Is SEO still relevant in 2021?

Needless to say, COVID-19 has changed our lives more than we could have imagined. The pandemic forced many businesses online and inspired many more to revamp their online presence. This surge of online businesses has resulted in the need to stand out digitally now more than ever. Because of this, we’re now seeing just how relevant search engine optimization (SEO) is in 2021 and how relevant it will continue to be for the months and years to come. 

Even before the global pandemic, we saw that people were using search engines to find information at an increasing rate. This year alone, there have been a reported 3.5 million Google searches conducted every day and with over 68% of online experiences beginning with a search engine. It is also reported that approximately 81% of shoppers conduct some form of online research to make a purchasing decision. It’s becoming increasingly apparent that search engine optimization (SEO) is not only relevant, but also imperative to having your business noticed online. 

We’ve highlighted a few important tips for you to consider for your 2021 SEO Practices. It may be helpful to reference our SEO guide for terms and definitions. 

Keep up-to-date on Google algorithm changes

Reading updates directly from Google is one way to keep up with these changes, or check out a site like Search Engine Journal for quick overviews and tips. Staying on top of algorithm changes will ensure that your site continues to rank well and doesn’t experience any major traffic drops or penalties. 

Review, Optimize and Research Your Keywords consistently

Establish a schedule to review your keywords on a regular basis. We recommend using a keyword research tool that also includes a rank tracking feature (ex. Ahrefs or Semrush, check out our article for a comparison of tools ). Investing in a good tool will not only allow you to explore the keywords and keyword phrases that your customers are searching for, but it will also allow you to keep track of how your keyword or phrase is ranking on search engines. A few extra tips for keywords: 

• Avoid keyword stuffing; instead, try adding keywords where they naturally fit 
• Start focusing on long-tail keywords or keyword phrases that are specific to your business 

Create High-Quality Content with strong on-page SEO 

Creating high-quality content for your site is imperative to building brand awareness and trust, so make sure this is supplemented with strong on-page SEO practices. We recommend creating long-form content that includes long-tail keywords or keyword phrases and make sure you’re filling out the relevant SEO fields including: SEO page titles, meta descriptions and alt text. Bonus tip: Make sure you optimize video content! Take advantage of your video title, descriptions and tags to inform search engines as to what your video content is about. 

Interested in SEO services? Get in touch with us today to see how we can amplify your presence in the Search Engine Results Pages.