripples. Webmasters all over the world are reporting interesting things. Here are some of their findings:

• Drop in CTR, clicks and impressions have been observed in websites from the affected 20%.
• Various changes in site rankings. Some sites lost, some sites gained (including ours!), some reported no changes at all.
• Perhaps the most unpleasant change: Google also started adding words to the new titles it deems relevant to the pages’ content. However, site owners tend to disagree about the relevance of these additions. For example, healthcare sites like NHS had the word “vaccinations” added to some of their search results’ titles where the word itself was nowhere to be found on the pages themselves.
• Incorrectly capitalized words, as well as added symbols such as hyphens, dashes and pluses.
• In some cases, Google even pulls text from <H2> tags and inserts them into the new titles.

If you think some of the effects of this update look really concerning, you are not alone. Check out the discussion of the Titlepocalypse update on Google’s official blog.

What should you do?

Don’t worry, we have some good news too.

All of those problems are perfectly solvable. Google is aware of the user feedback, so the issue of irrelevant words and symbols should go away on its own (or rather, Google will hopefully fix it themselves). As for the titles, Google has confirmed it will still use information from the <title> tags, so let’s not give up on it yet.

(I have to wonder if Google is really planning to make the <title> tag obsolete, and this update is meant to test the waters. We will see.)

If your site took a blow from Titlepocalypse and lost clicks and rankings, what can you do right now?

The solution is easy: optimize your <title> and <H1> tags (and maybe <H2> as well, to be safe) to make them more clickable. Start by looking up the pages on your site where these tags might need fixing.

Scan your website with our On-Page Issues tool and see what you may find. This report is just what you need to spot problems with HTML tags on your site.

How to make your titles more clickable

The trick is to turn your titles into something that users will notice and want to check out. Sounds easy enough… in theory. What does it mean in practice?

Here’s a number of ways to make your page titles more eye-catching:

1. Keep their length within Google’s character limit. Long titles get cropped off, which means fewer clicks.
2. Include attention-grabbing words. To name just a few: (Updated), [Interview], [Video], (With Examples). There is no fixed list of such words and there will never be, as people’s tastes and needs are constantly shifting, but it’s a good idea to follow the trends.
3. Include symbols such as colon, brackets, question mark, percent symbol. (What if Google was simply trying to make search results more clickable by adding symbols?)
4. Include numbers.
5. Include words “why” and “what”.
6. Compose titles like this: number + emotional hook + type of content + subject. For example, 15 Most Shocking Twists in the Marvel Universe.

Which pages should you fix first? A good idea is to check your site analytics. Look for the pages which have recently suffered the greatest losses in traffic, rankings and click-through rates – it might very well be the result of Titlepocalypse. Then improve their titles and H1 headings.

You can do this using Google Search Console if you follow these steps:

• Click on Search results in the Performance section;
• Click on Date, open the Compare tab and select a time period (last 28 days should do), click Apply;
• Check all four boxes above the graph (Total clicks, Total impressions, Average CTR, Average position);
• Scroll down and open the Pages tab in the table. Look for the pages with negative numbers in any column.

Now, I don’t know about you, but that’s too much clicking for my tastes. I prefer using this handy shortcut in WebCEO:

• Connect your Google Search Console account to your site project;
• Open the Top Pages report and see the data right there.

Quick and easy! If you think fewer steps is better, I agree.

The four columns in the middle are nicely grouped together, and each of them can show what happened with a red downwards arrow.

The “winning” pages will score four of those arrows in a row. Be sure to reward them with better titles and headings.

Summary

The Internet may still be feeling the effects of this new Google update, but it’s far from the most troublesome they have released. Remember Mobilegeddon and the sheer amount of work needed to optimize your site for mobile devices? Compared to that, picking better titles feels like a holiday.

Finding the pages to fix takes only a single scanning. Do it now!

The post New Google Update: What Happened to Everyone’s Page Titles? appeared first on SEO tools & Online Marketing Tips Blog | WebCEO.

The new Core Web Vitals update was finally released! Earlier this year, Google released a product review update that targets only (you guessed it) product review pages, but Core Web Vitals are going to affect every website. This new update is much wider in scope, and no website will be left untouched. So you’d best be ready.

You’ve most likely already heard about Core Web Vitals over the past few months – indeed, they have been a major topic since the last year. If you have already prepared your site for it, great work! If you haven’t, or if you are worried you might still be missing something, then you have come to the right place. Let’s look into what exactly Core Web Vitals are, what makes them so global and how to optimize your website for this new Google update.

