Predictions for SEO in 2023
As marketers, we’re always looking ahead to anticipate the needs of our customers and the trends that will shape consumer behavior. Knowing what you can expect down the line is key to staying competitive - so let's take a look into the future of SEO! In this blog post, we'll explore some predictions for SEO in 2023, from keyword optimization strategies to content creation tips and more. Buckle up – it's time for an exciting ride into your digital marketing future!
Google's ChatGPT competitor doesn't do what people think
In 2023 Google will launch a competitor of ChatGPT called "Google Search GPT". This AI model has been trained on vast amounts of search data compiled by Google itself over years of usage and it is poised to provide invaluable insights about user behavior when searching on the web. It will allow business owners to interact with customers more effectively by understanding their intent with greater accuracy and providing answers more quickly than before. Businesses who want access to this technology should prepare themselves now so they can capitalize on its potential when it launches next year!
My prediction is that it won't work the way people think. The biggest reason for multiple search options is for manual source and fact verification. ChatGPT often gets facts wrong! If Google implements their own version, it's going to come with a disclaimer and sources to blame. Short answers are nice but be prepared for teething issues.
AI generated content gets more popular
With advancements in artificial intelligence technologies such as natural language processing (NLP) becoming commonplace, it is no surprise that more online content is being generated automatically rather than manually by humans. This presents a challenge for SEOs who must be able to distinguish between robot-generated content from those written by humans if they want their website's content to rank higher than others'. The only way they can do that is by mastering these technologies themselves or using automated tools that do it for them so they can stay ahead of the competition.
My prediction is that people will realise many jobs aren't being automated away - but they are going to get easier thanks to automation. Tools such as the open.ai suite aren't there to replace you - they're there to make life easier.
More static site generation
Static site generators have slowly been replacing traditional Wordpress-style dynamic PHP templates because they offer faster load times and better keyword optimization without relying heavily on database calls or third party plugins or services - two features which are crucial when it comes to improving organic traffic and ranking higher on SERPs. This means businesses who want their websites optimized should consider using SSGs instead of WP themes if they want better performance and visibility online come 2023.
My prediction is that we'll see far more sites move over to page generation to prevent the issues of generating all content on the fly. This means PHP will steadily go out of fashion and is likely to be replaced with the various popular Javascript based frameworks: Such as React and Angular.
SEO becoming saturated
With so many businesses competing increasingly fiercely for top SERP rankings due to most of the desirable keywords already taken up by very strong competitors, SEO could become a saturated market - one where small businesses may struggle against larger ones with bigger budgets unless something drastic changes soon! Fortunately, Google's algorithm changes mean that backlinks are becoming less important; hence there are now more avenues open for smaller players who may not have had much success before thanks to these updates allowing them access into SERP rankings not previously available before!
My prediction follows on from 2022's trend, that the search environment is getting saturated with SEO focused answers designed to drag you in rather than provide useful content. Google has been making efforts to try and phase out the use of signals that can be easily fooled (such as Backlinks and automated content) but they'll also be trying to increase the quality of their search results through other means. User feedback is going to be taking the forefront (if it hasn't already!) and we'll see more evidence of this in the year to come.
Page Experience is going to be more important than ever
With Core Web Vitals now being a priority for many companies, SEOs should be prepared to optimize for user experience and page speed even more. More AI-generated content will become harder to detect as well, so SEOs must understand the difference between human-created content and machine-generated content. Furthermore, Google’s Chat GPT competitor trained on search data could potentially create a whole new level of conversational AI that could open up opportunities onto the market. With the above prediction of saturation of the market, we'll be seeing more moves to make current content hit harder. With higher returns on optimising current content profiles over creating new, larger portfolios.
To stay competitive, websites need to use static site generators rather than Wordpress-style dynamic PHP templates in order to benefit from speed and SEO benefits. Even though there will be lots of competition amongst businesses in the search engine optimization market due to many of the good search terms being taken by strong competitors, Backlinks will become less important in rankings thanks to Google's algorithms changes, opening up more possibilities for smaller businesses.
And that's it. See you in a year for more predictions.