Semantic Search and the Future
Semantic search is all about the search engine trying to determine the true intent of your search phrase, not just return pages with the keyword your search includes. In fact, the search result may not even include the keyword but still produce a quality match to the user query.
It began with simpler exercises in determining user intent, for example a search phrase that included ‘sports collectibles’ would return pages optimized for ‘sports memorabilia’ as well. It did not limit the search results to the search keyword of collectibles, it understood the broader context of the phrase.
The search engine’s algorithms will go through a learning process, taking in previous searches, location, language and more, to begin to deliver a more personalized result.
Web 3.0 Will Be An SEO Game Changer
While advances in semantic search algorithms are based on recognition of context, Web 3.0’s use of blockchain technology will begin to cut out the middleman. What does that mean? Presently, market audience data is compiled by social media channels and advertisers need to rely on these platforms for the demographics their campaigns generate. With Web 3.0, advertisers will access this data directly from their customers — this is what ‘decentralization’ of information begins to touch on. More on this in coming posts.
For a quick backdrop, check out our brief overview of Web 3.0 from an August news post.
Quick Hits
- “Webmaster” is out. Google Search Essentials is in. After a 20-year run the search engine behemoth has officially retired “Google Webmaster Guidelines” and replaced it with the new moniker. Along with the name change, a major content refresh has been implemented including updates of technical requirements for getting pages to rank in search results, increased clarity on link spam and more.
- UPDATE YOUR FAVICON! You only get one shot at a favicon for your website so make it a good one! Why? Because Google is about to give favicons (and website names) much greater visibility in mobile search results. It’s a branding opportunity that cannot be overlooked!
Why Pinterest Needs to be Included in Your SEO Strategy
TODAY YOU LEARNED : Pinterest has been the most misunderstood, overlooked and under-rated player, all while boasting visitor traffic to die for. The number one mischaracterization about Pinterest is that it’s a social media platform — it is not. It’s a search engine! More on this in the next post.
Don’t Go To Sleep on Bing
While Google maintains dominance with a market share consistently in the mid-80% range, Bing offers some compelling reasons to make sure SEO artists keep them in mind. For starters, when your page content is optimized for Bing you get DuckDuckGo, Yahoo, Ecosia and Qwant search engines along with the ride as Bing algorithms are the drivers of those search engines.
WordPress Roundup
- WordPress 6.1 Beta 2 is now available for download and testing. The usual caveat from WordPress stands: “Please do not install, run, or test this version of WordPress on production or mission-critical websites. Instead, it is recommended that you test Beta 2 on a test server and site.” View a complete list of issues that are being worked on in the Beta 1 release (24 total).
WooCommerce Roundup
- The Woo design team is getting close to rolling out High-Performance Order Storage (HPOS) and is calling for a round of testing. They are primarily looking for feedback on the following areas and functions: extension and integration points, switching between the Custom Post Type and HPOS solution, synchronization, and user interface. But they’ll also welcome your input on all levels of user engagement. See this page for full details and instructions on how to participate: High-Performance Order Storage: Call for testing, Vol 2. HPOS is set to fully debut with the release of WooCommerce 8.0 in 2023 and promises significant performance gains for stores.
