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What to expect from SEO in 2017

What to expect from SEO in 2017

Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) is an ever moving target. Just as your website starts to rank and reach the type of dizzying heights you’ve been aiming and hoping for, Google makes the slightest of tweaks and your ranking sinks.

It’s a common occurrence and, whilst annoying from an SEO perspective, Google only make changes if they know it’s in the best interest of their search engine and consumers.

We’ve seen some big changes so far in 2016. The Google algorithm update in September caught most of us off guard. The initial fallout was confusing and left many of our sites in a worse position. Our own site tumbled from page 1 to page 3 for our keywords. After weeks of studying the patterns we started to understand the way in which things had changed. We adjusted our sails and we’re now happy to report that all of our sites are performing better than they ever were. In fact the Start Digital site is consistently in the top 5 on page 1 for keywords that many consider to be the hardest industry to rank for. We are, after all, up against the best.

So, given we’re nearly ready to tick over into a new calendar year, what to expect from SEO in 2017? Of course, given the secretive nature of Google’s algorithm no one can say for certain but there are certainly some strong indicators.

Mobile First SEO

At the start of November Google announced their intention to put a preference on mobile first search results, meaning they’re going to index the mobile version of websites, when available, as opposed to the desktop version. In short, the data, structure and speed of your mobile site will dictate the overall Google rankings.

This is a pretty big deal but not one that’s such a big surprise. In August Google reported that more than 50% of global searches are from mobile, and this is continuing to rise.

So how should we be optimising sites for mobile performance? First things first we recommend putting your site through Google’s mobile friendly analysis tool. It’s a funky little site in itself but will give you a very good indication of how Google views your mobile site. For the record the Start Digital site gets 99/100 for mobile friendliness.

https://testmysite.thinkwithgoogle.com/

Mobile AMP pages

AMP stands for Accelerated Mobile Pages. The goal of AMP is to load pages quickly on mobile. This differs from being mobile responsive in that it strips out what’s deemed to be unnecessary ‘fluff’ and delivers only the essential information. This is great for pages that are text focused, not so great for pages and sites that have a strong focus on images, layout and design.

In recent months we’ve seen Google give preference to sites that use AMP pages by placing them into search carousels and adding a lightning bolt icon to their listing. The Start Digital blog pages, this one included, are all configured for AMP.

Content is still King 

We know that Google values quality content. Nothing new there. If you load your site with keywords and poorly constructed sentences your website will suffer. To increase your sites authority and trust rating you need high quality, engaging content.

The way in which we create text content for websites has changed over the years. We started with snippets of content that were intended to create quick user engagement. More recently we’ve seen a rise in platforms such as Medium and LinkedIn, where we’re encouraged to develop long, ‘think pieces’ that demonstrate our in depth knowledge and opinions.

We anticipate that the future is somewhere in between. The Goldilocks zone of content. Content creators will focus on providing high quality content with a more reasoned word count. In a time poor world we engage more with informative content that can be easily digested.

In short, don’t say too little, don’t say too much. And, if you’re outsourcing your copy make sure you proof read it before publishing.

The robots are coming

In October 2015 Google announced the launch of Rankbrain, a super powered algorithm that learns how to deliver the best search results. In a 2015 interview, Google staff indicated that RankBrain was the ‘third most important signal contributing to the result of a search query’.

Interestingly, voice search is becoming one of the most popular forms of searching. This is in line with the increase seen in mobile use. A Google study indicates that 55% of teenagers and 41% of adults regularly use voice search. This type of search method is more conversational and considerably different from standard keyboard search we’ve become familiar with.

As we continue to use multiple ways to search for content online, whether it’s voice activated, mobile, driven by SIRI or ‘old school’ desktop, it’s RankBrains job to understand how searches are phrased and update results accordingly.

2017 is shaping up to be another interesting year for web design companies, online marketers and SEO agencies, and we’ll need to stay on our toes to keep ahead of the game.

If you’re a Perth business looking to get ahead of your competitors please don’t hesitate to talk to the team at Start Digital. We have a proven track record in delivering high quality websites that rank well. No fuss, no fluff, just results.

startdig

We are a collective of designers, coders, producers and technologists from around the world who collaborate on a shared passion for innovative websites. Based in Perth, Western Australia, we bring style and innovation to the projects we undertake. Taking time to understand our clients requirements we strive to produce quality web design work for an affordable price. We then leverage our years of experience to make sure that our websites are responsive, SEO friendly and meet the clients requirements.

