SEO Fundamentals Haven’t Changed. Prove Me Wrong.

When so much is changing in the world, there’s a never-ending discussion about what SEOs need to be doing differently.

Well, you know what? Those asking that question haven’t been doing SEO right in the first place. Or they have been following the wrong SEOs. 

Here are the arguments:

• People are no longer using search in a linear way: Their journeys are interrupted, picked up from different devices, combined with using other platforms (like ChatGPT, Reddit, etc.)
• Search results are no longer ten blue links, they send fewer clicks because they give quick answers right away.
• Consumers go through dozens (if not hundreds) of touchpoints before they make a buying decision.
• SEO is much less predictable… or even measurable. Correlations between tactics and results are blurred because there are many more signals and factors in play (and layers of AI-powered refinements of search results).
• Keyword optimization is less important because people start searching for questions/prompts.
• Search intent is more important than optimizing for keyword strings. Google has become smarter in satisfying specific searcher’s needs, and so should SEO.

Well, you know what?

Nothing above is new

We have been dealing with all of that for at least a decade now.

• BERT was introduced to us 5 years ago. The Hummingbird update happened more than 10 years ago. Ever since those we’ve known keywords are not to be treated verbatim.
• People started using voice search more than ten years ago. Ever since we’ve known that queries will gradually become more complicated and unexpected. It is about solving customers’ problems, not targeting keyword strings.
• Search results haven’t been ten blue links for more than ten years.
• Customers have been going through tens and hundreds of touchpoints for more than 10 years. Remember that anecdotal story of a woman going through 900 interactions before choosing a car? This was published almost a decade ago. Most buying journeys haven’t been linear for years.
• We have had issues with measuring SEO efforts for many years. Ever since the “Not provided” update it has been difficult to understand which search queries bring the most engaged traffic. Search Console data has been great but limited. Rankings have been not representative of success for years as organic rankings’ visibility is different for every SERP.

And yet, there has never been any good alternative to organic search visibility as yet

Yes, the game has been more challenging BUT organic visibility is still key.

There’s nothing better than being visible in response to someone searching for problems your product/service solves.

And whatever is happening to digital marketing these days, the fundamentals are not changing. And that’s not just me saying this. Anyone who has been in SEO long enough knows that:

Including newish trends that we have been dealing with, including the AI-powered helpful content system no one has control over, even Googlers:

Now what ARE those SEO fundamentals that have survived all those changes?

These are:

• Focusing on keyword strings to create landing pages isn’t enough. Think about questions and problems behind those keywords. What are searchers actually trying to accomplish? Give them solutions based on those answers.
• Link building is not effective unless those backlinks drive traffic and brand visibility. Real signals are what matters. A good link-building campaign is much more than simply generating links. This is how we do it.
• Using tools is great as they help you better understand how people find your (or your competitor’s) site and how search engines see your site (and whether they can access it). But tools are not enough. Everyone can use tools. There’s no competitive advantage if you do the same thing as your competitors do. Talk and listen to your customers. That’s how you know if you are serving them well.
• Your site is not enough. Your brand exists outside of your domain. Monitor your brand mentions and take your branded search seriously.

To put it simply, fundamental SEO is knowing:

• How people search
• Whether they know your brand
• If it is easy for people and search engines to interact with your site

I have been saying this for ages. SEO is much more than keyword strings and backlinks. But organic search visibility is worth every effort, even if it is not quite easy to measure any more.