The Future of SEO @annebot #vcbuzz

SEO is one of the fastest-changing marketing fields. It is also one of the youngest.

Since it started, SEO has changed completely, from how we understand it to our goals.

So where is it heading?

What’s the future of SEO?

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About @annebot

Anne Ahola Ward @annebot is a Futurist, Growth Scientist and CEO of CircleClick Media, founded in 2009.

She has nearly 20 years of experience working on the Web in various functions, having mastered almost every role in web development: DBA, webmaster, developer, graphic designer, and video editor.

Anne is author of The SEO Battlefield: Winning Strategies for Search Marketing Programs

Find Anne on your local TV station, or visit annebot.com for the latest appearances.

Questions we discussed

Q1 How did you become a digital marketer? Please share your career story!

I started my career as a web developer and migrated into SEO as the field was forming through my love of analytics.

Using data to make observations gave me the confidence to make the switch. My time at Apple in Education Marketing showed me that I wanted to be the person who was managing what was on the front of the page, not the code.

A1 Like many of us, I just fell into #PPC early on and evolved into small business marketing strategy. #vcbuzz https://t.co/wyF090MbBw
— Gail Gardner (@GrowMap) June 21, 2022

A1. I was in the newspaper business, sales, and marketing. I was afraid of layoff so started my own biz. #vcbuzz
— Lisa Sicard ?‍??? (@Lisapatb) June 21, 2022

Q2 What are some aspects of SEO strategies that have changed the most since it started?

SEO used to be way more about the content (keywords) than it is now. The type of SEO I do is way more geared towards technical performance. Developers are so crucial to today’s SEO, which is why I always have them on my team.

Also, there used to be white hat, grey hat, and black hat- now it’s less so, at least in my experience. There’s no stuffing white text into a footer and hoping it works hahah

A2 In the very beginning, just using one 2-3 word keyword phrase per page or post could get your pages ranking.

My first site ranked for probably everything in my niche (horses). Would that it were so easy today.

It is so much more complicated now. #vcbuzz https://t.co/xZ9H82S21C
— Gail Gardner (@GrowMap) June 21, 2022

It has become more sophisticated to try to protect against spam, clickbait and other low-quality information/sites. #vcbuzz
— Courtney Rogers (@CourtneyMRogers) June 21, 2022

Right but now I’m finding those first few results for any given query is kind of garbage-y restating the question you’ve searched way too many times. Another update is surely coming! This happens when things get wonky.

As a developer a lot of companies would hire me for SEO then not understand that was different from web dev so they tended to want me to do BOTH. That’s when I became an alley cat instead of a house cat…

Q3 When talking to clients who insist on doing it the old way, how would you recommend explaining the new SEO and where it is heading?

Just like anything in life, people take things better when they’re explained with kindness and in a way they can understand.

I’ll give clients copies of my book or send articles that help explain any given point.

A3. I like to show them by example, and show them some examples from stats and sites. #vcbuzz
— Lisa Sicard ?‍??? (@Lisapatb) June 21, 2022

Also, sometimes I can point them to my TV segments that have covered those topics, which is helpful. I do a lot of education on my @gritdaily column as well as on TV and at conferences. Pointing to that always helps too.

A3 I feel for site owners. How do you know who you trust? I've been burned TWICE just on people managing my site.

And hiring an SEO is just as risky – or more risky! You have to trust someone, so get referrals. *But they aren't always good referrals. #vcbuzz
— Gail Gardner (@GrowMap) June 21, 2022

Fair point. I proposed a set of standards for SEOs that went over like a lead balloon. We’re not big on rule-following in this industry. 🙂 Referrals are always good! SEO is truly subjective so always know which type of SEO you want, too.

I manage most of my site but have a techie for the most technical things. I had someone for SEO for a while but stopped as I was doing more of it myself. Referrals usually work out. #vcbuzz
— Lisa Sicard ?‍??? (@Lisapatb) June 21, 2022

A3. We start by investing in relational bridge building right up front. Aligning and managing expectations is a huge part. We explain that Agile Marketing always works best and that we'll be flexible with their needs, too. #vcbuzz
— Jeannie Hill (@essentialskill) June 21, 2022

A/3b Such a good statement, @GrowMap – empathy for our clients is super important; just like when we ask them to be customer-centric. Like you imply, we endeavor to lead by example. #vcbuzz ?
— Jeannie Hill (@essentialskill) June 21, 2022

Q4 In a nutshell, what will SEO look like in the next decade?

I predict that SEO will become even more of a developers game, but we will have robots fighting robots. That’s happening already!

Complex queries and semantic analysis will reign supreme. We’ll hopefully see some course correction in terms of people’s online privacy. I have high hopes for #Web3.

A4 Well, it might be that only corporations show up in the serps so the rest of the internet won't need to SEO anymore. #vcbuzz
— Gail Gardner (@GrowMap) June 21, 2022

Also, SEO has moved out of search engines, we’ll see it more focused on our televisions, the #metaverse, anywhere people are spending time virtually…

That’s interesting! I wonder if SEO is even the right name for it anymore, in that case! Perhaps “placement engineering” or something like that would be a more apt description! #vcbuzz
— Courtney Rogers (@CourtneyMRogers) June 21, 2022

We tend to fear what we don’t understand. SO many otherwise intelligent people always go right to Terminator’s Skynet when they hear AI… Why do we envision a world where we create things that will murder us?

Q5 What are some innovative SEO tools you played with recently?

I don’t typically disclose any tools that I use because they could be construed as endorsements and they change constantly, but Octoboard, Nightwatch, and HREFs are some classic go-to’s that I use.

A5. Ubersuggest with Answer the Public all rolled into one is kinda cool for research. #vcbuzz
— Lisa Sicard ?‍??? (@Lisapatb) June 21, 2022

Call me old-fashioned but I actually like GA, Search Console, and GTM. I do NOT like GA4 as it’s hot garbage.

A5. I'm interested more in python programs that run on Google Colab as we see the growing importance of #SERPanalysis. #vcbuzz
— Jeannie Hill (@essentialskill) June 21, 2022