We are forever trying to work out the next big thing that is going to either rock the boat or advance our offering in the world of SEO. When is the next big algorithm change going to be (is another Florida on the horizon)? What is the next big project being launched by Google? When will a page title and H1 tag become irrelevant?
I guess I have been thinking more about the future of SEO since writing the blog post on Page Rank – The Real Google Bomb?
So, what with the licence of Google’s Page Rank being owned by Stanford Uni (that’s exclusive use is due to expire in 2017)? What does Google have on the horizon for its next big algorithm advancement?
Well, i think part of this is already staring us in the face – just imagine the power contained in the data produced by Google Analytics. Just think of elements of this data being used as part of their algorithm; conversion, bounce, page views – all this data could influence the strongest algorithm in the world? No? Why should Google send traffic to a site with a poor conversion or a bad bounce rate when it can send it to a site that offers sticky content and obviously has something good to offer.
Further more, how is the web advancing. Remember the days of modems? The technology available 10 years ago has transformed dramatically. Do you think that if we had the same bandwidth opportunities 10 years ago as we do now that websites would look the same as they do today? Simple answer, no! Search engines were designed to work with text based websites because that was what was being developed. Now we can look at the opportunities that video has to offer.
Websites are stepping into a new generation. What could be the ultimate offering now that we have the technology to back it up? Video is going to be big… We need to look at utilising video and focusing on websites that are built for conversion and usability. Only those websites with up-to-date content should benefit from up-to-the minute newsworthy SERPs – why shouldn’t anyone utilise a blog? Why should Google choose your website that hasn’t been updated for 6 months when it could show another site that is active with new content that is being added to weekly or even daily.
Then things start to get really interesting. Search will become more personalised and won’t just be about finding websites. We can now search for news and images – but what will we be searching for in the future. The idea is that everything will become searchable – look at photos; this medium can now be catalogued easily as meta data is automatically added to your digital photos – dates, type of camera, even the type of lense used. This then creates data that can be searched. What else could be searched that we don’t have access to at the moment? What other opportunities exist to put more data on the internet to allow it to be searched?
Imagine this – in 3 years time your credit card feeds back shaopping info to your Goolge account. Google launched a new service called ShoppingList ID in 2011. Each time you make a purchase Google records the data and puts it into your very own ShoppingList ID account. This shopping list can then begin to build up data about you; your shopping habits, your ability to buy expensive goods, your taste in particular brands. NOW look at the MASSIVE opportunities that this one application will create; next time you do a search for a generic phrase like ‘holiday‘ Google knows to present you with the following info.
1. Google knows that you have expensive tastes through your buying pattern of choosing to buy luxury brands. So, Google is going to present you a website that is relevant to holidays – but it will personalise the search to ensure it sends you to a website that provides luxury holidays, perhaps Caribbean Holidays?
2. The search results will also look different. It will recommend associated products – let’s look at one of Amazons biggest successes and use it in Goolges SERPs; the ‘Look at what other people have brought’ feature has been a huge succes for Amazon, recommending potential products of interest. You are going to need to consider sunscreen – Google knows that you already shop regularly at Boots so it recommends that you look at sunscreen products from the Boots website.
3. You are looking to go on a luxury holiday to the Caribbean so lets ensure you get to see some relevant reviews to see as well. So it chooses to also show you some recent blog posts and videos from holiday review sites relevant to the Caribbean.
4. Google can also see that you don’t have ‘travel insurance’ in your shopping archive – so, you get the picture…
ALL OF THIS WILL BE SPECIFICALLY PERSONALISED TO YOU! All of the above by just doing a generic search for the term ‘holiday’.
The thing is, I believe the story of search has just begun. We are 3% there – the opportunities are endless. That’s why i love this job and any other SEO must feel the same. Once you have learned all you can – there is something else new to consider! :) Keep an eye on this blog and i will be expanding on the points above in future volumes.
I would love to hear your comments on the Future of Search. Perhaps Page and Brin could give us a little advance warning. Please ;)
One thing I do know, we ‘aint seen nothing yet. Google is in such a strong position. At the moment, my money is on them.
