Post on 14-Dec-2014
description
Rand Fishkin, Wizard of Moz | @randfish | rand@moz.com
Cracking the SEO Code for 2015: Tactics to Love vs. Leave
(advanced edition)
This Presentation Is Online
Here:bit.ly/seocode2014
A brief look at how SEO has evolved over the past five years.
What Changed?
Searchers (and engines) are demanding more from results than ever before
#1
Page Speed Expectations
Via http://www.relentlesstechnology.com/insights/page-speed.html
Design & UX Expectations
Via The Rise of Customer Expectations Around User Experience
Content Quality Expectations
Via http://www.searchmetrics.com/en/knowledge-base/ranking-factors/
Employing User & Usage Data
Leaning More Heavily on Human Quality Raters
Via http://www.thesempost.com/google-rewrites-quality-rating-guide-seos-need-know/
Past SEO Success May Not Be Indicative of the Future
The move from keyword matching to topic association
#2
1998-2008 Keyword Matching
2009-2012 Keyword Matching
2013+ Keyword Matching
2013+ Keyword Matching
2013+ Keyword Matching
2013+ Keyword Matching
Google’s Upgraded Their Understanding
Have We Upgraded Our Content?
Domain-level keyword connections are on the rise
#3
Google’s Algorithm Used to Be Very Page-Level Biased
This page has the most relevance and links.
This one has the 2nd most.
In the Past Few Years, They’ve Become More Inclusive of Domain-Level Signals
We’ve seen a lot of searchers around this type of topic get positive results from this site. Let’s see if we can find a relevant result from it.
Don’t Have a Domain-Level Content Strategy?
You May Lose to Less SEO-Sophisticated,More Brand-Focused Competitors
Google’s crackdown on spam is basically a crackdown on ranking without a brand
#4
Manipulating Google? You’d Better Be a Brand.
Via http://marketingland.com/10-big-brands-that-were-penalized-by-google-69646
Ranking Well,But Not a Brand?Google’s Gonna Reclassify Those
Tactics.
Via http://www.seobook.com/learn-seo/infographics/brand-branding-brands.php
Critical SEO data still flows for the 1%, but is unavailable to the 99%
#5
~10% of Referral Data Still Available
Via www.notprovidedcount.com/
AdWords’ [Exact Match]
No Longer Exact
Via http://adwords.blogspot.com/2014/08/close-variant-matching-for-all-exact.html
Via http://moz.com/blog/keyword-research-and-targeting-without-exact-match-whiteboard-friday
But If You’re a Big Advertiser, that Keyword Data Still Flows Through Your Reports
GA Sampling is Pervasive Unless You Pay…
Via https://support.google.com/analytics/answer/2601061?hl=en
This Inequity Might Feel Familiar
Over time, behaviors of brands, searchers, & algorithmshave combined to create something similar in SEO
Processes and practices to change in the year ahead tostay a step ahead
Tactics
Research & TargetingKeyword
Classic Keyword Process
BrainstormCollect InputGenerate an Ideation List
Use KW Research Tools to Expand
Group Keywords by Targeting & Ranking Ability
Produce List of Pages to Create Based on KWs
Don’t KW Cannibalize – Consolidate if Need Be
What’s Broken?
BrainstormCollect InputGenerate an Ideation List
Use KW Research Tools to Expand
Group Keywords by Targeting & Ranking Ability
Produce List of Pages to Create Based on KWs
Don’t KW Cannibalize – Consolidate if Need Be
Use KW Research Tools to Expand
Instead of This:
Do This:
1) Search the web, news, images, YouTube, & Buzzsumo using your list
2) Collect the concepts, topics, intents, related searches, & popular content you find
3) Aggregate into a new keyword list for refinement via volume estimate/expansion tools
Group Keywords by Targeting & Ranking Ability
Instead of This:
Do This:
1) Group keywords by overlap in searcher intent
2) Break into buckets of 1-5+ terms/phrases that all serve those same intents. Worry less about precise KW match targeting in the title/URL/headline.
Produce List of Pages to Create Based on KWs
Instead of This:
Do This:
1) Produce a list of searcher intents w/ 1-5 KWs each.
2) Create pages to target each intent, and plan ongoing content efforts w/ more competitive & temporally demanding KWs
Don’t KW Cannibalize; Consolidate if Need Be
Instead of This:
Do This:
1) If you have multiple pages already targeting the same KW intent(s), consider consolidation (especially if they don’t rank well).
2) Anticipate creating fresh content that may repeatedly target the same KWs based on temporal changes, new intents, & the goal of connecting your domain w/ those terms in the engine.
A simplistic example to help illustrate:
Keyword Brainstorm List
Evil Mustache Wax
Mustache Products for Baddies
Evil-Doers Facial Grooming
Bad Guy Moustaches
Criminal Mustaches
Villainous Men’s Grooming
“Infamous!” “Sinister!” I’m already getting expansion terms from searching
People are clearly curious about what signals mustaches send! A perfect topic for my content.
