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Amol Ghemud Published: August 14, 2018
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SEO appears smooth on the surface. As your learning and experiences open up doors for you, it starts getting difficult. It appears tricky.
SEO can be conquered, by creating a strong foundation and crystal clear understanding of how things work (sell). Yes, it is true. Leave your worries out of sight as we have created this guide for you.
Look at this fundamental checklist. 2017 will see bigger and better changes in the way search engines are optimized.
AMP
Accelerated mobile pages came into being in early 2016. The coming year will see it in demand and hence, the growth of AMP.
It is becoming a choice since it solves the basic and most common problem of speed. Less loading time of AMP gives it an edge over others. The content is cached and delivered from Google’s servers.
AMP becomes tricky with its validations. Google won’t support your page until it is validated. This will not cause a big problem, as the process isn’t really complicated.
Many plug-ins have already enabled AMP, so the WordPress and likes will only help you gain more. Google solved another problem a few months ago with redirects. Redirects will no longer cause ranking of your pages to suffer.
Content & Design
Content still holds its prestige of being the king, but its form has changed over the years. Long articles, lengthy blog posts were seen as great reads. Gradually, the trend is shifting.
An extensive use of mobile devices, continuous updates in technology and methods have created a buzz for ‘on the go’. Be it a news article or a blog about SEO, content is preferred ‘crisp’. Readers want more sense in few words.
Optimized content is what is going to be the trend to come. Fewer words, more essence, and more coverage becomes the mantra.
This doesn’t mean that long articles will die soon. Some topics can never be explained in a few words. It needs a whole story and instructions to convey a complicated topic or trend. Like they say, difficult doesn’t come easy.
With quantity comes quality that generates sales. ROI via content will also take a higher leap in 2017. So, if you have not begun, start investing today.
Visual content is growing so fast that it will only expand more avenues. According to the Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg, Video is the mega trend.
Virtual reality is holding an up-gear in the recent past. Gaming and serious gaming are gaining a great importance. With the popularity of games like Pokemon Go, more attractive and compelling content requirements are increasing. Infographics are becoming a trend in visual communication. Strong design and content requirements are attracting people to get more involved.
‘Responsive’ is the new ball game. The ability of technology to adapt to the changing platforms and media is splendid and creates magic. Pages become speedy and future-friendly.
It is in the name. Optimizing the search engines to get the most accurate searches. How do businesses benefit? From schema to growing importance of SERPs, search options are changing and growing.
In layman’s language, schema is a code. Yes, you can use it well with your existing coding skills! Schema has to be put on your website and more informative searches are brought up by the search engines. You can call it your business card in the virtual form. You can view the details via SERP.
People will come again and again when you provide them with relevant keywords search. It becomes easier for them to study the topic of importance and interest along with becoming a jack of some related trades.
Do you want to optimize your website, drive more traffic and deliver higher conversions? This is a checklist that we follow, and can get your site to rank consistently on top of search engines. Download this ultimate SEO Checklist which includes On-Page SEO as well as Off-Page SEO techniques that will help you rank well on the search engines.
Voice search is becoming more popular. Easier to use and less time consuming than typing out a whole sentence, it has become a trend. Its expansion into getting personal is growing tremendously. A classic example of this type is the inclusion of Harry Potter spells. No one can win it like Google!
User Experience Optimization Google holds a great deal of value towards UEO. The user is the most important asset and the rest follows, believes Google.
User experience can be optimized by creating sensible and useful results, speeding up the loading time, providing options for similar searches, and so on.
Along with this, solutions need to be cost effective and making use of the extensively available tools.
Concluding lines
These fundamentals of SEO will rule in 2017. Knowing them well in advance and starting to work on their effective implementation will give your SEO a big boost. Optimising resources and solutions remain the keywords for the success of SEO.
