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How Does Machine Learning Relate to SEO

As an SEO strategist, your job is to stay one step ahead of Google. If you’ve been in this industry for a while, you know how challenging this can be. You have learned to count characters, write useful meta descriptions, and link like a boss. Perhaps you are starting to feel comfortable with your job, and you offer advice to your clients.

Unfortunately, this is not the type of industry where you can sit back, relax, and go on autopilot. An effective SEO strategist must constantly re-tool. The next topic you need to research is machine learning and how it relates to SEO.

Machine learning is the use of computers that haven’t explicitly been programed to complete a function. In other words, machine learning is related to artificial intelligence. Without becoming bogged down with the reasoning, Google is becoming more sophisticated in ranking websites. User satisfaction is now more critical than ever before, and that means offering quality content is king.

What does this mean for you and your client? Here are some tips to help you maneuver through this next phase.

Write clear meta descriptions, titles, headings, and subheadings.

When you are writing titles, headings, and subheadings, it’s not the time to be cute or coy. Google is not sophisticated enough yet to pick up on subtleties or innuendos.

Your headers are the first thing that the Google machine will look at to try to determine the content of your website. In fact, you may want to take it one step further and . . .

Write your titles, headings, and subheadings using popular search terms.

Instead of burying your keywords and phrases within the text, include them in your titles, headings, and subheadings. Write some of your headings in a question format similar to what the user would ask Siri.

In fact, you may want to take this tip one step further by . . .

Answer the questions in your heading clearly and concisely.

Don’t beat around the bush. If you use a question for the heading of your article, answer the questions quickly and concisely. The goal is not only to appear on the top page of a Google search. You want your content to appear in the Snippet that appears even before the search results. The only way to get that coveted position is to provide clear, correct answers to a question.

Write for a reader and not a machine.

We know that this advice sounds counter-intuitive. We tell you that Google is utilizing machine learning, but we also advise you not to write with that in mind.

Google knows when readers are engaged, entertained, or informed. The search engine knows this because readers spend a great deal of time on those websites, and they click on links within it. The sites that receive the most interaction are those written with conversational speech and are the easiest to read.

Keep your sentences concise and your paragraphs short. Even if you are dealing with complicated material with many layers, present the information in an easy-to-read format. Use bulleted lists.

Keep your websites current.

The Google machine will be able to tell if a website is dormant. Some SEO experts recommend adding a post or page to your company’s website every week. Other experts say it doesn’t have to be as often if people are interacting with your site. Whatever you do, don’t spend a lot of time and money building a beautiful website only to ignore it.

Look at successful examples.

Look at the websites that populate the top of the results page in your industry. Look at the headings and subheadings. Do the subtitles ask questions? Does the text clearly and concisely answer those questions?

Then look closely at the content. How many words are in each line of a chart? How many words are in each sentence? How many sentences are there in each paragraph?

Look for signs of how often content is updated.

Once you have analyzed the highest-ranking websites, mimic them. Of course, don’t steal their content, but mimic how they present their information.

Pay attention to the experts.

If you are an SEO strategist, or you are in charge of your company’s website, it’s up to you to stay in the know. Sign up to receive email notifications when Virtual Surge releases new advice. Read the blogs of other SEO experts in the industry.

Stay current in your industry. Your business and your clients are depending upon you.   

This article was originally posted at Virtual Surge Marketing!