Johnny Depp & Lyft… Potential partners in moustachio’d crime?
Google clearly has search volume and data for terms like this, but they won’t show them in Adwords
Using the data I received from my searches, however, gives me some new opportunities (w/ very light competition)
Group keywords by intent, not matchingVillainous Mustaches
Bad Mustache
Evil Mustache
Villain Mustache
Monster Mustache
Criminal Mustaches
Vile Mustaches Styles
Evil Mustache Styles
Sinister Mustache Products
Unsavory, Moustachio’d Characters
Sacrilegious Mustaches
Loathesome Mustache Wax
Detestable Stache Products
Vampiric Mustache Grooming Goods
Famous Villain Mustaches
Movie Badguy Mustaches
Searchers looking for any of these keyword phrases likely have the same, shared intent/goal
Make Pages that Focus on
Intent
Content that engages people AND fits with topic modeling algos
Build Up Your Site’s Association with a Topic
(or set of topics)
Beardbrand’s constant presence across the web (in social, video, news, blogs, etc) means Google associates mustache product searches with their site.
Building EarningLink
We Sometimes Have Blinders On In Link Building Mode…
Instead of This:
Must. Get. Followed Link with Anchor Text.
Do This.
Build. Relationship.
Social Media Can Build Relationships
Comments Can Build Relationships
A Friendly Email Builds a Relationship
Even when the email is simply through a form, a note of thanks/compliment goes a long way.
Advertising is a Relationship
The goal isn’t links. The goal is to grow the quantity of interactions to the point where the relationship is real.
Links are just a great side effect of the relationships
(BTW - that’s exactly the type of link Google wants to count)
Pro Tip #1: These are terrible targets:
Sites #1-10 get all the attention, and likely experience online interaction fatigue very fast
These are ideal targets:
Sites #12+ are far more likely to be flattered by/interested in online interactions, and have far fewer pre-existing, web-based relationships
Likewise, these are probably terrible targets:
Folks with heavy Twitter followings often get bombarded with offers
While these are likely excellent targets:
A high social authority means lots of RTs per tweet, but probably not nearly as much attention as the vanity metric owners
Pro Tip #2: Need a warm intro? GoConspire
I can find anyone at a given company and/or any specific person and how we’re connected.Whoa.
Pro Tip #3: Correlation Exists Between Advertisers on Small-Medium Sites & Links
There’s a strong probability that at some point, the blogger/site owner will editorially link to these folks, simply because they’re top of mind.
Pro Tip #4: Brand Mentions Near Keywords May Have Link-Like Effects
This page isn’t even a great match, but Google’s associations of MarthaStewart.com w/ terms like “house” and “home organization” and “checklist” likely play into the ranking
CreationContent
Content Marketing May Be CreatingFalse Expectations & Bad Practices
Me. Must. Get. Viral. Hit.
Me. Must. Publish. Every. Day.
Me. Must. Write. Good. Unique. Content.
Me. Must. Make. Content. Convert.
Why. Me. No. Get. Results.?
Criteria for Modern Content Investments:
One-of-a-Kind – appears nowhere else on the web
Relevant – contains content engines can interpret as on-topic
Helpful – resolves the searcher’s query in a useful, efficient manner
Uniquely Valuable – provides information that’s unavailable elsewhere
Great UX– is easy & pleasurable to consume on any device
Likely to Spread– convincingly answers the question:“Who will amplify this content and why?”
Pro Tip #1:Imitate What
Works!
e.g. Buzzsumo can tell you the content that’s performed best for any given keyword, timeframe, platform, author, or website
Pro Tip #2: In General: Text < Visuals < Interactive
This planner from DefensiveDriving.com made Reddit’s homepage , in part thanks to interactivity
Pro Tip #3: Even great content benefits from paid amplification
Check out Quicksprout’s Guide to Content Syndication Networks
InvestChoosing Where To
Measurability is Often Inversely Correlated w/ Opportunity
More: Manufacturing Serendipity & WB Friday on Serendipitous Marketing
Serendipity is Powerful Because It’s Hard to Track, and Almost Never Competitive
Attend a conference in Portland
Meet a woman through a mutual friend who invites you to participate in a webinar
Webinar attendee is impressed, invites you to speak at an event in San Jose
San Jose event leads to $1mm in new business
How do you attribute/measure the value of going to conferences in Portland?
Only by increasing the vectors of exposure to potentially powerful events can you scale ROI
My Advice:
Overinvest in your unique strengths.
Blogging
Video
Photography
Presentations
In-Person Relationship
Building
Research
Illustration
Illustration
Offline Advertising
Display Ads
Social Ads
Google+
Podcasts
Whitepapers
Networking
LinkedIn PinterestSEO
PPC
Interviews
SEO is getting harder
But, that high barrier to entry means greater opportunity for those who succeed.
Rand Fishkin, Wizard of Moz | @randfish | rand@moz.com
bit.ly/seocode2014