2012 was very much the year of social media, with a little of mobile search thrown in for good measure. We also saw some major changes thanks to Google’s Panda and Penguin updates. Will 2013 see a marked change from this pattern, or will we see a set of different patterns emerge in the New Year?
The changes Google have made to their algorithms will continue to be important next year, but the main considerations for most sites will remain the same. The quality of the content will have to remain high, as Google look set to continue to place emphasis on authorship and high quality content. We should see a rise in the importance of individual sources of authority – with well respected online writers passing authority onto the pages they write for. We can also expect to see some interesting debate regarding the disavowing of links. Now that Webmaster tools will allow us to do this, there will be plenty of arguments for the pros and cons of doing so, and there will be a great deal of conjecture surrounding how any offending links can be pinpointed.
Conversion rate optimization will come to the fore in Q2 2013. With overheads highly important, financial markets struggling, and the general malaise of the markets still hanging over us in 2013, the bottom line is going to be more important than ever. Google Analytics has developed throughout the last twelve months to allow people to have a clear understanding of the purchase funnel of their business. This means that wasted money can be easily spotted, allowing companies to more accurately target the optimization techniques that are actually making a difference.
Google shopping is going to be a big difference in 2013. We’re already seeing the roll out of Google shopping as a paid for service, which will have a huge impact on the web as a whole.
Large agencies are under more pressure than ever. While it has often been thought that the largest media agencies are best placed to deal with SEO campaigns for large corporations, it is becoming apparent that this is not the way that things are viewed from the inside out. Many companies are now more concerned with whether or not they have a small group of dedicated specialists working on their behalf. With companies becoming more knowledgeable about SEO, they are beginning to understand that passing their work to a large company with little control over the actions of employees is perhaps not the best approach to the SEO of their business.
Whatever is in store for next year, it’s clear that we are going to see steady changes. Google updates or the lack of them will largely dictate the major turning points, but suffice it to say that we will all have to be on our toes. Here in Detroit we can be quite proud of the way so many businesses have rolled with the punches over the last few years. To maintain that situation throughout Q2 and the rest of 2013, it’s going to be important to have a good local SEO company on your side. Speak to a Detroit SEO company today to make sure you’re already working towards your goals for 2013.
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