Due to the fact that Google is constantly making algorithmic changes that affect search engine results, it’s important to understand the ever changing nature of SEO. In fact, 2011’s Panda Update and 2012’s Penguin Update have greatly affected the position of many websites within Google’s search rankings. To ensure that your website raises or at least maintains it ranking, it’s important to understand what the future of SEO holds and how to implement effective SEO tactics that will carry you into the future.

Create Excellent Content

If Google’s changes have shown us anything, it’s that low quality content will no longer suffice. A few years ago, many businesses could create mediocre content or even plagiarize content and see decent rankings simply by throwing in a few well placed keywords. While this may have worked in the past, it’s absolutely vital to create only original content that provides your audience with real value. Not only will this help your business build credibility within your industry’s community, it should help you climb the search engine rankings as well. Even though algorithms will change, quality content will always be in demand and whoever can deliver it should be successful. While it may take more initial effort, you should be rewarded in the long run by going the extra mile and creating top notch content.

Use White Hat SEO Tactics

Another part of preparing your business for future SEO is to avoid implementing black hat SEO tactics into your campaign. For example, spamming people, keyword stuffing, cloaking links and using unethical practices in general should be avoided. Google’s Penguin Update has cracked down on websites who use black hat SEO tactics and this should only increase in the future. As a result, you should let backlinks occur naturally by creating great content and use a proper keyword density ranging somewhere between 1.5 to 6 percent. Along with this, you should focus on creating content for humans and not simply to appease search engines. Since social shares are becoming more and more integral in SEO, it’s also smart to place social media buttons around the content of your website or blog. If you use the WordPress publishing platform, this can easily be done installing a social sharing plugin.

Adapt to Mobile Users

Another element of SEO that is becoming increasingly important is making your website mobile friendly. While a large number of people still use desktop and laptop PCs to browse the Internet, more and more are now using mobile devices like smartphones and tablets. Consequently, failure to adapt to these changes can hurt your SEO campaign and overall traffic numbers. One way to adjust to the rise of mobile devices is to create a mobile version of your website. Another new type of technology involves using responsive web design. This revolves around using programming technologies like CSS3 and Javascript to make your website viewable on nearly any computer or mobile device regardless of the screen size and resolution. While this may not be essential right now, it should help propel your business into the future and greatly benefit your SEO.