SEO is an ongoing process where webmasters constantly keep optimizing the site both technically and content-wise so that search engines can reward and rank the web page as higher as possible which results in higher traffic. Search engines like Google have been doing a pretty good job in identifying and rewarding pages that are well optimized so that the results returned are as close as possible to what the user searched for.
Early versions of search engine algorithms relied on information such as the meta tag, headers, or keyword density to name a few. By solely depending on factors that were entirely within an optimizer's control, early search engines suffered from misuse and ranking manipulations.
In their quest to give the users more relevant search results, search engines started to adapt and innovate the algorithms to ensure that their results pages showed the most relevant search results, rather than irrelevant pages stuffed with innumerable keywords. This resulted in transitioning from complete dependency on keyword density to a more holistic approach for scoring semantic signals. The various updates rolled out by Google to improve its search engine pages are
- On June 8, 2010, Google Caffeine
- In late 2010, real-time-search Google Instant, was introduced
- In February 2011, Google Panda update was announced
- The 2012 Google Penguin update was announced
- The 2013 Google Hummingbird update announced
- In October 2019, Google announced BERT Update
Bidirectional Encoder Representations from Transformers (BERT) was another strive by Google to enhance their natural language processing but this time to have a greater understanding of the search queries of their users.
In terms of search engine optimization, BERT’s sole purpose is to connect users expediently to relevant content and enhance the superiority of the traffic being diverted to the websites that are being ranked in the Search Engine Results Page.
How SERPs are affected by AI
An Example from Google on How BERT provides more accurate results for long queries
Now with Search engine algorithm becoming more advanced because of AI, the SERPs are ranked based on content more than anything else.
With AI coming in place the search engine tries to understand the why behind the content rather than getting misguided with just keyword stuffing. The relevance of the content will increase more with the intent-based queries rather than the keywords.
What is Artificial Intelligence?
Artificial intelligence is the process of simulation of human intelligence processes by machines, singularly computer systems. The various applications of AI include expert systems, natural language processing, speech and voice recognition, and machine vision.
AI touches every aspect of our lives, starting from normal day-to-day regular activities like playing a song, checking out our emails to more complex functions like cyber security, data analysis, and voice recognition. So, with the technological advent, AI is everywhere, and it will tend to incorporate itself more into our lives.
Understanding Artificial Intelligence Technologies
As of 2020, the pandemic has more robustly forced everyone to go digital or online and thereby creating room for more advanced technologies to replace our day-to-day tasks. And this requirement gave rise to AI-based applications and technologies to become the frontrunner in the tech space: The Various AI technologies that are making waves are listed below
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Machine learning
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Natural language processing
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Robotics process Automation
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Deep learning and more
The main intent of these technologies is to automate manual, time-consuming tasks into complete automated processes thereby saving time and energy for more efficient and productive tasks like content creation and strategy.
AI, in the context of SEO, not only simplifies the mundane task to a great extent but rather the automated process gives a breathing space to work upon things requiring more human intervention.
Various Ways AI can Improve SEO
AI can improvise and modulate the way we do business, whether we use emerging and innovative technologies to improve content creation or pace up data analysis. Listed below are a few ways we can use artificial intelligence to improve SEO.
1. Voice Search
With AI technologies like NLP, Machine learning taking the forefront, the whole scenario of how we search has changed from text-based search to Voice-based search. With Siri and Alexa making waves and other AI-based machines taking over, thus opening a whole new dimension to the way search is done and SEO is performed and executed.
Voice search differs from customary search as it is more conversational and it understands the most important aspect of the query, the user intent. With the intent-based search in place, the whole SEO needs have been changed and are obligatory on the SEO expert’s behalf to respond accordingly.
Now more intriguing and conversational content can be created using AI-powered tools like Grammarly or Hemingway Editor.
2. Content Creation and Understanding the User Intent.
It’s a less cumbersome job to create compelling, relevant content when you know what questions, keywords, and phrases people are using to search. This is where AI comes in.
A quite a good number of AI-based products that make content creation easier as it helps in targeting the relevant keywords, generating link-building opportunities, finding out the trending topics, understanding the user intent, and more.
With Search engine Algorithms getting smarter every day, understanding the user intent is the next step in SEO solution.
3. SEO Escalade
Search engine optimization takes time. An SEO technique is not magic. It takes time for any SEO expert to strategize and work upon the major component to derive the desired results. The bulk of the SEO tasks like keyword optimization, link building, backlinking, site audit is mundane and labor-intensive process.
The various SEO tools and software that are built on Artificial Intelligence are planned to ease the optimization stress by reducing the time-consuming task. Most of the data processing and data analyzing tasks are now being done by AI-powered technologies. Some significant mundane and time-consuming task that was made easy with AI applications are site-wide audits performing, content optimization, Understanding the user and user intent, removal of duplicate content.
SEO can be scaled up by using AI-based apps and tools that effortlessly handle data analytics. Artificial intelligence tools can find the best-performing content or create more relevant and much more informed content strategies.
The various methodologies and technically advanced tools can significantly ramp up the SEO process. Let's dive down with the knowledge insight of NLP into the SEO landscape to help us have a better understanding of AI and its technological impact on SEO.
Conclusion
Each aspect of our lives has been touched and revolutionized by AI-powered tools and software. From Siri to Alexa to Google home our life has been made easy and more comfortable The SEO has also not been able to be left untouched by these evolutionary techniques and tools. The mundane task has taken a back seat with content and strategy driving the SEO landscape. AI-based automation tools are helping optimizers to better understand smarter search engine algorithms. The whole landscape of search engine optimization is undergoing a drastic, dramatic, and embryonic change for the better with voice searches, automation tools, and mobile-friendliness driving the technological advancement. With intent-based searches, thanks to the BERT update, the content needs to be more relevant, intent-based, more insightful, and high in quality. This is what the next-gen search engine optimizers need to look forward to in the upcoming decade.
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