Watch: The Fundamental Guide to Mastering SEO
For Curious Minds
Schema markup gives search engines explicit context about your content, transforming generic search listings into rich, informative results. This 'virtual business card' helps you stand out on the SERP by providing details like ratings or event times directly in the search results, which is crucial for attracting qualified clicks. Implementing schema correctly is a direct instruction to search engines on how to interpret and display your information, leading to a significant competitive advantage. It can enhance your listing by:
Displaying star ratings for products or reviews.
Showing event dates, times, and locations.
Listing business hours and contact information.
This added layer of data makes your site more relevant for specific queries and improves user trust before they even click. To fully capitalize on these benefits, you must understand how to apply the right schema types for your content detailed in the full checklist.
A truly 'responsive' design means your website’s technology fluidly adapts its layout, content, and functionality across all devices, from desktops to smartphones. This goes beyond simple screen resizing to ensure a consistently high-quality experience, which is why it feels like magic to the end-user and is critical for modern SEO. A future-friendly site anticipates new devices and screen sizes, ensuring long-term viability. The core benefits are twofold: for users, it means fast-loading pages and easy navigation regardless of platform; for search engines, it signals a high-quality site worthy of better rankings. This adaptability directly addresses mobile-first indexing priorities and is a foundational element of technical SEO. The full guide explains how to ensure your site meets these standards.
The choice between long-form and short-form content depends entirely on your topic's complexity and your audience's intent. Shorter, 'crisp' content is ideal for mobile, 'on the go' consumption and quick updates, while long articles are necessary for complex subjects that require in-depth explanation and establish authority. The key to a high ROI is matching the format to the goal. You should weigh several factors when making this decision:
Topic Complexity: Can the subject be covered adequately in a few hundred words, or does it require a detailed guide?
Audience Behavior: Is your audience looking for quick answers or comprehensive research?
Marketing Goal: Are you aiming for broad social sharing or establishing thought leadership and generating organic search traffic?
A balanced strategy often includes both, using each format purposefully to engage different segments of your audience. Discover how to optimize both content types within a cohesive plan.
Both keyword optimization and schema markup are essential for search accuracy, but they serve different functions. On-page keywords tell search engines what your content is about, while schema explains what your content is—an article, a product, an event. For a business seeking immediate impact, prioritizing relevant keyword research and integration is typically more effective, as it directly influences ranking for target queries. Schema is a powerful enhancer that improves how your existing rankings are displayed in the SERP, boosting click-through rates. While schema provides a competitive edge, strong keyword foundations are the prerequisite for getting ranked in the first place. A smart approach is to build your content around keywords first, then layer on schema to maximize visibility. Our checklist details how to balance both for consistent results.
Visual and interactive content is proving highly effective because it captures attention in a crowded digital landscape. As noted by Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg, video is a dominant force, while the success of Pokemon Go highlights the public's appetite for immersive experiences like virtual reality. The evidence for its impact lies in higher engagement metrics, longer session durations, and increased social sharing. Businesses can apply these principles by:
Creating short, informative videos for social media.
Developing infographics to simplify complex data.
Building interactive tools or quizzes related to their industry.
This strategy shifts the focus from passive reading to active participation, fostering a stronger connection with your audience. The trend toward visual communication is accelerating, and the complete guide offers more ways to integrate it.
Content ROI is set for a 'higher leap' because optimized visual assets convert browsers into buyers more effectively than plain text. Infographics and short-form videos are particularly potent, as they distill complex information into an easily shareable and memorable format, guiding customers through the sales funnel. The most successful strategies integrate strong design with compelling data. For example, a real estate company could use an infographic to compare neighborhood market trends, or a software firm could create a short video demonstrating a key feature. This approach works by showing, not just telling, the value of a product or service, building trust and accelerating the decision-making process. The ultimate SEO checklist provides further insight into creating content that directly generates sales.
Implementing AMP on a WordPress site is a straightforward process focused on speed and validation. The primary goal is to serve a simplified, cached version of your page from Google’s servers, which achieves the 'less loading time' benefit and improves the mobile user experience. A successful AMP implementation requires careful attention to detail to avoid validation errors, which would prevent Google from serving your AMP page. Your step-by-step plan should include:
Plugin Installation: Choose and install a well-supported AMP plugin from the WordPress repository.
