Your website’s content is crucial for ranking on Google and other search engines, but there are other factors that could affect your website’s ranking significantly. Being aware of these factors helps you prepare for the future and make adjustments accordingly.

- Google Algorithmic Updates
Google comes up with regular core updates, often 2-3 times a year. The last core update was in August 2024, and the one prior to that was in March 2024. You can get the list of Google Core updates from the Google website at Google Status.
Core updates often create fluctuations in ranking. In most cases, if your website adheres to all the rules of Google and ethical, unwritten rules, you will do well without a problem. In some cases, you may have to make corrections to your website and wait for the next update if you have erred in the past. Google updates are now more frequent, with small updates in the system rather than large updates once or twice a year. Keep an eye out for updates on the Google algorithm from time to time, especially when you see a spike or drop in your website traffic. - Topical Authority
Establishing your company or brand as an authority by building content around a specific topic is encouraged by Google. Google is more inclined to promote websites with in-depth, high-quality content. Websites are encouraged to have a topical map that covers the topic thoroughly. In the past, websites presented content on a subject with no content to back it. A page on website design or web development would often be a single page in the entire website with nothing to support the content on the page. Today, Google expects a piece of content to be backed by other pages that are very closely related to the topic. - Quality Over Quantity
When creating authoritative content to build topical authority, ensure that this content is all about quality rather than quantity. Having 100 pages with content of low quality and no value will not help your content to rank well. Research your keywords well and create content for the users. Content should offer a good user experience, and people should find value in it. Include LSI keywords in your content and go in-depth on the topic. Add personal experiences and a unique approach to ensure your content is fresh. - AI-Generated Content
Google does not prohibit AI-generated content, but the terms state: “Our focus on the quality of content, rather than how content is produced, is a useful guide that has helped us deliver reliable, high-quality results to users for years.” Source
However, many website owners have found their websites drop in ranking after the Google Core update, which focused on AI-generated content. Some content generated by AI already exists online. This content will be termed duplicate and adding no value. However, some content can be very effective when generated with AI; these consist of results from a large data pool from your organization and creating content based on the information you have.
Understanding how valuable the content is for the users is more important than how the content is created. Our personal advice is to use AI carefully. When creating content through AI, ensure that the source is your own. - User-Generated Content (UGC)
Websites like Reddit ranked high on Google after a few core updates. This may be temporary, or Google may just prefer user-generated content and rank them better. This is a challenging task for a regular website owner. Adding a forum involves additional management and costs more. Nevertheless, user-generated content is gaining traction in search results. - Search Generative Experience
The integration of AI in Google Search and the Search Generative Experience (SGE) has created challenges for many search engine optimizers. The lower rankings, coupled with the AI-generated answers appearing at the top of Google results, have negatively impacted the click-through rates of many search results. Though Google claims to redirect traffic from the SGE to relevant human-created content, the click-through rates from SGEs are relatively lower. These trends will affect SEO, and search engine optimizers may need to target keywords that avoid SGE, or Google may eventually provide a better interface for SGEs to drive organic traffic to websites. - Evolving Metrics and Strategies
Recent updates indicate that Google is ranking websites with better conversions higher. In the future, websites may be ranked based on leads and sales rather than content alone. The trend of websites being ranked based on content that aligns with user intent is becoming more prominent across many sites. - Integration of Paid Search
More and more websites are integrating paid search alongside their organic search campaigns to expand market reach. This strategy has produced positive results for many companies that have diversified their marketing efforts. The future may require the integration of paid search marketing along with SEO for companies to fully harness the power of the web. - Affiliate Marketing
Affiliate marketing has always been one of the most challenging niches in SEO. With restrictions on both paid and organic search, several high-value industries within affiliate marketing will continue to face challenges in SEO.