What are the Core Web Vitals?

It’s simple: Core Web Vitals are signals which measure the quality of the user experience on a page. There are three of them:

1. Cumulative Layout Shift. It’s responsible for a page’s visual stability.
2. Largest Contentful Paint. It’s tied to a page’s loading speed.
3. First Input Delay. It shows the quality of your pages’ interactivity, how responsive they are.

Let’s explore each of the three.

1. Cumulative Layout Shift (CLS)

First, let’s define CLS: it’s the sum of all layout shifts that occur while a web page is opened in your browser. And what is a layout shift? It means that a visible element changes its position on a page from one rendered frame to the next.

The browser calculates CLS by looking at the viewport size and the movement of unstable elements in the viewport between two rendered frames. The layout shift score is a product of two measures of that movement: the impact fraction and the distance fraction.

So, Layout shift score = impact fraction * distance fraction.

Ideally, CLS should be under 0.1. Of course, perfect readings on websites are hard to achieve, so you should still be fine in the orange zone, which is under 0.25. If your CLS is any higher than that number, it’s time to start worrying.

Simply put:

Your CLS < 0.1: perfect

0.1 < your CLS < 0.25: optimal, but could be improved

Your CLS > 0.25: needs fixing

There are a few ways to check your CLS and the other Core Web Vitals metrics. One is to open the developer’s tools in your browser. In Chrome, for example, you need to press F12 or Ctrl-Shift-I and open the Performance tab. Reload the page, and you will see something like this:

If it took you a while to find CLS there, you are not the only one. It doesn’t look any more appealing in other browsers either. There’s an easier way to find this information: with SEO tools.

Open the Desktop Speed report in WebCEO and you will see this:

Much better and straight to the point.

If you check the list of found issues in the report, you may find the types of issues which lower the quality of your CLS:

• Large layout shifts;
• Render-blocking resources;
• Text hidden during web font load;
• Not preloaded key requests;
• Improperly sized images.

(Note: underlined issues in the picture above are related to all Core Web Vitals, not just CLS.)

Click on the issues to expand them and see the details, then fix them and rescan the page to see the improvements.

2. Largest Contentful Paint (LCP)

LCP measures the loading speed of your site’s content. Specifically, it isn’t all content, but only its largest part in the first scroll of a page. For example, if you have a large banner in the top of your page, that’s what LCP will choose for its judgement (unless you have something even bigger).

Here’s an example of what LCP looks like in action:

The largest element is a paragraph of text that is displayed before any of the images or logo finish loading. Since all the individual images are smaller than this paragraph, it remains the largest element throughout the load process.

An ideal LCP is under 2.5 seconds. It stops being comfortable at after 4 seconds, which is definitely a sign that something needs fixing.

Your LCP < 2.5s: perfect

2.5s < your LCP < 4s: optimal, but could be improved

Your LCP > 4s: needs fixing

Same as CLS, LCP can be checked in your browser’s developer’s tools (e.g. the Performance tab in Chrome). But we’ve already demonstrated a better option, haven’t we?

Open the Desktop Speed report in WebCEO again. If you don’t like what it shows for your LCP, scroll down to see what causes it to be so poor. Actually, a good practice is to check the list of found issues anyway, just in case.

Here are some of the most common issues affecting LCP that you may find in the report:

• High request counts and large transfer sizes;
• High network round-trip time;
• Critical request chains;
• High initial server response time;
• Images not served in next-gen format.

3. First Input Delay (FID)

FID measures the time between the users interacting with the page (e.g. by clicking on a button) and the browser starting to respond to the interaction. The shorter this time, the sooner the users get what they want, so you want FID to be low.

To be as specific as possible: FID is not the whole time between the input and the end result (like a form appearing on the screen). It ends when the browser begins to process the response.

An FID of 100 milliseconds and lower is perfect. Any higher than 300 ms puts you into the red zone.

Your FID < 100ms: perfect

100ms < your FID < 300ms: optimal, but could be improved

Your FID > 300ms: needs fixing

FID can be checked in the Main tab of Chrome’s DevTools or in the same Desktop Speed report we’ve been using so far.

Some of the most commonly occurring FID-related issues are:

• Inefficient cache policy;
• Long main-thread tasks;
• Unused JavaScript;
• Unused CSS;
• Excessive Document Object Model size.

