Much of Google’s basis was in place by the mid-2000s, but how has its algorithm — and in the previous 10 years, our strategy to SEO — changed consequently?
1. The rise of content
Google has refined what it considers to be “good” content over the years, but it was the Panda upgrade in 2011 that functioned as the death blow to spammy content and keyword stuffing.
After Panda, it was nearly impossible to get away with any gimmicky content -based approaches, for example favoring a high quantity of content while forgoing quality and substance.
Instead, the search engine winners were ones who created the best, most valuable content, spawning the adoption of content marketing among SEOs — and content is still king now.
2. The death of link schemes
Google has supplied its own definition of what a “link scheme” really is, along with some examples. The most straightforward explanation is this: Any attempt to deliberately influence your standing with links could qualify as a scheme, although many find the guidelines here somewhat equivocal.
By the late 2000s, Google had worked hard to stamp out black-hat and junk -based link-building practices, penalizing participants in link wheels and exchanges and paid linkers. But it was in 2012, with the Penguin upgrade, that link building actually became what it’s today. Now, precious link building and just natural link draw with guest places will earn you the ability you must rank higher.
3. The reshaping of local
Compared to 2006, local SEO now is a totally different animal. There have been tons of little iterations and changes to the layout (such as the local carousel, and now’s modern “3-pack” layout), but the biggest recent change to position variables was in 2014, with the Pigeon update.
With this upgrade, Google heavily incorporated traditional internet ranking signals into its ranking algorithm, giving well-optimized sites a leading edge in local search.
4. SERP overhauls
But take a look at a SERP screen and compare it to today, and you’ll see how different your concerns must be.
5. The rise of the Knowledge Graph
Another important influencer in modern SEO has been. The Knowledge Graph tries to give users direct, concise responses to their queries, often presenting them with a carton of info about a succinct response or a general area to a query that is straightforward. This is excellent for the user but frequently takes precedence over organic search results.
6. Mobile prioritization
Cellular devices have exploded in popularity since the iPhone emerged back in 2007, and Google has done everything it can to accentuate the relevance of optimizing websites for those mobile users. Really, in 2015, desktop queries were formally surpassed by cellular queries in Google search.
Optimizing for mobile has become not only common, but utterly demanded in no small part as a result of Google’s continuing and escalating insistence. Its mobile-friendly upgrade, which happened in two different periods, has been a major enforcer of this new standard.
7. The soft passing of key words
Penguin and Panda killed off the practice of keyword stuffing, but a smaller, more curious upgrade in 2013 spelled the “soft” departure of key word optimization altogether. Hummingbird is the name of the upgrade that introduced semantic search, Google’s manner of deciphering user intention instead of mapping out person key words and phrases.
Google attempts to comprehend meaning instead of fitting key words, so key word now -centric optimization doesn’t work the same way. Nevertheless, keyword research continues to be important, as it can help provide ranking chances to you and guide your strategic focus.
8. Update pacing and impact
It’s also worth noting that for a time — in the few years following Panda — Google stressed search optimizers out by releasing seemingly haphazard, important updates to its search algorithm that fundamentally changed how rankings were calculated. Nonetheless, now that the search engine has reached a solid foundation, the value and pacing of these upgrades have dropped. Now, updates are smaller, less noticeable, and roll out gradually, giving them a much less dramatic impact on the sector.
Closing thoughts
Understanding where Search Engine Optimization has come from and where SEO stands today can help you become a better online marketer. By now you eliminated any blackhat techniques in your strategy.
