The NFL playoffs are winding down, the conference championship games have been decided, and yet another upstart NFC team has broken through for the privilege of losing in agonizing fashion to the New England Patriots.
You know what that means: Yes, the big game is finally here. But more importantly, so is your latest content marketing fix with the CM Weekly.
This time around, we’ve got updates on local search, AI and voice search. Tom Brady? Todd Gurley? Pssh, the real MVP is the CM Weekly:
How AI Can Uncover new Insights and Drive SEO Performance
You’re probably sick of hearing about artificial intelligence by now, but there’s a very good reason people keep harping on the topic: It has an incredible number of applications and will likely drive various critical marketing processes in the coming years.
Over at Search Engine Land, Jim Yu took a deep dive into the SEO use case for AI. Thinking algorithms can work faster than human counterparts, covering way more ground and delivering incredible insights in a fraction of the amount of time.
Yu highlights several key areas where AI can enhance SEO practices:
- Personalizing the brand experience: AI bots use a customer’s history with a brand as well as their predicted behavior to automatically tailor digital interactions and messaging for each individual.
- Monitoring site performance: AI algorithms are able to continually analyze and review site metrics and KPIs to spot lingering problems as well as other issues as they develop.
- Managing your budget: Want to know where you should be allocating your resources for optimal effect? AI can help determine how to set up content marketing budgets to maximize profitability.
AI-based software can even help on the creative side, analyzing trending topics and recommending content titles that fit those molds.
Want to know more about our new robot overlords? Read the full story here.
Use of Voice Search in Public on the Rise, According to 2018 Study
With Siri and Alexa now as ubiquitous and well-known as Cher and Madonna, it’s fair to say that voice-enabled search is here to stay.
If you need more evidence that voice search is quickly becoming status quo, look at the number of people who now use such apps in public. Search Engine Journal covered the results of a recent study, showing that more people now feel comfortable using voice search on public transportation – roughly 35 percent in 2018 compared with just over 20 percent in 2017.
Moreover, 60 percent of people say they prefer voice search over typing out queries because it’s faster.
If you haven’t already started accounting for voice search in your SEO strategies, now’s a good time to do so.
Check out the rest of the report here.
Local Search Industry Optimistic About 2018 — but Less Likely to Hire
With Google’s seemingly never-ending quest to tweak local search algorithms, there’s never been a better time to specialize in this particular area of SEO.
Writing for Search Engine Land, Jamie Pitman gave a pretty comprehensive analysis of the local search industry, based on a BrightLocal survey of more than 1,100 SEO professionals.
Some of the results only confirmed what you would expect (agencies are able to command higher rates than freelancers), but the survey did bring some interesting tidbits to light:
- Demand for video marketing decreased last year, although Pitman expects this trend to reverse in 2018.
- On-site SEO was a higher priority for clients than local-focused needs like optimizing for Google My Business.
- Interest in paid social media only trailed organic social media by 7 percentage points.
There’s a lot to unpack here, so go ahead and read the whole story if you’d like to know more.
Google’s Featured Snippets FAQ: How to Get More Traffic From Search Engines
Ever wonder what the difference is between Google’s featured snippets and answer boxes? Well, Ann Smarty’s got you covered over at the Content Marketing Institute.
True to her name, she’s provided a thoughtful and intelligent rundown of everything you need to know about featured snippets.
Some of the major points of discussion include the search ranking ramifications of featured snippets, what kinds of queries trigger their appearance in search results and how businesses can improve their chances of appearing in these highly coveted spots.
Bing even gets some coverage, if you’re interested in that sort of thing.
Satisfy your featured snippets curiosity here.
That closes the books on another edition of the CM Weekly. Be sure to check in again next time around, and enjoy the football media extravaganza this week!