Afterword

What do you think? Optimizing your website for Core Web Vitals is much easier than you imagined, isn’t it? All it takes is to keep an eye on specific kinds of site issues. You’ve already done it before, now you simply need to pay them a little more attention.

The new update is going to roll out soon, and the SEO world has been prepared for it for a long time now. You have both the information and the tools at your disposal. Check your website now and see what you can do!

Are you ready for the new Google update? Test your website's Core Web Vitals! Sign Up Free

The post Core Web Vitals: Test Your Site for a New Google Update appeared first on SEO tools & Online Marketing Tips Blog | WebCEO.

Hottest SEO news: Moz upgrades their Domain Authority metric!

Moz’s plans to make improvements to its DA have been known for a while now. That doesn’t mean you won’t find this post helpful. DA is a very well-known and widely used SEO metric; any changes made to it are absolutely worth discussing if you have a website to run. So keep reading!

This post is for you if:

• You do SEO, but don’t usually follow SEO news;
• You haven’t heard about Domain Authority or don’t quite understand what it is;
• You want to know how exactly Domain Authority has changed and what it means for SEO.

Let’s dive in.

What is Domain Authority?

Domain Authority, or DA for short, is a metric invented by Moz. It looks at the backlinks pointing to a website (i.e. how many domains acknowledge it as an authority), then calculates the probability that it will rank well in Google, on a scale of 0 to 100.

In a nutshell:

• What Domain Authority is: a prediction that isn’t guaranteed to be 100% accurate. However, it does come pretty close, and it does its job well. There is a strong correlation between high DA values and high ranking positions.
• What Domain Authority isn’t: a Google ranking factor or any other sort of an absolute thing that you must always take into account when doing SEO.

I mean, if DA was infallible, there wouldn’t be any need to upgrade it now, would there?

DA is widely used by SEO tools other than Moz – for example, WebCEO displays it in the Competitor Link Profile tool.

Which is why this makes this post all the more relevant to our users.

How has Domain Authority changed?

The motivation for upgrading their site-evaluating metric is pretty simple: Moz simply wanted to make it more effective. How exactly? They did it in three steps:

• Changed their approach to link profile analysis;
• Expanded the list of factors DA looks at when analyzing sites;
• Scheduled daily updates for the new DA.

Now, a few words about each.

DA has become more scrupulous about evaluating linking domains and their authority. It takes into account the fact that all ways of acquiring backlinks are not equal. Certain methods – such as link spam and buying links – are frowned upon by Google, as it prefers links to be genuine and reflect honest feedback from users. Therefore, the new DA will lower the value of those “dishonest” links in its algorithm as well.

What’s more, the Moz people have increased their link index to a whopping 35 trillion. It will let them detect link manipulation much more effectively; in fact, such a drastic increase is a must if they want to be good at this job.

What does this all mean?

The obvious consequence of this upgrade is that many (if not all) websites are going to see a drop in their Domain Authority score. However, as stated earlier, DA does not affect Google rankings, so that’s nothing to worry about. At worst, everyone will start being pickier about who links to them… And that could make improving Google rankings more difficult.

Next, the newer and longer list of factors determining a site’s DA.

It’s actually way simpler than it sounds.

The new DA incorporates another Moz metric called the Spam Score. What is the Spam Score? It compares your site against other sites that have been penalized or even banned by Google. The more “spammy factors” your site shares with them, the higher your score, and vice versa.

In short, depending on how “spammy” your linking domains are, your renewed DA score could go either way. You might even find it hasn’t changed at all.

Daily updates: self-explanatory. Moz used to update DA monthly, so this is a step forward without a doubt.

What’s next?

This update’s consequences are surprisingly much less dramatic than the update itself.

The most important takeaway is this: carry on as usual. Only search engines can change SEO as we know it – for example, if Google alters its algorithm. For now, SEO remains the same, as does one of its core principles: build your backlinks wisely. Reliable, high-quality, authoritative and context-relevant websites are your best friends as always.

Are you still worried your Domain Authority is too low? In that case, I have good news for you. High-quality backlinks aren’t the only way to increase it – another way is to make a revision of your link profile. Test your site now and see if you feel you should remove any toxic backlinks.

The post SEO News: Moz Upgrades Domain Authority appeared first on SEO tools & Online Marketing Tips Blog | WebCEO.

