Google Hummingbird, Content and The Who
'Meet the new boss, same as the old boss' goes one of the most memorable lines in the history of rock 'n’ roll. While the meaning of this line from The Who’s ‘Won’t Get Fooled Again’ has sparked several debates with no clear winners, it certainly hits close to home for SEOs trying to figure out the implication of the biggest update to Google’s algorithm since 2001 - Hummingbird. Because, in the world of digital marketing, the new boss has always been and will always be the old boss i.e. content.
In this post, let’s look at how Google Hummingbird impacts your content marketing and how BrightEdge customers were Hummingbird-ready before Hummingbird!
Google Hummingbird: ‘keep calm and chive on' with a twist
Google Hummingbird created quite a commotion when its existence became public even though it went largely unnoticed till the good folks at Google pointed it out. In retrospect, the frenzy was uncalled for - Hummingbird simply helps Google do a better job of rewarding great content based on a sophisticated semantic analysis of what you are looking for. Keywords still matter but the meaning of what you search for matters more than ever.
Our CEO Jim Yu wrote a great article in Search Engine Land (‘Google Hummingbird & The Keyword: What You Need To Know To Stay Ahead’) clearing the air about Google Hummingbird and managing its impact (beyond creating content that matters to your users).
TL:DR for Jim's post - death of keyword-based SEO may be highly exaggerated, content still matters the most and marketers need to keep creating great content, as always. However, there needs to be a massive shift on how marketers see SEO - marketers need to deploy the new lens of page and content-centric SEO for managing organic search performance.
Page-based SEO takes center stage
Keyword based SEO is necessary but not sufficient - managing performance at the page level is what sets you up for the gentle nudges from Google that content is still the boss. Google’s move to 100% secure search and loss of keyword referral data makes sure that the move to page-centric SEO a.k.a. content-centric SEO is not optional.
The only complete soution for content performance management
We were one of the earliest to recognize that 100% secure search was coming and launched our pioneering Page Manager in 2012 to help you optimize every element of a page for organic search. We continued to launch such innovations consistently and the BrightEdge SEO Platform is the only comprehensive solution that provides our customers a blueprint to succeed in the content-centric universe.
How do you make the transition to content-based SEO? Here is a simple 3-step framework:
- Access powerful analytics to get traffic, revenue and conversions at the page level
- Optimize at the page-level
- Manage the impact of Secure Search with keyword insight unique to the BrightEdge platform
Gain the ultimate insight into page traffic, conversions, and revenue
If you want your pages to perform, you need to know how your pages are performing in the first place. BrightEdge Page Reporting gives you a 360 degree view of page performance including SEO metrics like ranks and backlinks, and business metrics like revenue, traffic and conversions. You can get this unprecedented insight in one place for individual pages or for any group that you create whether it be by brand, business unit, product category and more. Compare these powerful metrics period over period to identify trends and take action right away. Read more about this on our Page Reporting page.
Optimize every page for organic search
Measuring how your content is doing is a big deal. Take this insight to next level by actually optimizing every element of the page for organic search using Page Manager. Look at every page and access powerful recommendations to optimize on-page factors, understand backlink profile, explore link building opportunities, maximize social sharing and more, while keeping an eye on competition.
Manage secure search impact with unique keyword insight
As I mentioned, keywords still matter when it comes to understanding user intent and interests. Keyword rank is still your stepping stone to greater glory when it comes to traffic, conversions and revenue. BrightEdge keyword analytics, dashboards and powerful keyword recommendations to optimize for keyword performance across provide you the most accurate keyword metrics across devices and geographies. And this is barely scratching the surface. BrightEdge offers unique keyword insight unavailable in any web analytics and SEO technologies due to the move to Google Secure Search.
Gain partial visibility into keyword performance with BrightEdge Google Webmaster tools integration
Restore partial keyword visibility into keyword performance through our seamless integration with Google Webmaster Tools. Our BrightEdge Google Webmaster Tools Integration offers a richer view of keyword performance by providing you clicks and impressions data right within the BrightEdge platform.
Estimate keyword traffic based on most sophisticated click curves for every device
Traffic referral data is no longer unavailable in your web analytics platform but BrightEdge customers have the power to estimate the traffic form keywords thanks to our proprietary BrightEdge Customizable Click Curve. Assess keyword performance based on an analysis of keyword performance and referral data related to five billion pages managed by 8400+ brands across desktop, smartphone and tablet devices. We engineered this algorithm before the loss of referral data due to 100% secure search which means this powerful data is available for BrightEdge customers only! In summary, SEO has always been about great content, and even after a host of updates named after exotic wildlife and choice destinations, it is clear that content is still boss. Next time Google updates it algorithm, we can pretty much be sure that content will continue to reign supreme. You can also be sure that we will continue to track the latest trends in digital marketing as they unfold so you have the most advanced tools to make the most of these trends before anyone else.