Configuration: Customize the plugin’s settings to match your site's branding and ensure all content types are enabled.
Validation: Use Google’s official AMP Test tool to check your pages for any errors and meticulously fix each one.
Google will not support an unvalidated page, making the validation step non-negotiable. See how this process fits into a larger optimization checklist.
For newcomers, creating optimized content requires a disciplined approach that prioritizes clarity and value. The goal is to convey more substance in fewer words to cater to modern readers' short attention spans, especially on mobile devices. Your focus should be on user intent, answering a specific question or solving a problem efficiently. A practical plan involves these steps:
Identify a Core Problem: Pinpoint a specific challenge your target audience faces.
Outline Key Takeaways: Before writing, list the three to four most important points you need to convey.
Write with Precision: Draft your content focusing on these points, using clear headings, short paragraphs, and bold text for scannability.
Add a Visual Element: Include one strong visual, like an infographic or a relevant image, to enhance comprehension.
This method ensures your content is both essence-rich and optimized for engagement. Dive deeper into our ultimate checklist to refine this process further.
The definition of content is expanding from static information into immersive, participatory experiences. Trends like virtual reality, exemplified by the engagement with games such as Pokemon Go, signal a future where users do not just consume content but interact with it in a virtual space. Marketing teams must shift from being storytellers to world-builders. In the near future, 'content' will increasingly mean creating branded AR filters, interactive 3D product models, and virtual events. To prepare, teams should develop skills in:
3D Modeling and Design: Creating assets for virtual environments.
User Experience (UX) for VR/AR: Designing intuitive interactive journeys.
Interactive Storytelling: Crafting narratives that adapt to user choices.
Investing in these capabilities now will be crucial for staying relevant. Explore the full guide to see how these future trends connect to today's SEO fundamentals.
The long-term implication of mobile-first consumption is that adaptability is no longer optional, it is the core of a successful digital strategy. Content and design must be conceived as a single, fluid experience that performs flawlessly on any screen. This requires a fundamental shift from creating pages to creating content systems. Marketers must adjust by:
Prioritizing responsive design in every project.
Creating modular, 'crisp' content that can be easily remixed for different platforms.
Focusing on scannability and fast load times, where technologies like AMP become standard practice.
Your strategy must be 'future-friendly,' meaning it is built to accommodate the next wave of devices and platforms without a complete overhaul. The checklist provided offers a framework for building this resilience.
Slow loading time is a critical issue that directly increases bounce rates and lowers search rankings. AMP provides a direct solution by serving a stripped-down, streamlined version of your webpage that is cached and delivered from Google’s high-speed servers, resulting in a significantly 'less loading time' for mobile users. The key is that AMP forces best practices for performance. However, its effectiveness is entirely dependent on proper validation. Common mistakes that prevent Google from using your AMP page include:
Using custom JavaScript, which is restricted in AMP.
Including external stylesheets or unsupported HTML tags.
Failing to use Google's validation tool to debug errors before going live.
Avoiding these pitfalls is essential to unlock the full ranking and engagement benefits. Discover more technical essentials in our ultimate SEO checklist.
When content and design are developed in silos, the result is often a visually appealing page with text that fails to connect, or great copy on a confusing layout. This disconnect disrupts the user's journey, making the message less impactful and reducing engagement, as form and function are not aligned. The solution is to adopt an integrated workflow where content and design inform each other from the start. This collaborative process ensures that visual elements like infographics are not just decorations but are integral to communicating the core message. To achieve this, you should make sure that strong design and content requirements are co-developed, creating a unified and attractive final product that people want to engage with. Our guide shows how this principle applies across all your SEO efforts.
Amol has helped catalyse business growth with his strategic & data-driven methodologies. With a decade of experience in the field of marketing, he has donned multiple hats, from channel optimization, data analytics and creative brand positioning to growth engineering and sales.
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