1. 10 Things you Needto Know for SEO in 2015
The timesthey-are-a-changing,andinthe SEOworld,theyprettymuchare alwayschanging. It’sno
industryfornostalgia,those whogetstuckinthe past, fall behindthe competition. Unlessyouwantto
endup as roadkill youhave topay attentiontothe signsof the presentandthe future. While it’s
impossible toreadthe mindof Google,there are certainsignsthatare worth payingattentiontoin
orderto not onlyhave yourbasescovered,butto alsoexcel againstyourcompetitors.
2014 was an intense yearforSEO. Google wentonan algorithmfrenzy highlightedbythe Pandaupdate
inMay and thenarguablya biggerone inOctoberwiththe Penguinsupdate. These updateswere
designedtopenalize lowqualitycontent andwebsiteswithunnatural linkstructures. The truthis if you
had yourear to the groundyou should’ve knownwhatwascoming. Don’tgetleftbehindwhenthe next
phase inSEO beginstounveil,here are 10 thingsyouneedtoknow right now inorder tostay ahead.
Increasing Importance of Mobile
Anywebsite thatdoesn'tcurrentlyhave aresponsivewebsiteneedstotake immediatestepstofix that.
2014 was a monumental yearinmarketingasmobile Internetuse finallysurpasseddesktopInternet
use. Marketersspent49 percentof theirpaidsearchdollars onmobile platformsduringthe 2014
holidayseason,accordingtoa reportfromMarin Software,andmanymarketersexpectthe focuson
mobile toincrease in2015. The abilityfora brand toquicklyandeffectivelydeliverhigh-qualitymobile
experiencesforconsumerswill certainlyprovideacompetitiveadvantage.
Time for Bing?
Many are predictingthatBingwill leadthe searchenginesinmarketshare expansionasthe search
engine’smarketingskillsovertake Google’sprogrammingskills.Google will maintaindominance of
marketshare,but Bingwill expand.Binghasone massive andtimelyopportunitytogaingroundinthe
searchmarketand that’s the mobile experience.If theyhitmobilesearchexperience outof the park,
thenGoogle won’tbe able totouch them.
HTTP vs. HTTPS
Protectingprivacyandpersonal informationonline hasbecome apartof our national dialogue. With
that inmind, Google has begunemphasizingthe importance of utilizingHTTPS.While manywebsites
have traditionally runona HyperTextTransferProtocol (HTTP),a HyperTextTransport Protocol Secure
(HTTPS) ensuresthata website isencryptedandcannotbe hacked.WithGoogle beginningtotestthe
watersinusingHTTPS as a rankingfactor,itwill be importanttosecure yourwebsite withHTTPSin
2015.
SEO will Include Video
2014 was a huge yearfor video.WithYouTube brandengagementsurpassingthatof Facebook,and44%
of customerssayingthatvideosencouragedthemtobuy,now isthe time to setyour sightsonvideo
marketingif thisisn’tsomethingyou’vealreadystarted.You’ll needtooptimize yourYouTube channel,
include actionablelinksinyourvideos,andproduce interestingvideosthatcancapture an audience.

2. Long-tail Search Traffic
Long-tail keywordqueriestendtobe more relevantandconvertat higherratesthanone or two word
phrases,asa resultof greaterspecificity,andultimately,youtendtobe dealingwithamotivated
purchaser.
One studystatedthat 16% to 20% of dailykeywordquerieshadneverbeenseenbefore.The stage isset
for these figurestoincrease,especiallyasmobile devicesroll outapplicationsforvocal searchqueries
and the enginesbecome increasinglymore adeptatunderstandinglong-tail intent.While taking
advantage of long-tail searchtrafficcantake significanttime,it'sapromisingdirectionthatcanyield
resultsinthe longrun.
Social Signals Will Be Even More Important
Changeswithinthe searchengine algorithmshave notjustplacedgreaterimportance onthe content,
but they’ve alsobeguntorelymore uponsocial signalstoelevateresultsupthe ladderinsearchranking
importance.Withthe popularityof social media,anditsobviousindicatorsof trustandauthority,many
are justwaitingforGoogle totake a large stepinincorporatingthatintoits algorithm.Eventually,we
expecttosee contentandsocial signalsintegrated,withcontentof higherqualitygettingmore social
sharesand thusrisinghigherinthe searchengine results.
Content Still Reigning Champion
Contentmarketingemergedasa significanttrendinthe SEOcommunityduringthe pastfew years,and
it's becomingessentialformarketers.Peoplehave become lesspatientwithWebspamandhave
learnedtospotit more quickly,resultinginhigherbounce ratesandlowertime andpage sessionsfor
manywebsite owners.Tobe successful today,contentneedstobe thorough,aswell asengagingand
useful.
Placement > Frequency
KeywordshelpGoogle tounderstandwhatitisyourbranddoes. To thisend,the placementof your
keywordsmattersfarmore than theirfrequency.Postingyourkeywordonce inthe title tagof your site
and once inthe headermattersfarmore than stuffingitfive timesintothe bodycopy.Google breaks
your site downintokeyareas,with Metainformationandheaderstakingtoppriority,bodycopytaking
secondarypriority,andside barsandfooterstakingthe lastpriority. Therefore,youshouldn’thone inon
one specifickeywordphrase, otherwise,yoursite earnapenaltyforkeywordstuffing.
Earning Links will be Harder
Earnedlinksandcitationsprovide several SEObenefitsincludingincreasedvisibilityandbrand
awareness,leadgeneration,andconversionrates. However,beware of negative SEO practices.Itis
expectedtobe a biggerthreatthis year.Still,keepupyourlinkearningeffortsandbuildrelationships
the oldand provenwayto boostyour website authority. Justdonotresortto spammy,manipulative,
unnatural linkstructures,because Googleisonthe huntto wipe those sitesout.

3. The Basics of SEO Will Remain
Justbecause itis highlyspecializedindustrythatcontinuallyupdatesitself,shouldn’tallow youto
believethatthere are nocore principlestothe SEOworld. Successful SEOdependsontwokeyfactors:
whatyou say about yourself (on-page SEO) andwhatothersay aboutyou(off-page SEO). Yourjobisto
findthe balance betweenthosetwo,andif done withinsight,youwill soonbe funnelingmore potential
businessyourwayonline.