2017 is nearing its end. Soon I’ll have to throw away last year’s Christmas tree and buy a new one. That physical work can wait, however, as for now, we should use what little brainpower remains in our heads before we can let them recharge over the holidays.

With the changing of yet another year, now is one of the best times to ponder the latest SEO trends. There are reasons to suspect 2018 will take us in certain new directions and some of our working principles will be reinforced. What SEO trends and techniques does 2018 hold for us? Let’s sneak a peek into the very near future and brace ourselves for it.

1. Voice search

Voice search makes up 20% of all online searches. By 2020, this number may very well reach 50%. We are standing on the precipice of a new era on the Internet, which means new things for would-be SEO experts like you and me to learn and master. The future is so unforgiving!

Optimization for voice search might require some getting used to because it’s different from your orthodox way of Googling things. Instead of disjointed words and incomplete phrases, users tend to speak using actual, proper questions which search algorithms will have to work with. In other words, you’ll need to start optimizing websites for this new species of ‘voice keywords’. Picture long-tail keywords, except with a head that comes in one of six different shapes (“who”, “what”, “where”, “when”, “why”, “how”) and a tail bent like a question mark. Those are voice keywords.

Get creative with variations of questions and look them all up in WebCEO’s Keyword Suggestions tool. The number of global and local searches for the keyword of your choice will tell you how competitive it is (you may not want it to be too competitive). And of course, don’t forget to follow up questions with valid, detailed answers so the Google app can read them out loud.

2. Even better user experience

As always, Google will favor websites that provide users with a nice, engaging experience. Conversely, the websites that fail to deliver will see a drop in rankings instead. As the quality of websites rises worldwide, user expectations will keep rising too, so be careful not to fall behind!

Using Google Analytics to monitor user behavior on your site, you can get an idea about how much they enjoy it. A high bounce rate may indicate that you might need to change something. You can improve the UX on your site by increasing its loading speed, making its design user-friendly, tending to technical issues and, of course, creating the best content for your visitors.

Keep an eye on your incoming traffic in WebCEO’s Web Analytics. If you notice that it has dropped overall or regarding some sources, it may be a sign that things have gone south and need improvement. A small leak can sink a great ship; don’t let this happen to you!

3. SEO-friendly content of the most interest to visitors

Content will continue to be one of the prevalent ranking factors. However, Google hates stagnation. Their policy is to give users the best the Internet has to offer, so the standards for what content counts as good are bound to rise again in the new year.

The best way to outdo the competitor websites now occupying page one is to, well, outdo them. Help your visitors better than those sites do. Content that gives users what they need, gives them answers and helps them solve their problems is the kind that Google values the most. Here’s a good analogy that comes to mind. If you want to beat athletes in a sports competition, train your body to rival theirs; if you want to beat websites to page one, create content to rival theirs. Makes sense, doesn’t it?

And of course, your content should be optimized for search engines. That means placing keywords moderately in all the right places:

• title tag
• meta description tag
• H1-H4 tags
• Image names and alt tags
• Text

Last but not least, consider diversifying your content with LSI keywords that are semantically related to the main keywords you use. It gives search engines a better understanding of what you are about.

4. More caution while building links

Businesses know the value of inbound links. Just look at SEO statistics: 20% of businesses dedicate over 50% of their overall SEO budget to link building. Backlinks are among the most powerful ranking factors and will remain so in 2018.

However, we may need to be extra careful about how we obtain them. Earlier in May, Google noticed an increase in spammy links from guest blogging and will likely keep a watchful eye on any guest contributions in the future. If we are lucky, we might see the birth of a new way to get on Google’s bad side – always a welcome change!

Of course, it doesn’t mean a farewell to guest blogging. You’ll just have to keep it within the limits of what’s allowed and not let it hurt your brand’s reputation (be sure the guest post you publish doesn’t have more than one link going to sites he or she wants to promote). Instead of picking a single method of gaining links and milking it until Google comes after you, spread out and get links from many sources (why not peek at your competitors’ backlink profiles for a start?). Google will appreciate such a link building strategy a lot more.

Be sure not to let any bad apples sneak into your basket of backlinks. Weed them out and keep your profile clean with WebCEO’s Toxic Links tool.

