It is common knowledge by now that quality content is the main driver behind search engine ranking. But what will be the next driver of digital marketing as eCommerce technology evolves? At the moment it is looking like apps and fresh social media forums.
The release of the Hummingbird algorithm in August 2013 underlined the importance of maintaining your website with original content. Google is also actively encouraging writers with specialist knowledge to spread their wisdom far and wide across the internet. Guest blogging opportunities indicate the Big G is looking for contributors that provide content worth value to the reader.
With technology developing so quickly, it is necessary for digital marketers to stay one step ahead of the curve. Updating your business with technology everybody else has been using for ages will not bring your online form any closer to your competitors. So think ahead and steer your SEO strategy towards the next digital marketing vehicle.
Digital Future
The future of digital marketing is in apps. All the major social media players, together with electronics companies and eCommerce sites are snapping up apps that improve their service. What´s more is that mobile phone users spend 80% of their time in apps.
Facebook has admitted that teenagers in western countries are beginning to lose interest in social media platforms. You should expect this trend to continue, especially as more new apps are introduced.
Leading the pack of interesting apps at the moment is What´sApp which has more followers than Twitter and allows users to share messages and content in a more intimate environment than Facebook.
Twitter got in on the app act early doors with Vine only to be trumped by Facebook when they snapped up Instagram. However, both apps have proven to work effectively as marketing tools principally because short videos appeal to the modern consumer´s time span and mobile users would rather watch a quick 6-second commercial than digest a 6-line product description that takes several minutes to read.
Changing Platforms
The other major shift in popularity is new social sharing platforms such as moot and reddit that are taking modern culture in a different direction. New forums appeal to teenagers more than the old forums they grew up with as kids and it would appear the next generation of consumers are favouring alternative platforms to Facebook and Twitter that up to now was taken as a standard marketing playfield.
Fundamentally you have to determine who your audience is and where most of them are hanging out online. Then you need to work out a marketing strategy that enables you to interact with your prospects. And that is where apps on your site may excite visitors.
To keep ahead of the search engine game you need to keep your focus on the Google mantra and create a website the enhances the user experience. Websites will always need content, but the content has to be engaging otherwise users will not stay on your site and you will fall down the rankings.
For more information regarding SEO or to discuss your online marketing needs, contact us.
