2020 is well underway, and the future is waiting! Digital marketing adventures await you, but their successes depend on how you prepare.
This month’s Stukent News You Can Use covers SEO and all things Google: Google’s mobile-first update, Google Insights Library, and a new training series for Google Search Console.
SEO AND INTENT 2020 RESULTS NOW PUBLISHED
Topic: E-commerce | SEO
Key Point: The 2020 Ignite Visibility SEO and Intent 2020 case study is ready, and the results are telling. Over 500 respondents provided answers to help answer two critical questions: What do searchers look for in the search results, and how accurately do those results reflect search intent?
The study is free to download and well worth the read. According to Ignite’s John Lincoln, “The most significant thing this study shows is how closely search intent correlates with a keyword search. The results show that intent does match searches, and that should be part of every SEO strategy. I was also shocked by how many people prefer organic ads over paid in 2020.”
Get it here: New SEO and Intent Study
ALSO SEE: Meta Descriptions and Branding
GOOGLE MOBILE-FIRST UPDATE
Topic: SEO | E-commerce
Key Point: Google recently updated the mobile-first indexing guide to reflect policy developments. Google also changed how it handles web crawling and structured data.
If you provide both desktop and mobile versions of your website, make sure the two are consistent in content (see a screenshot of the Google warning below).
Here’s Google’s mobile-first indexing best practices guide.
ALSO SEE: Mobile-first indexing guide update
GOOGLE LAUNCHED A DATA INSIGHTS LIBRARY
Topic: SEO | Analytics |E-commerce
Key Point: “Think with Google” articles have long been an inbox favorite for many digital marketers. Now, those reports can be accessed from the new Google Insights Library.
In the email announcing the new feature, Google said this: “The latest Google research and insights are right at your fingertips. Interact with featured data reports, discover curated collections of research, and power your ideas and business — only with the Think With Google Insights Library.”
It’s a rich repository of online marketing information — well worth bookmarking. This new library can come in handy when you’re researching a topic or just want to learn a little more about the ever-changing world of digital marketing.
SEARCH CONSOLE TRAINING NOW ROLLING OUT
Topic: SEO | E-commerce
Key Point: The Google Insights Library isn’t all Google is rolling out to welcome the new year, the Google Webmaster Central Blog also announced a new training series for Google Search Console.
You can subscribe to the Google Webmasters YouTube channel to get notified of new releases, but the training will happen on the Search Console Training channel. Your best bet is to subscribe to both (and be sure to activate notifications — see the screenshot below).
Here’s the announcement from Webmasters Central Blog.
Be sure to click on the bell (see above) and choose “All” notifications.
For the skilled digital marketer, the world is truly an oyster ready to open. Statista reported that 14.1 percent of all retail sales in 2019 were made online, and that percentage is climbing steadily. Digital marketing and the skills supporting it are some of the most in-demand skills in the world today.
How can you secure your position as a digital marketer? Keep learning. Keep growing. Keep moving forward. Opportunities abound.
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