5. Seizing Position 0

Google is determined to make speed a factor in giving users the information they need. That’s why there’s so much extra fluff on page one: quick answers, carousels, “people also ask”… They are shown above the highest ranking results, this being the reason why their space is called “position zero” – which is de facto the new position one. If your site is already on the first page, it opens up a possibility to claim a spot at position zero, too.

To make it happen, use Schema code when you build your site. Since resulting featured snippets tend to provide answers to “who”, “what”, “when”, “where” and “how” types of questions, it predisposes them to be voice search material. Optimize for one, get one more for free!

6. Improving your click-through rate to compete against Position 0

Fight for and against position zero at the same time? Yes, you read that right.

Position zero offers a lot of room for all those ads and featured snippets. However, it causes problems for organic search results: they get buried under all the fluff and sometimes even pushed down below the fold. If you don’t occupy position zero yourself, your site can be pretty hard to find even if you are on Google’s first page at position #1. The competition is stark… but fortunately, not impossible to beat.

So the goal is to make your site more clickable in search results. Make it more attractive to users, so much that all those quickly available answers seem like low-hanging fruit in comparison. Here are a few helpful tips:

• Optimize your page titles and descriptions. Don’t make them so long that they get cut off when displayed in SERPs (and with WebCEO’s On-Site Issues Overview tool, you’ll always know when that happens). Have keywords in them, but also consider using power words that invoke emotion (e.g. “amazing”, “best”, “proven”) and promise quick solutions (“fast delivery”, “24/7”, “now”).
• Optimize the URLs. A string of random letters and numbers at the end of a URL looks messy. On the other hand, a readable URL, which describes what the page is about, is much more likely to catch the users’ attention and earn their trust in your content.
• Use numbered lists in your content, as well as numbers in titles. A research by Conductor found that numbers increase CTR by 36%; clearly, users see something in them. Magic numbers work because people believe.
• Use schema markup on your site. Extra HTML code on your pages turns into extra bits of information next to your site’s link in search results. That way, it looks more credible and just prettier in general (read: clickable).

7. Local SEO

For business owners, Position 0 is the most convenient place to be in search results. Featured snippets are like billboards: big letters, bright logo, address and phone number, a couple reviews as a bonus – all covering a large chunk of the screen and shamelessly in your face. Absolutely worth fighting for, too.

Of course, there’s more to local SEO than getting featured in snippets. You’ll need to submit your website on Google My Business and relevant business directories, optimize it for mobile devices, use location-specific keywords, include NAP citations on your and other sites; and if you are deft enough to create expert content that resonates with your target audience and shows them you aren’t new to what you do, that’s a massive bonus.

8. PPC in addition to SEO

Featured snippets aren’t the only thing stealing the users’ attention from organic results. There are pay-per-click ads, too.

Look at that page, so beautifully infested with ads. Hopefully their number won’t increase in 2018 as the space above the fold isn’t getting any bigger. How would it feel to finally rank number one and still be unnoticed thanks to paid ads and Google Maps? Almost beats the purpose of SEO, doesn’t it?

Of course, it depends on the search query. Plenty of them return organic results right away, making your site easier to find if it’s at the top organically. If PPC results are in the way, though, then you have two ways of dealing with this barrier: either try to rank for different keywords or embrace PPC. Google has the best of intentions when it shows them first, after all.

9. Monitoring and improving conversion rates

When your keywords are ranking higher than they did yesterday, it’s always a delight. This can be compared only to watching your conversion rates grow. To have an adequate image of how well your pages convert, you will need to attach UTM tracking code to each of your major links and watch everything closely in Google Analytics. That’s one part of the mosaic, now onto the next.

Heat map generators have proven to be a powerful asset in optimizing websites (we can attest to that). Tools for observing user behavior on-page are exactly what’s needed to complement rankings and GA statistics. You can look at a heat map and immediately see the weak spots in your site’s design. Maybe your calls-to-action don’t get enough clicks simply because they go unnoticed! They could be below the fold, or they don’t even look like something people are supposed to click on, or maybe they just aren’t actionable enough and need some extra oomph.

Keep in mind that no tool can solve problems with your conversion – that’s still up to you. But it can quickly point you in the right direction and save you a lot of time.

10. Fast and responsive mobile-friendly sites

The reign of mobile devices promises to be long and prosperous. They are here to stay, and be loved, and drive even more traffic to websites than they already are. I doubt large screens will ever go obsolete, but I can guarantee we’ll see more and more small screens in the future. With such a variety of sizes in place, it will be an obvious necessity to make websites look good on every kind of display.

