Did you know that Google updates its algorithm constantly? Sometimes a dozen times a day, or hundreds of times in a year. These updates are often minuscule and don’t really affect traffic to your website. However, at least once (but sometimes several times) a year, Google releases a broad update that can change up the entire search game. Such an update came in October 2019 called BERT. This update put a huge emphasis on the content on your website and the quality of it. And those with bad content saw a huge drop in the rankings.

So what does that mean for those who sell SEO? You likely already know about BERT. But essentially, many learned that SEO is a tool and a campaign that must be regularly updated so that when big updates like this, it doesn’t affect your client’s websites. The fundamentals of SEO do not change from update to update, but the unique implementation plans should definitely change as the algorithms do. Those SEO companies and employees who know the importance of these fundamentals and do it very well often see even greater success on the websites they work on after these broad updates.

 

So why did BERT matter?

Google called BERT “the biggest leap forward in the past five years, and one of the biggest leaps forward in the history of search.” From Google itself, this was a big deal. BERT essentially changed up the way content is indexed and displayed to search terms. Previously, the Google algorithm looked at each word individually. Now, it takes into account how the words relate to each other.  When Google can look at the sentence as a whole, as well as all its parts, that means it can deliver better search results with the user intent in mind.

The query “Do estheticians stand a lot at work” previously would return job results pages. Now, it gives websites that talk about the physical demands of being an esthetician instead. BERT better understands the context of a query because the word “stand” can have different meanings. 

Google has been putting greater emphasis in recent years on search intent and matching results to what the user actually wants. BERT takes a huge step in improving user intent. BERT was designed to process how people think and what they mean when they type in a search, and a more accurate gauge of user intent generally means a better experience for all. And it’s not just results in English. BERT also enhanced language and snippet capabilities in 30 languages worldwide to improve the overall search experience for everyone who uses Google, no matter where they live.

 

How did BERT change SEO?

The BERT algorithm update changed the way people need to approach content on their website. And this isn’t just the words you read on a page. Content includes images, videos, blogs, and the information about your business and products on the site. Essentially, BERT has forced a business to write better content on its website, or drop in rankings. 

It’s important to include content with your audience in mind and help demonstrate why your organization is at the top of the industry. It’s also critical to keep in mind what a business wants the user to do when they visit a site. Is it to make contact? Is it to look at products? Is it buy online? Is it more general knowledge to help people learn something? Answering these questions requires a business to know who they want visiting their site and tailor content to them.

We suggest you incorporate branding throughout the site to people can easily navigate it no matter where they come from on the internet. SEO makes it so people can find any page, not just the home page when they search. And websites needs to be optimized for that.

BERT changed SEO because it makes content and keywords more purposeful. Content needs to answer questions in a way that most people would understand. Search intent is becoming ever more important in the search engine optimization game. It’s important that your client’s website provides a good experience for you and your customers. 

 

Why is SEO Important?

We’ll say it again: Google updates its algorithm constantly. Most of these updates don’t change anything for websites. But a couple times a year, Google announces a big change that can impact the rankings of most websites. Only rarely do these updates rise to the level of BERT. But core algorithm updates, over time can make a big difference for a website. 

But it’s possible to combat and adjust to all these changes through SEO. Good SEO efforts help your website stay ahead of all the algorithm updates. Good SEO helps websites grow by using specific tasks to enhance websites. Even though the search engine algorithm changes regularly, the fundamentals of SEO do not. When you enhance your website, you’re helping it put its proverbial best foot forward. 

When you constantly do SEO, you’re already putting good content on your website. When Google implements updates like BERT, it’s more likely to recognize that good content and boost the rankings.

 

Ready to get started?

Now that you know the importance of SEO, are you interested in selling it? Small businesses need SEO, and you can help them achieve their goals so BERT doesn’t impact their sites. Learn more about becoming a partner reseller here. 

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Kristine is the Director of Marketing at Boostability. She brings a decade's worth of communications strategy work to the company. Kristine has a Masters Degree in Leadership and Communications from Gonzaga University and graduated from BYU with her undergrad in Broadcast Journalism. She's worked in television news, public relations, communications strategy, and marketing for over 10 years. In addition to being a part of the marketing team, Kristine enjoys traveling, sports, and all things nerdy.