The way people find information on the intranet has changed dramatically. Now, anytime someone has a question they can merely type that question into Google and get all the answers they would ever need right at their fingertips.
If you’re a jewelry maker, chances are you haven’t kept up with the changes Google and other search engines have made. Further, you probably don’t understand many of the common marketing abbreviations that are used.
SERPs, SEO, Keywords, Hummingbirds, Panda, and AMP; consider this your marketing abbreviation guide for navigating the often complex world of search engine marketing (SEM).
SEO:
The common acronym for Search Engine Optimization (SEO). This refers to the overall idea of having your web content rank within the search results on Google, Yahoo, Bing, or any other search engine that users may use.
How can you do this? The first step is to conduct keyword research to find out what users are searching for. Then, you’ll want to incorporate these phrases within your content along with links to other websites. The key to strong ranking is to find phrases that don’t already have a high use volume.
SERPs:
Search Engine Results Pages (SERPs) are the individual pages that users will get when they enter a query. SERPs are important because, in addition to ranking, you will also want to rank as close to position one as you can on these result pages. Why? Because it is commonly believed (and known to be true) that users don’t like to travel much beyond page one on any search engine.
Further, many search engines, like Google, specifically update the content on page one based off how users are interacting with the results. This means that if users are clicking on a result, and navigating back to the search engine results quickly, that result could fall ranking positions because the search engine recognizes that the result is not providing the true intent of the searcher for that query.
Short-Tail vs. Long-Tail:
Both of these relate to keywords. Short-tail keywords are phrases that are between 1 and 3 words long. While short-tail keywords are still very important, many of these keywords have been incorporated in a lot of content already from trends that started over 10 years ago. Another important consideration: these keywords are typical queries done on desktop computers.
Long-tail queries are phrases that are over 4 words long. While generally, this number is between 4 and 6, it can even be entire sentences. These keywords represent the shift in how users are searching for information. Many of these queries are performed on a mobile device and through voice search. While the search volume may be low for now, using these phrases may serve you better in the long run.
Fact Boxes (Position 0):
Google has recently updated their SERP pages to display much more information that is different than the traditional 10 blue links of the past. This means that when you conduct searches on this platform you will often see boxes filled with rich content. It can include a brief paragraph answer, image results, and local business information along the sidebar, just to name a few.
These fact boxes are prime real estate for you if you can rank for them. The most coveted of these spots is what is referred to Position 0, or the top fact box that lives above all blue link results. Ranking for this position has become the new gold standard within the industry
Search Algorithm:
Machine learning has made it possible for larger search engines to better predict user intent and display results that match this. Search algorithms are written and then deployed to better serve these intents for users.
In recent years, Google has completed 13 different updates to the search technology they use. All of this is to get the most relevant results for users. So what have these done? Everything from putting an emphasis on mobile friendly websites to ensuring that individuals are using keywords conversationally.
MetaData:
Metadata is simply information about data. Described another way, this is the information that describes what your content is about. For SEO purposes, this is typically back end code that search engines can read to tell users what your content is about.
The most common metadata is the snippets that search engines feature on their results pages. You’ll want to be sure that you are optimizing this with keywords, and editing it to fully explain what your content is about.
AMP:
Accelerated Mobile Pages (AMP) is the most recent update that Google has implemented. This open source allows those who host a website to make their content fast to load on mobile devices.
The display is very similar to the Facebook Instant Article technology. In many cases load times on AMP pages are just a few seconds. This is great for users who are conducting queries on their mobile devices, an ever growing population of search engine users.
In early 2017 Google announced that it would begin to give priority to websites that use AMP technology.
Mobile First:
When the iPhone was introduced 10 years ago, nobody quite knew how it would impact search. Many expected it to disrupt the desktop queries, but what has actually happened is that the number of searches has increased tremendously. That’s because users are conducting different searches on their mobile devices than they would on a desktop computer.
With the growth in mobile queries, it makes sense that search engines like Google are placing priority on sites that are mobile optimized. 2017 promises to be the year that mobile becomes a true ranking factor. If you haven’t yet considered mobile, do so sooner rather than later.
If you want to stay up-to-date with SEO, Moz is a great resource. This company is based out of Seattle and stays up-to-date with changes. They also deliver the content in an easy to digest way. Check them out to help stay on the forefront of such an often changing industry.
What other terms do you have questions about as it relates to SEO? Ask in the comments below!