There’s also the mobile-first index to take into account. It’s going to play a new, vital role in ranking websites. Once it’s out, they will be ranked depending on the user experience provided by their mobile versions. Not having a mobile version means not being indexed – a disaster for your SEO.

Therefore, give your website a responsive design and make it load as fast as possible. WebCEO’s Mobile Optimization tool will test your website’s mobile-friendliness and give you tips for improving on it, while the Page Speed tool will give you even more tips for – surprise! – speeding it up.

11. Accelerated Mobile Pages

A high loading speed is a fantastic thing in general, not just for mobile-friendly sites. Users are less likely to lose patience and more eager to stick around and lurk deeper instead. It’s a ranking factor for Google, too. Can you come up with a reason not to make your site load fast? If yes, please let me know, it’ll be great prank material.

In 2015, Google launched the Accelerated Mobile Pages project, and it’s been a great help for webmasters who want to speed their sites up. An AMP page is very light on code: a bare minimum of HTML, optional use of CSS, and no Javascript at all. Less code equals less work for browsers, thus a page made in this manner loads in the blink of an eye. If your site has pages that function without code that’s excessive by AMP standards, consider AMPing them up.

12. Image optimization for a new, powerful visual search

Most search engines have an image search function, but I’ve yet to meet anyone who believes it’s perfect. However, search engines are both able and willing to improve it, as evidenced by the steps they have made towards upgrading their visual search capabilities. Google Lens and Pinterest Lens are both capable of coming up with results based on as little as a photo of any random thing in your vicinity. That’s two more unique “search engines” to optimize for in the near future.

And while I mention Pinterest, consider making your images shareable on social media. That’s more exposure for you and potential backlinks pointing to your site. Remember that likes and shares and comments on social media posts that link to you will count for SEO purposes as backlinks.

13. Moving to HTTPS and leave HTTP behind

I’m surprised how many websites still haven’t done this. Google approves of secure connections and made them a lightweight ranking factor back in 2014. They went as far as to mark HTTP sites as non-secure in Chrome, scaring users away when they see this. Is your site still HTTP? Then your rankings aren’t as high as they could be.

14. Earning your audience’s trust through brand building

The majority of users don’t like looking past Google’s page one. If something isn’t there, it doesn’t exist to them. Does this mean your site will definitely start getting clicks once it makes it there? Not necessarily, as there are still other options on the same page. But your chances would improve greatly if your brand was more recognizable.

Brand building is an essential part of any long-term SEO strategy. It should be a part of yours, as well, if you intend to keep your site around for a long time. Content, products, service or what-have-you – put effort into giving the best to others and earn a good reputation in return. Social media is as great a place as ever for interacting with your audience for feedback and closer ties. And of course, keep track of your brand’s mentions online so that displeased words don’t escape your attention. WebCEO’s Web Buzz Monitoring tool will make sure that no negative remarks puncture a hole in the SEO balloon that’s meant to take you to the top.

The more people know you, and the more good things they know and say about you, the better for your business goals. Work to earn their trust.

15. Video content to be even more popular

The Internet is crazy about video content. A study by Hubspot indicated that 45% of users watch at least an hour worth of YouTube and Facebook videos weekly. What’s more, videos are expected to hog a staggering 80% of all online traffic by the early 2020s. If you still aren’t using YouTube and other video hosting platforms to build brand awareness and attract visitors, then make your debut now and start 2018 off with a bang. When the 2020s hit, you’ll be riding that gigantic tide of traffic.

Meanwhile in the present, YouTube has already become so big that people search for things there without turning to Google at all. Not wanting to be outdone, Google includes YouTube videos in its search results, and it’s not uncommon to see them on page one. In other words, you can make two powerful figures fight over you – morally questionable if they were people, but perfectly fine when they are search engines.

And since video content is so well-liked, you have options other than YouTube. You can simply embed videos directly on your site and make users spend more time on it – yet another reason for Google to rank your site higher.

And the most important advice of all: it will be an absolute must to use powerful SEO tools. Your campaign depends on your ability to measure progress and detect issues before they cause lasting damage. If there is one thing that will be the same in the new year, it’s WebCEO’s readiness to give you its full support!

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The post 15 Leading SEO Trends for 2018 appeared first on SEO tools & Online Marketing Tips Blog | WebCEO.