One thing that will never change about SEO is that it will keep changing, keep improving, and keep getting more demanding.
What is the future of search engine optimization?
This question must be getting on your nerves, if you are an aspiring search engine optimizer and understandably so (after all you need some kind of assurance before opting it as a career). But there is so much uncertainty that even the Gurus are indefinite when it comes to their opinions. Funny thing is that this uncertainty has pretty much been here since the inception of the field we now know as “search engine optimization”; still so many people have dumped their previous lines of work and embraced SEO as a career. So many success stories, SEO businesses growing like mushrooms, plenty of new job openings and still this much ambiguity? The reason is quite simple. Search engine optimization is directly linked to “Search” and “Search engines” and because we can’t have a clear picture of what search or search engines will shape into, we can’t really be sure of how search engine optimization will proceed.
You’d ask “so am I doomed to work with this fear of SEO losing its value all of a sudden and becoming futile”. I’d say it depends on you. There’s no need to panic if you are ready to take up a constantly changing, truly challenging but highly rewarding career. However, you need to walk out on SEO as a career if you are not good at adapting to changes, being persistent and last but not the least “an enthusiastic learner”, because one thing that will never change about SEO is that it will keep changing, keep improving, and keep getting more demanding. Got the drift …?
So … we understand that SEO will keep evolving, but would we see something like complete demise of SEO as a profession anytime soon …? If you ask me … that’s out of the question.
Let’s evaluate some arguments that we hear (or read) frequently in this regard.
- Search engines getting too smart
- Search engines showing personalized results
- SEO is so easy, everybody can do it
Now, see what we have to confront these speculations.
Search Engines getting too smart:
The statement is true, no doubt, but one wonders what stops SEO professionals from getting even smarter. True, search engines will get too “smart” to be fooled by low quality back links lying at some worthless link farm (in fact they already are) but haven’t “SEO clan” adapted to the change by focusing more on content based quality back links? The point I m trying to make is that no matter what changes Search engines make in their algorithms, there will be some “ranking geeks” looking to exploit the ranking criteria.
Another thing I often read around is “SEO in its present form will fade out”. Excuse me, but Search engine optimization never had any particular shape, as I mentioned in my earlier posts it includes anything we do to place our websites higher at “search engine results page” when someone searches by our targeted keywords. That means, as long as major search engines keep displaying organic results, there will be people doing SEO for their websites; doesn’t really matter what technique they use (be it on-page optimization, link baiting, social networking or some completely new method).
P.S.
To be continued …
I have been working with lots of my clients’ websites during the past 8 years. I realized that SEO is getting harder every day. Search engines are more aware of how people try to build links to improve their SERPS, which is why they have published things such as the Sandbox a couple of years ago, and penalizing fast link building.
Great article and great study you put here. Would be interested to read the next part 🙂 Let me know
Thanks Joe,
You are absolutely right about SEO becoming more important and at the same time more challenging with the passage of time. My next post will discuss the issue of search engines showing personalized results … hopefully you’d like that too.
I have been in this SEO profession for more than 3 years. I have been working with lots of websites . I realized that SEO is changing every day. The new introduction of personalized search, behavior based search etc are going to make a lot of difference.
I think the next web will be interactive intelligent web also the geographical based search might get more priority as more and more DC gets handling the search queries. Intelligent web is a long concept the search engine have attained some success in this area with the LSI and theme based search. Lets us all hope for the best. Nice article, keep up the good work.
From my point of view (which kinda irrelevant, as i’m not an SEO expert), working in the field of SEO is already a futile job from the very start as your job depends on another company that didn’t really care your whereabouts or your importance. The only way to stay alive on this kind of job is (as you said) to beat the search engine and be flexible.
Problem is, advanced search engine has already starting to move on from machine search results to user generated results (ex. Google with searchwiki), and questions now arise if SEO can stand this new challenge. SEO will always be there for flexible professional, but i doubt this field of profession will be as crowded as right now in the future.
Nice post btw 🙂
@gagahputera
The field of SEO will get even more crowded as the internet users grow all around the world. More users mean more business, and more businesses mean more marketing, and more marketing needs more marketers … don’t ya think?
Nice article.. i think risk exists in every field of work even if you are cooking on a gas cylinder.. so there is no need to be panic that SEO is going towards its extinction.. search engines are made for users not the users are for search engines.. it’s good that search engines are becoming smarter.. in this way they are trying to get rid of the spammers and evil doers.. there is no need to worry if you are not one of them..
Yes SEO is very Easy any body can do it but there is have big mind so you can get high ranking. there is so many learn so can get traffics or there is have effort so you make money.
understand!! who have mind, learning capacity and effort so he will catch SEO Factors and make money.
nice post good works….
I like this post. And I agree that it is becoming harder all the time and that it will continue to evolve into a more smarter and user friendly information finding system. Additionally, you will always get the people who will seek to exploit the search engines…great post!
Your article is very much informative and I do not think that SEO will eve be phased out. Period. SEO will always be there but as you said It will tough as it keep son getting smarter and who dares to excel in this field should always be up to date. Your site proves me that SEO is a must. PR 0, 25 google index, 63 yahoo index and an Alexa ranking of 159272. That’s Great!
i wish I can have a site that has an Alexa ranking as high as that and no Zero PR.
Julie Viola
SEO is constantly changing. My strategies now are around 50% different than this time last year. Any SEO worth his/her weight in links should always be evolving, trying to second guess things before they actually happen.
At the moment, my mind is firmly on ‘Brands’. In the last few weeks, big brands across many industries have seen a definate boost in rankings (sometimes top 5 from virtually nowhere). Now, are brands the ’cause’ of these changes, or are they the ‘effect’ of some other change?
Much to think about & if so – how to create your site into a ‘brand’ in Googles eyes. . .
When you get spammers comming up in top of the search engines this means that there is no other site worthy of beating them…
Also, I agree that SEO is a forever changing affair as it needs to keep ahead of these scammers. But I always believe that if you are doing the right thing then you will come out on top in the end.
Not one site is beating me in the search engines from scamming tactics,,,NO NO…They are beating me because they are doing a better job.
And if you are a business person you will be used to the SEO market, because you always have to mold your business to your customers demands. If the customer doesn’t want it, you are not going to be able to sell it…
If the search engine results don’t give people what they want, then they will not trust them for the answers. So it is in the seach engines best interests to do the right thing…Obviously they want to show the best results in the end.
A lot of companies are doing business online, there’s no doubt that SEO jobs will be in demand in the future.
You’re right. SEO is so easy and that makes it boring. However, seeing the result from all your work makes it more worth it.