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google reviews

Start Digital
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Jack McLoughlin
Jack McLoughlin
17:04 29 Jun 20
Thoroughly professional and well communicated. Thanks Neil
aimxi online
aimxi online
04:37 15 May 20
I am from Brisbane, my name is Craig, I have a dog training company, it was my first time attempting on page SEO, after calling nearly all SEO companies in Brisbane, Sydney, and Melbourne, this was the only place that gave me some time to help me out. 5 star from me, well done in being a human and not worrying about what you could have got from me. hats off to you !. from dogtrainingbegins.com.au
Sheri Macmahon
Sheri Macmahon
09:04 17 Jan 20
Knowledgable, inspiring and helpful. Getting my online presence created and managed by the Start Digital is the BEST decision I ever made.
Hello :-)
Hello :-)
12:39 12 Jun 19
Neil & The Team at Start Digital are fantastic to work with. Our new website is exceptional. The guys here have fresh, modern ideas and the process from start to finish was flawless. Highly recommended.
Blank Walls
Blank Walls
03:57 11 Jun 19
Neil and the team at Start Digital provide such an excellent service and have been a massive help for us since we launched late 2018. Their attention to detail is unmatched compared to other digital agencies we've dealt with, and the team go out of their way to ensure the best result is achieved in the most time & cost efficient way. Thanks again Start Digital
Move Homes
Move Homes
00:18 11 Jun 19
A huge thank you to Neil and the Start Digital team! We engaged them to redesign our Move Homes website to take our brand to the next level. Not only does the website look fantastic, but throughout the website build we received frequent and transparent communication- we knew exactly what was happening and why. Start Digital listened to what we needed and would offer their advice on how to achieve our goals. Aside from their expertise, they’re also great people and really easy to deal with. We look forward to working on more projects over the coming years!
Sheila Woods
Sheila Woods
04:36 12 Mar 18
Neil Mason and the Start Digital team have done a tremendous job with the design and implementation of Interstaff’s new website. Our brief to Neil was for a clean, modern website which visually communicated our brand values, ‘sharp, dependable, expert and human’ to both business and individual clients, and importantly to offer an engaging and easy-to-navigate online experience optimised for SEO. We are delighted with the design as well as the level of consideration and attention to detail Neil and his team put into shaping the online experience of our brand. Start Digital have been very flexible and easy to collaborate with and nothing was ever too difficult. They went above and beyond – even working over the weekend to help us have our website ready to launch ahead of one of our key business seminars. We look forward to continuing to work with Neil and his team in the future and would definitely recommend their services.
iQuest Consulting
iQuest Consulting
05:48 21 Feb 18
The Start Digital team built us a new website and have been managing our SEO for over a year now. During that time our site has moved into the top five on page 1 of Google for keywords such as IT Company Perth and IT Support Perth which has increased our traffic considerably. We're very proud of our website and highly recommend Start Digital.
Heather Bush
Heather Bush
01:02 16 Feb 18
Neil and his team at Start Digital go above and beyond expectations. Having worked with many web agencies I can honestly say that Start have been one of the most open and cost effective agency I have worked with . They come highly recommeded
Anthony Godin
Anthony Godin
05:11 04 Jan 18
Excellent Perth website design, development and SEO agency
Uniting ChurchWA
Uniting ChurchWA
06:58 06 Dec 17
After years of tolerating our old website, we are now proud owners of a sleek, responsive and easy to use new site, thanks to Start Digital. Professional, practical, affordable and easy to work with-Neil and his stellar team delivered our site along with 22 additional sites for some of our congregations. Our organisation is complex and this project was massive. Throughout the project, Start Digital were flexible and patient with us. They responded quickly to emails and phone calls, kept us in the loop and always made time to touch base in their cool office. We can’t thank the team enough for their tremendous effort. It’s only been a month, but we have received plenty of positive feedback since launching the new site. We look forward to working with Start Digital for future digital projects and highly recommend anyone who needs a new website to give them a call.
Amantha Imber
Amantha Imber
08:25 02 Dec 17
Neil and the team created an AMAZING website for Inventium. We have received so much positive feedback since launch. I highly recommend Start Digital - they are awesome!
Lee Bramley
Lee Bramley
03:54 16 Nov 17
Fantastic Service, Really Knowledgeable in all areas of Website and Marketing strategies, they built us a fantastic looking site and nothing was too much for them throughout the process, We also found them to be very reasonably priced compared to other quotes we had, highly recommended.
Dean Capelli
Dean Capelli
06:22 11 Jul 17
Start Digital have built 3 websites for The Highways Group. We've been impressed with their attention to detail and quality of design every time. They're a friendly, professional agency and our go to web team.
John Argiropoulos
John Argiropoulos
07:45 19 May 17
We highly recommend Start Digital service, their efficient , personnel approach and professional skills gave us great results thanks .
Mitch Capelli
Mitch Capelli
22:13 25 Nov 16
Knowledgeable and excellent service at a great price I highly recommend Start Digital. We engaged them to redesign our website and manage our online presence. Previously we were a few pages back on a google search, however after only a few months we are in and around the top 5 on the first page. The guys at Start were great to deal with providing straight forward easy to understand information without the typical sales pitch that we have experienced many times before from other providers in the industry. We continue to receive updates on the progress of our website and their SEO service all for a very reasonable rate (ie. much cheaper than we were previously paying for a lesser service)
Eva Wood
Eva Wood
01:24 23 Nov 16
Neil and his team was responsible for the design and re-branding of our website, business cards and marketing material. They quickly understood our business, they identified the market we needed to target and delivered an excellent solution to match. We would highly recommend Start Digital.
Compac Marketing
Compac Marketing
04:05 14 Oct 16
Neil and the guys at Start Digital took care of some problems we had with our website performance. They were really efficient, responsive, easy to get along with and gave us some great pointers to help us with SEO. Unlike many digital marketing companies out there, Start Digital were very genuine and well-priced. Would definitely recommend their services to others.
Paul Avery
Paul Avery
05:23 13 Oct 16
Great design ideas and technical capability means a complete solution for small and medium sized businesses like us. Neil & Co actually take an interest in what you are trying to achieve rather than just turn and burn volume website factories out there! I recommend them.
Claire Leech
Claire Leech
02:11 04 Oct 16
We have had the pleasure of working with the team at Start Digital recently as we wished to update our website for our restaurant business. WOW! An amazing new, innovative, trendy and professional approach taken by these guys has resulted in a brilliant new site, clearly directing so much more traffic through our business resulting in increased brand awareness and google presence. As a relatively new business, Start Digital will definitely be going places ! We really look forward to continuing to work with them in the future and watch both our and their business grow! Thanks Neil and the team at Start Digital.
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