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SEO in 2022: Update to Guidelines (Part 1)

Jan 10, 2022 | Search Engine Optimization

Preparing your SEO and SEM tactics for the coming wave of changes in SEO updates on significant search engines such as Google, Yahoo, and Bing will be pivotal to your business’ success in 2022.

We here at Rally Digital have created a three part series where we want to share with you the main tactics for gaining higher searchability online going into 2022.

For all three parts, we ultimately want them to act as a waypoint for you if you need a comprehensive source for research and relevant stats on SEO trends.

As a guide, here is an overview of the three most critical SEO tactics we will be covering:

  • Update to Guidelines (in Early February 2022)
  • Optimizing Your Website for Searchability
  • Tips for Pivoting Your Content

Since this post will only look at #1, let’s dive into the specific guidelines updating in early February 2022.

1. Update to Guidelines (in Early February 2022)

For your business’ tactics, this translates to updating the following key components to favor different search engines’ metrics:

  • Keyword Optimization (Updates)
  • A Shift to Long-Form Content
  • Ethical link building

Keyword optimization, admittedly, is an SEO component that sees regular updates.

Essentially, do not repeat the exact keywords throughout the content (applied to both written articles or video scripts). For example, by repeating words or content consecutively in either a written piece or video script, you might want to consider finding synonyms for frequently used terms found multiple times throughout your creative written work.

Thinking outside the box with your articles or video scripts will be an integral part of your team’s future performance.

With that said, having content for the sake of appearing to have more substance on one’s website will not only be inefficient – it will actually hinder your visibility online. That’s because Google also announced that content found to be pre-existing online somewhere else would be flagged immediately by crawlers. (via wherever the original date of content appeared first on the IoT).

Also, while we’re on the topic of keywords used in either blogs or video scripts, let’s discuss the length of either type of deliverable. It appears Google, in 2022, is gearing towards permanently favoring longer-form content. Specifically, any content with anywhere between 2,000 to 2,500-words finds more success gaining visibility online versus lesser worded content, as shown by sweor.com.

This tidbit of information is baffling since viewers prove that shorter content consumption through TikTok, Instagram, and other relevant social media platforms has higher viewership rates. However, it appears both Google and Yahoo’s search engine also flag a ton of spam that also shares in short-form content creation. Thus, this is one of many reasons why Google’s SEO policy will be favoring showing longer content over shorter-form ones in their search engine.

Lastly, for this section, the reality of unethical link building comes into play.

The following bulleted list shows unethical link building tactics to avoid:

  • Article Spinning
  • Creating duplicated work across the same, or multiple, websites
  • Duplicating keyword terms
  • “Guest Posting” network tactics (traditionally was okay to do, but not anymore starting February 2022).
  • Negative SEO tactics. (Includes reporting against another competitor’s SEO, and it’s found not to be unethical SEO practices).

To see a comprehensive list of “black hat SEO methods” or “unethical,” we encourage you to check out wordstream.com’s article on the topic matter. They provide an in-depth look at improving your SEM method of providing better search engine optimization results.

If you need further assistance with your SEO or SEM strategy, we can help provide results! Click here to contact us.

We look forward to a very successful partnership!

Matt Walker
Managing Director of Rally Digital

References
Banzon, Anna Dominik. “20 Ethical Link Building Practices to Boost Site Authority and Traffic.” Propelrr, 19 June 2021
https://propelrr.com/blog/ethical-link-building-practices
Hendrickson, Megan. “How to Optimize Your Site for Mobile: A Complete Guide – Dreamhost.” Website Guides, Tips & Knowledge, 23 Mar. 2021
https://www.dreamhost.com/blog/how-to-optimize-your-site-for-mobile/
McGrane, Patrick. “The Ultimate Guide to Nail Your Video Seo Strategy.” The Official SpyFu Blog, The Official SpyFu Blog, 5 Aug. 2021
https://www.spyfu.com/blog/video-seo-strategy/
Murphy, Rosie. “OK Google: Should Local Businesses Worry about Voice Search?” BrightLocal, 24 June 2021
https://www.brightlocal.com/research/voice-search-for-local-business-study/
Perez, Sarah. “YouTube Is Removing the Dislike Count on All Videos across Its Platform.” TechCrunch, TechCrunch, 10 Nov. 2021
https://techcrunch.com/2021/11/10/youtube-is-removing-the-dislike-count-on-all-videos-across-its-platform/
“Seo Content Length: Longer Content Gains Higher Search Ranks.” SEO Content Length: Longer Content Gains Higher Search Ranks
https://www.sweor.com/seocontentlength
Smith, Alice. “The Top Seo Trends to Prepare for in 2022.” 10to8, 21 Sept. 2021
https://10to8.com/blog/seo-trends/
“Top Seo Trends of 2022: Web Design & Development.” Faster Solutions, 17 Aug. 2021
https://fastersolutions.com/top-5-seo-trends-of-2022/
“Trends Shaping the Future of Local SEO in 2022: Linchpin.” Linchpin SEO, 9 Oct. 2021
https://linchpinseo.com/trends-shaping-the-future-of-local-seo/
“What Is Black Hat Seo?” WordStream
https://www.wordstream.com/black-hat-seo
“What Should You Watch out for with Seo in 2022.” Growth99, 27 Apr. 2021
https://growth99.com/what-should-you-watch-out-for-with-seo-in-2022/
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