Artificial Intelligence and Google: What Does AI Mean for SEO?

Artificial Intelligence and Google: What Does AI Mean for SEO?

Sep 23, 2020

Reading Time: 3 minutes
Artificial Intelligence and Google_ What Does AI Mean for SEO_
Many people think of artificial intelligence as something out of science fiction, such as R2-D2 or C-3PO from Star Wars or Agent Smith from the Matrix. Artificial intelligence, or AI, seems like something from the future that we won’t see in our lifetimes. However, AI is actually already here and is a major part of our lives. It just doesn’t look like Hugo Weaving in a suit.

What Is Artificial Intelligence?

Artificial intelligence is defined as any intelligence present in machines, in contrast to natural intelligence, which is possessed by humans and other living beings, such as animals. Perhaps in the future, AI will appear to us as a computer program like Agent Smith or in the form of robots like C-3PO. But today, artificial intelligence is built into the software that we use every day. This includes Google, out smartphones and tablets, and programs like Siri, Alexa, and Cortana.

Artificial intelligence is what tells Google how to interpret users’ search queries. Artificial intelligence is what allows you to talk to Alexa like she’s an actual person. Artificial intelligence is what guides self-driving cars like the one Tesla is developing. Even though artificial intelligence doesn’t yet look like it does in science fiction, it’s here and we use it every day, often without realizing it. The future is now.

What Is RankBrain?

RankBrain is a core part of Google’s algorithm. It uses machine learning to provide the most relevant results to users when they search. Before Google added RankBrain, search results were produced by their basic algorithm. With RankBrain, Google has become much better about interpreting additional information about the search, including a user’s location and the actual intent behind the search.

What sets the addition of RankBrain apart from earlier updates to Google’s core algorithm is that it involves machine learning. Machine learning is a subset of artificial intelligence and involves machines and computers learning on their own through experience. This means that over time, RankBrain will only improve.

What Is BERT?

BERT is an update that was added in 2019. Where RankBrain uses machine learning to interpret searches, the addition of BERT allows Google to use natural language processing. Google has always been able to read text, but actually interpreting what the words in that text mean has traditionally been a challenge for machines.

BERT makes it easier for Google to understand what a user actually means with the words they type and deliver more relevant results.

What Does AI Mean for SEO?

Google uses artificial intelligence to better interpret exactly what users mean when they make a search query. This means that SEO has advanced far beyond simply putting the right keywords into your content as many times as possible. It also means that web traffic directed to your site is higher quality and made up of more users who are genuinely interested in what you have to say. It’s a win-win situation for both users and for webmasters.

The best thing you can do for your SEO is to produce high-quality content that will interest readers and keep them wanting to read more. The use of AI also means that more people are performing voice searches than ever before, so optimizing for voice search by using long-tail keywords is a good idea. On top of that, because Google is better than it has ever been before at interpreting users’ intent, which means that you have to be as well. Keyword research can tell you what users are searching for and what they’re looking for when they make that search.

Need some help growing your web presence and strengthening your brand? You’ve come to the right place.

Get in Touch with BrainVine!
How to Work With Your Online Content Writer

How to Work With Your Online Content Writer

Sep 4, 2020

Reading Time: 3 minutes
How to Work With Your Online Content Writer

Tips for Working With an Internet Content Writer

Having well-written content on your website is essential to both ranking well with search engines and providing the best possible user experience to your audience. However, many businesses aren’t able to employ or don’t have the volume of content needed to justify employing a full-time in-house writer. That’s where freelance writers come in.

via GIPHY

Provide Clear Expectations

Writers aren’t mind-readers. Even the best writers will need some guidance from you, especially if you have a specific writing style that you prefer. A writer who has written for other companies in the same industry as yours may have experience with the subject matter, but the other companies they’ve written for may have had different expectations.

If you have specific topics and keywords in mind, provide that information to the writer from the beginning. If you have websites or blogs that showcase the writing style you’re looking for, share those with the writer so they’re not guessing what you’re looking for. As the writer learns your preferences, the amount of input you’ll need to provide may decrease over time. However, it is a learning process for the writer and can take time.

via GIPHY

Have Realistic Expectations

You get what you pay for. It’s similar to the old adage that you can get something fast, cheap or good, but you have to pick two. If you have a small budget, there’s a limit to the amount of time a writer can spend on your content.

Plus, something like a blog is meant to be casual and written a tone similar to that of how we speak, rather than being formal writing. It’s also meant to be an opportunity to impart information that readers are searching for and for SEO keywords. A blog is not meant to be prize-winning literature.

Website content can be at a higher reading level and be of higher quality overall. It will also typically be longer than a blog. Therefore, it will require more time from a writer and a higher budget from you.

via GIPHY

Expect Edits

It’s important not to expect perfection on the first try. Requesting edits is a perfectly normal part of the writing process. Most writers will be happy to adapt their writing to your preferences, just wanting their customers to be happy. However, it’s also important to go about requesting edits the right way.

Be specific about what you want to be changed. Writers aren’t mind-readers and if you just ask for it to be “better” they won’t know what you want them to change. It’s also important to be polite about it. Don’t be critical without offering an example of what you’d like instead.

This is a learning process for the writer as they get to know you and your preferences. No one will be perfect on the first try. Asking for edits isn’t a big deal and you shouldn’t make it out to be.

Just ask for the changes you would like and, over time, these should become fewer and fewer as the writer gets to know what you’re looking for. It is, however, normal for there to still occasionally be edits later on as well.

Need some help growing your web presence and strengthening your brand? You’ve come to the right place.

Get in Touch with BrainVine!