SEO vs. ALGO

The Google Algorithm (also known as Algo) is constantly on the minds of search optimization specialists around the world due to Google's popularity, but how important will the algorithm be in 2010?

As Google depends less and less on the thousands of secret factors that play into the algorithm’s search results and more on trusted referral links from other web publishers – or PageRank, – the effectiveness of methods many search specialists practice are quickly dissolving.

There’s a bit of talk about this subject though – some search specialists believe SEO will never go away and others believe it will become useless. I sit somewhere in the middle of these two beliefs because I acknowledge – as we all do – that Google’s Algorithm is becoming more efficient in finding the highest quality content online for its users, therefore making SEO unnecessary, yet I also believe web publishers will always be able to optimize their content in one way or another.

I'd like to explore the reasons why SEO will both be needed and unneeded in the future - but first, here's a little more info about the Google Algorithm.

“Since Google is the most popular search engine, many webmasters have become eager to influence their website's Google rankings. An industry of consultants has arisen to help websites increase their rankings on Google and on other search engines. This field, called search engine optimization, attempts to discern patterns in search engine listings, and then develop a methodology for improving rankings to draw more searchers to their client's sites.

Search engine optimization encompasses both "on page" factors (like body copy, title elements, H1 heading elements and image alt attribute values) and Off Page Optimization factors (like anchor text and PageRank). The general idea is to affect Google's relevance algorithm by incorporating the keywords being targeted in various places "on page", in particular the title element and the body copy (note: the higher up in the page, presumably the better its keyword prominence and thus the ranking). Too many occurrences of the keyword, however, cause the page to look suspect to Google's spam checking algorithms.

Google has published guidelines for website owners who would like to raise their rankings when using legitimate optimization consultants"

As Google depends more on trusted links to help create a diverse list of high quality content for their Google Search users, search optimization specialists will find it harder and harder to see results -- no pun intended -- with their SEO efforts.

What it comes down to is the link -- the trusted referral from one (reputable) site to another is what will determine the decision of Google's algorithm.

I think the search engine optimization industry will shrink dramatically and the focus will turn to the quality of content (which has already begun by the way) and how it's delivered. As we've seen most recently with the iPhone, content is being distributed to wireless devices in a sleek, fitting way the user enjoys. While basic SEO (titles, keywords, keyword-based titles, headings, etc.) will survive the shrink, I believe Google will be able to see right through overly optimized content.

If you're going to focus on optimizing your site, the best thing you can do is create quality content and build links both inbound and within your site. Remember, it's not about Google -- it's about the user.