Whatever other marketing tactics come and go in the coming 12 months, SEO is here to stay. Recent stats show that an average of 12 billion online searches are made every month, and that’s just in the US. With so many people using Google and other search engines to plan and book their breaks online, it’s essential to have a dedicated SEO strategy to maximise visibility, drive relevant traffic and get your content seen by as many people as possible.
So what major SEO trends can we expect to see in 2016? Here are 4 big ones to look out for.
Social Content Will Grow and Grow
Late in 2015 it was announced that Google will begin indexing some Facebook app content into its mobile search results. This move is one of several that suggests that content from Facebook, Twitter and other platforms is likely to be increasingly indexed in organic search results in the coming months, with social content perhaps acquiring its own SEO weight in the near future.
As the lines between SEO and social media become increasingly blurred, it will be even more important to put the work in and optimise your social presence for maximum visibility in the SERPs.
Video Is Here To Stay
As you know, videos are a great way to show off your resort and keep your audience engaged and entertained. But are you also aware that posting video content can serve as a great boost to your search rankings? Videos are 50 times more likely to gain Google organic page ranks than plain text results and have also been shown to garner higher click-through rates than static text. Add in the fact that Google has been giving increasing attention to blended search results, and you can be sure the video marketing trend we saw taking off in 2015 is only going to gain in momentum.
Optimisation for Voice Search Moving to the Fore
2015 was the year when mobile searches finally surpassed desktop searches for the first time. More people than ever before are using voice search to search for useful information on the go and you can expect significant Google algorithm changes in response. Moving forward, mobile optimisation will continue to be key, while the focus will shift from conventional keywords to semantic, long-tail key phrases that are more likely to be spoken by consumers using their mobile devices to voice search.
The Rise of Rich Snippets and Structured Data
If you haven’t already done so, this is the year to start paying more attention to your hotel’s structured data and rich snippets. Getting serious about using appropriate tags behind the scenes of your hotel’s web pages – for guest reviews, travel information, pricing and more – will give you the chance to gain higher rankings, get noticed by more of your guests in the SERPs and achieve higher click-through rates.
What other trends do you think will dominate SEO in 2016? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below!
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