The subject of relevance should be on the minds of all online traders given that Google runs a monopoly on search. For me there needs to be more transparency on how results are pulled through but I cant see Google opening up on this one.
I agree totally about Video (whether UGC or corporate) and you can see how the acquisition of YouTube affected video results in searches. Once sites understand how to use it properly that is.
Metadata is clearly the next development. If we’re going to accept that Google knows everything about our online behaviour (let’s ignore the privacy debate on this one) then lets embrace what that data can do for the relevance of our searches.
The key for me here, is that the customer must choose to allow Google to bring back this type of personalised data or not. I’m in favour of an opt in service and would seek assurances that they do nothing else with my private data other than help me find things I want quicker
I think a lot of attention will be paid to voting for a website by it’s users. This is real relevance as far as any search engine can see….they will need to figure out how the system can’t be abused though. If it does go this way then seo in it’s current form will be useless
makes no difference Google have been moving away from pagerank for a while now, and pagerank isn’t the secret sauce to Google’s success it’s the fact it’s one of the most trusted branded on the internet, we just need another Dyson to come along and challenge the brand. or they need to mess up big style
DaveN
I totally agree DaveN. Although they are moving away from PR, links still play an important part in the strength of a websites SERPs. I would welcome any PR 9 sites out there to link to Fresh Egg ;)
What else is going to be up Googles sleeve and spoken about as much as PR has been previously – check out this blog post, just thought it might provoke a few ideas: http://blog.freshegg.com/the-future-of-seo-volume-two_649/
I totally agree with Adam. As it is semantic search is already in the works. I first heard about the contrasting views of the web design then (10yrs ago) to the web designed based on today’s needs from Mike Grehan in an article he wrote titled “New signals to search engines”
I think SEO will still be part of the marketing approach, just not the main axle in the wheel. Too many mediums to deliver a message and quite a few social media avenues to do it in.
However SEO big players will also be the ones able to take advantage of this trend primarily. They are the best prepared and knowledgeable of the bunch.
Nice piece,
thx
Who knows if Google will be the king of the hill in 2011? As fast as things change Google could take a back seat within a year to an eighteen year old kid just starting collage. I doubt it but either way, ShoppingList ID sounds exactly the kind of plans we would expect from Google. The technology is already available and has been used extensively by retail marketing giants for years. Those little ‘membership’ tags from the grocery stores we hang on our key chains record a wealth of information. Get Google into that game and we have a whole new sport. Great call Adam, you might have a future as a Google consultant. ;)
Gavin, I can’t ignore the privacy debate.
I personally would not like Google to know about my credit card information for anything other than me buying their products or services.
If everyone who searched had their personal information at Google’s mercy, it would be a matter of time before someone hacked in and became the most powerful person in the world!
I am an infant in the SEO world, but I think privacy and protection in online is very important.
Agreed that page rank still plays an important part but Google do NOT need Google Analytics to make relevance work. As they track every single user through their searches, they can see how long people spend on each site and which results bounce for any given keyword. This is what is currently driving existing rankings – but page rank still helps to place the result initially when it is first indexed.
Thanks for the comment Brian – I did another blog post on SEOmoz that elaborated a little more: http://www.seomoz.org/ugc/the-future-of-personalized-search
I concur with A. Meyers. I’m also a relative newbie to SEO, although I have over 25 years of traditional marketing experience. I’ve already used SEO to increase page visits from blogs and targeted placements and I’m intrigued with the potential. But I draw the line at the scenario you’ve described. I’d love an iPhone but refused to purchase when Apple signed exclusively with AT&T. I’ve chosen a more expensive wireless service than Verizon. I won’t support companies that spy on Americans, so why would I give Google the same kind of access to my credit or buying history? Convenience? I don’t think so, and I’d be surprised if other Americans would do it either.
Thanks for the comments. I was trying to provoke some thought on things that could be a possibility in the future based upon things that are already happening. In the UK there are store cards for various companies like Boots, Tescos and several large stores. In addition to these loyalty schemes offered from specific stores we also have schemes like Nectar Points – this effectively monitors your purchasing habits across MANY different stores that have opted into the scheme. If you are a Nectar Point user you are already giving up your personal shopping habits… So, why can’t this be something relatively easy for Google to get involved with?